New KU basketball signee Johnny Furphy will ‘positively’ be in the rotation, Self says
Johnny Furphy, the Melbourne, Australia, native and small forward who committed to play basketball at Kansas on Wednesday, wasn’t asked by coach Bill Self to hop on a plane and fly to Puerto Rico for the program’s exhibition games Thursday, Saturday and Monday.
“There’s too many things going on. He’s home,” Self said of the 6-foot-8, 200-pound small forward, who is in Australia. “I wouldn’t have wanted him to come here just for the games anyway. I’d rather him be with us practicing. He’ll be so far behind he wouldn’t be able to do much to help us here without practicing.”
Self revealed Friday that Furphy, who burst onto the U.S. basketball scene as a major college recruit after playing well in the NBA Academy Games in Atlanta in early July, “probably won’t be with us for good until classes start.”
First-semester classes for the 2023-24 school year at KU will start on Aug. 21.
Self fully expects Furphy, who turns 19 on Dec. 7, to be a big contributor on this year’s team.
“Positively,” Self said, asked if Furphy figures to be in the rotation. “We recruited him to play that. Also we’ve only got 10 guys on scholarship (prior to signing Furphy). If you redshirt one or two of them, whoever that is, I don’t think it’ll be that hard to be part of the rotation.”
Self said Furphy “is a guard. The way we play it doesn’t matter. He can play one of four spots.”
Asked if there’s any chance Furphy would be a redshirt, Self said: “No. He’s got to play.”
Furphy, who averaged 14.3 points (hitting 22 of 56 threes for 39.3%) and 5.6 rebounds in 12 games in 2023 for Australia’s Centre of Excellence Development Program, is considered a possible one-and-done player.
“I don’t know,” Self said of the one-and-done status of Furphy. “I don’t think he’s coming here to be that at all. He’s certainly talented and has been on their (pros) radar. He’ll go whenever the time is right for him to go.”
Furphy chose KU at this late date after interest was shown by Duke, North Carolina, Gonzaga and others.
“I didn’t do anything,” Self said, speaking to The Star after practice Friday in Puerto Rico. “Norm (Roberts, assistant) did a good job laying the groundwork. But people in Australia … obviously the NBA Academy, they are certainly close to Johnny and did a good job of selling our message to him.”
Of choosing KU, Furphy told 247Sports.com: “I think everybody knows that Kansas is one of the (top) basketball programs in the United States, but what made the difference in the end was coach Self explaining the role he had in mind for me. To be honest, I was nervous about coming to such a big program, but coach Self has given me confidence that he both wants and needs me at Kansas.”
