LAWRENCE | For a 17-year-old kid, Thomas Robinson has shown an early knack for understanding the big picture.</p><p>Last summer, he decided to leave his home in Washington, D.C., to attend Brewster Academy, a boarding school in Wolfeboro, N.H.</p><p>&#8220;So I could improve myself for college,&#8221; Robinson explained, &#8220;so that I could be a step ahead of the seniors that are coming out of high school. I will already be used to college life a little bit.&#8221;</p><p>Turns out, Robinson&#8217;s year at Brewster will be preparing him to play basketball for the Kansas Jayhawks. Robinson, a five-star power forward, gave an oral commitment to KU coach Bill Self on Thursday night, choosing the Jayhawks over Memphis. Knowing Robinson, it&#8217;s no surprise that the chance to work on his game every day with KU assistant coach Danny Manning was a big factor.</p><p>&#8220;It puts me at an advantage,&#8221; said Robinson, 6 feet 8. &#8220;I&#8217;ll have somebody who was the best at what he did at his position to help me become a better forward.&#8221;</p><p>Robinson is the first player from the class of 2009 to pledge his commitment to the defending national champion Jayhawks. KU hopes to sign three in the class, and getting Robinson, Rivals.com&#8217;s No. 18 overall player, is an encouraging start. Going by player rankings, Robinson is the most talented KU commitment since Darrell Arthur and Sherron Collins signed in 2006.</p><p>With Robinson in tow, the KU staff will focus on bringing in two perimeter players. The Jayhawks would prefer to sign a point guard (either John Wall of Raleigh, N.C., or Elijah Johnson of Las Vegas) and one of four five-star shooting guards (Xavier Henry of Oklahoma City, Lance Stephenson of Brooklyn, N.Y., Michael Snaer of Moreno Valley, Calif., or Dominic Cheek of Jersey City, N.J.)</p><p>Signing Wall, Rivals.com&#8217;s No. 1 overall player, and Henry, No. 3 overall, would be the best-case scenario for KU. Both players are looking at KU and Memphis, so the fact that Robinson chose the Jayhawks just days after visiting Memphis is a positive for KU. Robinson says he is friends with both Wall and Henry but he won&#8217;t be pressuring them to follow him to Lawrence.</p><p>Robinson, who officially visited for KU&#8217;s national championship ring ceremony on Sept. 19, is glad to get the ball rolling for Self&#8217;s class.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not like I was racing anybody else,&#8221; Robinson said, &#8220;but I&#8217;m glad to be the first to commit here.&#8221;</p><p>Now, Robinson can focus on enjoying his year at Brewster. Robinson, who is considered by many to be the best rebounder in the class, will spend the most time with Brewster coach Jason Smith working on his defense and becoming more consistent with his outside shot.</p><p>Robinson said Brewster will prepare him for KU academically and socially, too. The class schedule is spread out and relaxed like a college student&#8217;s. Robinson lives in a dorm and has to walk across campus to his classes. All students also have their own laptops that they take to class.</p><p>&#8220;The freedom we have is not freedom where you can go wild,&#8221; Robinson said, &#8220;but it&#8217;s not high school either.&#8221;