KU hoops coach Bill Self shares injury update, reveals Monday’s starters in Puerto Rico
Sophomore Kansas guard Arterio Morris, who bruised his right knee late in Saturday’s 92-87 exhibition basketball victory over the Bahamian National Team, won’t play in Monday’s rematch against Team Bahamas.
KU coach Bill Self made that pronouncement after practice on Sunday at the Academia del Perpetuo Socorro gymnasium.
Morris — he had seven points, seven rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes Saturday — did not practice Sunday. After standing for several minutes and walking a bit while observing the workout wearing a knee wrap, he iced the knee while seated on a bench in the building.
“He cant go. He’s got a bruise. I bet he could go if he had to,” Self said of the 6-foot-4, 195-pound Dallas native possibly playing in the 11 a.m. contest if it were an important regular-season contest, and not an exhibition. “We’ll sit him down and make sure he’s healed up for when school starts.”
The injury is not believed to be serious.
Elmarko Jackson to start the game
Self said freshman guard Elmarko Jackson would start Monday’s game along with projected regular-season starters KJ Adams, Dajuan Harris, Kevin McCullar and Hunter Dickinson.
Senior Nick Timberlake started the first game of the tour — a 106-71 victory over Puerto Rico Thursday — alongside Adams, Harris, McCullar and Dickinson.
Morris was the starter in that fifth slot Saturday vs. Team Bahamas.
“It was his turn anyway,” Self said of Jackson. “I did it (choosing fifth starter in the three games) by age. Nick was the oldest, Arterio next, then Elmarko. I think we’ve got four starters. Obviously I don’t know who the fifth one will be.”
“The way I see it, those three (Timberlake, Morris, Jackson) will play. Maybe Johnny (Furphy, freshman wing from Australia) is one of those guys when he gets here (to vie for starting slot). I think Jamari would play,” he added of freshman guard Jamari McDowell.
McDowell a possible redshirt
There is the chance McDowell, a 6-4, 180-pound freshman from Manvel, Texas, could redshirt. That is, practice but not play in games this season.
“I still don’t know about Jamari,” Self said. “I think he’s good enough not to waste a year (being on active roster if he is ticketed for limited duty). We’re going to wait and see how everything pans out through practices because he could be a 10-, 15-minute-a-game guy or he could be a five or seven (minute a game guy). It just depends on how he practices.”
Self said if it looks like McDowell is going to be a five- to seven-minute a game guy the likely move would be a redshirt season.
“I think he’s got a chance to be too good a player (to waste a year if he’s set for limited minutes),” Self said. “That’d be up to he and his family.”
Self compared McDowell to former Jayhawk Lagerald Vick as a freshman at KU.
“He didn’t play much. We wasted a year with Lagerald as a freshman when he could have redshirted,” Self said.
The game plan for Bahamas rematch
Ten Jayhawks played 10 or more minutes in the opener against Puerto Rico and nine who played 10 or more minutes against Team Bahamas. Zach Clemence (six minutes), will have a tighter rotation in the third and final game of this exhibition tour.
Self expects NBA players Buddy Hield and Eric Gordon will play for Team Bahamas. NBA big man Deandre Ayton, who practiced Sunday, also may play in the KU exhibition.
“Although I do think we played pretty well in stretches yesterday, I’m going to try to play this game tomorrow more like a real game as far as substitutions,” Self said. “Everybody will play but I’m going to try to keep three starters in the game all the time.”
Christian Braun in the house
Former KU guard Christian Braun, who won a world championship with the Denver Nuggets his rookie season in the NBA, attended Sunday’s practice.
He watched his brother, KU senior Parker Braun, work out a bit, then took the court with KU staff member Brady Morningstar to engage in his own drill.
Morningstar rebounded and passed the basketball to Christian Braun, who put up dozens of shots from midrange to past the 3-point line.
In comparing the Braun brothers, Self said: “I think personality wise Parker has some (Christian Braun) in him.
“Both (are) tough. CB is a talker. Parker is pretty sarcastic in a good way too. One thing about CB … he has that inner aggressiveness to him that Parker is not consistent with. Parker is a good athlete though (and) I do think he (Parker) feels comfortable with the people around him.”
No big deal to beat a national team
Self downplayed the significance of his college team defeating a country’s national team on Saturday.
“They didn’t have all their players,” Self said. “If we were going to play and beat a team with four pros on it or something like that, that would be different, although I do think we played pretty well in stretches yesterday.”
Team outing was fun
Redshirt junior guard Dajuan Harris said the Jayhawks had fun in their spare time Friday. They boarded a boat and headed far offshore, where they enjoyed some swimming and snorkeling.
“We went far, far away. We all had a good time. Everybody was in the water or snorkeling. We had fun team bonding,” Harris said.
Harris said he spent time on the boat “chilling, listening to music, watching my teammates have fun, eating. It was too hot out there. We all had a good time, though.”
