Having nearly your entire team dismantled in the blink of an eye steers itself towards the bottom of any coach's wishlist.
For Bill Self and the Kansas Jayhawks, his 24th year at the helm should be one that sees the Jayhawks push past the first weekend of March Madness for the first time since 2022. That task gets a lot harder when seven players hit the portal and many more depart for either lack of eligibility or for the NBA Draft.
But all hope is not lost.
Kansas’ transfer portal talents
We will grant you that, yes, the Jayhawks are only bringing in one player ranked within the top-50 transfers in Keanu Dawes, according to 247Sports (funnily enough, Dawes ranks 50th).
But last season saw Self work very well with transfer portal acquisitions, Melvin Council Jr., and Tre White. While Loyola University Chicago transfer Jayden Dawson didn’t quite pan out, both White and Council showed extremely high ceilings, and neither of them was tipped as elite transfers.
Yes, they both tailed off towards the end of last season, of course, but with Darryn Peterson working himself into the team on a full rotation at that point, it became clear that no one really knew how to get the best offense with every star on the court, which caused the premature ending to their campaign.
Dawes will bring much-needed size and an offensive mindset that pushed for 12.5 points, 2.2 assists, and 8.8 rebounds on a strong 54.6% mark from the field.
Transfer guard Leroy Blyden Jr. has the potential to be one of the best transfers Self will ever land, as the former Toledo guard averaged a superb 16.4 points, 4.5 assists, and four rebounds, all as a freshman.
Lastly, Christian Reeves enters. The 7-foot-2 Reeves has had a bit of an unorthodox route to Lawrence, Kan., having to play at Duke, Clemson, and the College of Charleston, but his 11.1 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks from last season will go a long way in replacing the likes of Flory Bidunga.
A change from last season
Even if the Jayhawks don’t land the likes of the No. 1 high school prospect in the nation, Tyran Stokes, KU is reeling in the fifth-rated high school class in the nation as of publishing.
That is a class that comprises the country’s No. 13 player in the nation, five-star guard Taylen Kinney, four-star center Davion Adkins, four-star wing Trent Perry, and four-star guard Luke Barnett
While last season saw some great highs of an eight-game winning streak and cult heroes being born in Council, Kansas’ offense never fully blossomed; it will be hard to see the Jayhawks notch multiple 20-point scorers. Self may be looking at one of his most well-balanced teams since the inception of NIL, something that could not have been said about last season’s team.
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