Andrew Wiggins, Josh Jackson possess some of the same traits, KU coach Bill Self says at luncheon

Kansas basketball coach Bill Self says he does see some similarities between KU freshman Josh Jackson and third-year Minnesota Timberwolves standout Andrew Wiggins.

“I think if you just look at Josh and Andrew — when Andrew had all the hair, before he got it cut — they look just alike,” Self said of the guards who each entered KU as the No. 1-ranked high school player in their respective recruiting classes.

“Both are 6-8. Both are 205 pounds. Both need to gain weight. Both need to get stronger,” Self added Monday during a question-and-answer session with fans at KU’s annual Roundball Luncheon at the Wichita Marriott.

“Andrew is and was a better athlete, but when you talk about him being a better athlete, you could say Andrew is a better athlete than 99.9 percent of all kids who have ever played basketball before. He’s a freak. Josh is too, but not quite as freakish as Andrew.”

Self said that Detroit freshman Jackson, “has a great first step and good jumper. He is not going to put his head in the rim like Andrew potentially can. Josh probably doesn’t shoot it as consistently well as Andrew, but he does everything. Josh can defend. He can rebound. He can keep possessions alive. He can pass it, handle it. He can do some things to really give your team a chance to win. This is a bad comparison (but) Danny (Manning) as a freshman averaged 15 points a game but made the game so much easier for everybody else because he could pass and see (openings on the floor). Josh can have the same impact on us.”

Azubuike healthy

Self was asked about the health of freshman forward Udoka Azubuike, who a few weeks ago was slowed by a groin strain.

“He’s healthy. He’s fine,” Self said of the 7-foot, 280-pounder from Delta, Nigeria.

“His body is not used to the pounding he’s taking right now,” Self added. “He’s young (17). We had a kid visit our school two weeks ago — a recruit. That means he’s a high school senior. He was 23 months older than Udoka.”

“I didn’t know this … in Nigeria they start first grade when you are 4. He started ninth grade when he was 13. He was so young when he came over here (the United States). He was two years ahead of kids in his respective class. There will be some things happen with him physically that are new to him because of his youth and body that size developing. We may have to back off and not push things just because we want to make sure his body can take the pounding.”

Robinson makes Lakers roster

Former KU forward Thomas Robinson has survived cuts of the Los Angeles Lakers, wrapping up a roster spot on his sixth NBA team in five years.

The Lakers on Monday cut Yi Jianlian and Anthony Brown, electing to keep the 6-foot-10, 240-pound Robinson, who is expected to fill a similar role with the Lakers as former KU forward Tarik Black, a 6-9, 250-pound third-year pro.

Robinson, the fifth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft (by Sacramento), has also played for Houston, Portland, Philadelphia and Brooklyn.

At this time, former KU players in the NBA are: Black and Robinson, Los Angeles Lakers; Cole Aldrich, Brandon Rush and Andrew Wiggins, Minnesota; Darrell Arthur, Denver; Nick Collison, Oklahoma City; Cheick Diallo, New Orleans; Joel Embiid, Philadelphia; Kelly Oubre and Markieff Morris, Washington; Ben McLemore, Sacramento; Marcus Morris, Detroit; Paul Pierce, Los Angeles Clippers; and Jeff Withey, Utah Jazz.

Kirk Hinrich, Drew Gooden, Mario Chalmers and Cliff Alexander, who played in the NBA last year, at this time are free agents and still available to be picked up by any team.

Ellis likely to D-League

The D-League Digest reports that former KU forward Perry Ellis, who was waived by the Charlotte Hornets, will play for the Hornets’ D-League team in Greensboro, N.C. Sources tell The Star the report will likely play out to be true, but is not a done deal yet.

Gak may need more time

After visiting Kansas and Florida in the same week, blue-chip high school basketball big man Deng Gak may need some time to finalize his college choice. Rivals.com’s No. 91-rated player has a list of KU, Florida and Miami.

“I’m still deciding whether I’m going to decide early or late,” Gak, a 6-foot-9, 210-pound senior forward from Blair Academy in Blairstown, N.J., told Zagsblog.com on Monday — a day after he completed his campus visit to KU.

“My timetable to decide was today, but I don’t think I’m going to. I think I’m going to wait a little bit.”

Gak, who was born in Egypt, then moved to South Sudan and finally Sydney, Australia, where he lived most of his life, said the KU visit “was great. All the players were cool. I had fun.

“Coach Self said I would definitely be a part of the rotation the first year, but my impact might not be that big my first year. It might be my second year because of players ahead of me,” he added.

Gak’s brother, Gorjok, is a 6-11, 230-pound freshman at Florida. Gorjok Gak decommitted from Oklahoma State after last year’s coaching change from Travis Ford to Brad Underwood.

“The Florida visit was awesome,” Deng Gak told Zagsblog.com. “I think I could play if I go to Florida. My brother is there, obviously. We’ve talked about playing together, but we’ve also talked about playing against each other so I’m still thinking about it.”

Asked what he liked about Miami, Gak, who is a nephew of former Oklahoma player Longar Longar, said: “Besides the fact that it’s Miami? … I could see myself really fitting in and playing a lot my first year.”

Gilgeous-Alexander has eight on list

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a 6-4 senior guard from Hamilton Heights Christian High in Chattanooga, Tenn.,who is ranked No. 53 in the Class of 2017 by Rivals.com, has cut his list of schools to eight after decommitting from Florida, Zagsblog.com reported. They are: KU, Kentucky, Syracuse, Florida, N.C. State, UNLV, Oklahoma and Texas. KU coaches are expected to attend an open gym workout of Alexander on Tuesday.

This story was originally published October 24, 2016 at 8:25 PM with the headline "Andrew Wiggins, Josh Jackson possess some of the same traits, KU coach Bill Self says at luncheon."