McCullar’s injury, Dickinson’s free-throw rate, KU’s KenPom rating | KU Jayhawks Q&A
Kansas Jayhawks guard Kevin McCullar finds himself in a difficult situation.
Every game he misses due to a bone bruise, it’s harder for KU to win.
It’s clear that he and the team want him out there, but there’s a lot more at stake for him — like his NBA Draft stock.
McCullar played through injury and put together one of his worst shooting stretches of the season in his last four games. It began around the Cincinnati game when KU coach Bill Self mentioned the guard was dealing with a bruised bone.
How bad was it? McCullar shot an abysmal 37% from the floor in the last four games. At one point, a national NBA Draft evaluator even asked The Star What’s wrong with Kevin?
In Bleacher Report’s latest mock draft, McCullar was picked No. 23 — a decent fall from No. 17 selection in the previous iteration. Before this stretch, he’d even been mocked to be picked in the NBA lottery by some outlets.
It seems like McCullar will return against Oklahoma, but the most important thing he and Kansas need to ask themselves is whether he is fully healthy. As of right now, there’s a lot more at stake than KU’s Big 12 title aspirations. Rushing him back could cost him millions of dollars.
With that, let’s get into another Kansas Jayhawks mailbag. Thanks as always for the questions.
Why isn’t Hunter Dickinson getting more foul calls? He’s averaging 2 fewer free throws per game than he had last year. Edey gets over 10 per game, while Hunter gets less than 3 this year. Are the Big 12 and Big 10 that different? — @Bryan_J_Hawk
It comes down to a couple of things. First, Edey is better at drawing contact and exaggerating it enough that referees notice it, its something which Dickinson can improve upon.
On top of that, Dickinson is taking more 3-pointers this year than last year — not a ton more (2.1 vs. 1.7), but it’s a difference. He’s also not initiating contact as much, probably due to his knee bruise. Just ask yourself, when was the last time Dickinson dunked a basketball?
Lastly, and I think this is the most critical, Big 12 referees let more physicality happen than any other league. Dickinson’s free throw rate is currently 21.3, the lowest since his 2022 season at Michigan when the rate was 27.2.
Can you explain the scholarship situation? Did KU hold back three scholarships this year? And is that a factor in the lack of depth? I feel like no one realizes that, or maybe I’m wrong. — @Travius99
Kansas didn’t necessarily hold back three scholarships this season because of self-imposed sanctions; rather, it happened due to unusual circumstances. Remember, Kansas needed a reduction of three total scholarships to be distributed over three seasons starting in the 2022-23 season.
Last season, the Jayhawks had 13 scholarship players — the maximum amount. This summer, KU initially had 10 scholarship players until the dismissal of Arterio Morris.
Add in Kansas bringing back Zach Clemence, but he’s redshirting this season, so that knocks out potential depth.
The plan wasn’t necessarily to have just nine scholarship players, but Clemence decided to redshirt, the Morris situation arose and KU did not pick up additional players.
The worst KenPom rank KU has had under Self heading into the tourney is 19th. That is where they currently sit. Based on a daunting schedule to end the season, do they finish better or worse than that? — @JAndrew_Cochran
Boy, this is a great question. First, it’s a little nuts that this is the worst ranking for a Self team ever — it tells you how good KU has been under Self.
I think it’ll depend on the health of McCullar and Kansas’ ability to win some conference games on the road. The Jayhawks desperately need McCullar back for his scoring prowess and his excellent defensive skills.
Luckily for Jayhawks fans, it appears he’s got a good chance to play against OU on Saturday.
“Depending on how Kevin feels through practice on Thursday … if he’s able to continue to go on Friday, I’d anticipate him being able to be out there some,” Self said. “I don’t know the exact role or how much he’ll play, but he practiced yesterday. We just went real short.”
Road conference games for Kansas remain a real concern.
KU is 1-5 on the road in Big 12 games (the Jayhawks beat an awful Oklahoma State team). Kansas has three road Big 12 games left in the regular season: OU, Baylor and Houston.
The Jayhawks desperately need to win at least two of those for the Big 12 title race. That would help improve KU’s KenPom rating.
As for whether they finish better or worse? It’s hard for me to bet against Bill Self, but between injury issues, lack of depth and 3-point issues, it’s easier to assume they will be ranked slightly worse than 19th in KenPom.
Will the EA N.C.A.A. 25 feature Memorial Stadium or will they be playing in Arrowhead? Or amidst a pile of rubble? — @mikvogel
According to Matt Brown, the forefront reporter on all NCAA 25 matters, KU officials sent renderings and videos of the updated Kansas stadium to EA.
So, KU fans will see the new-look David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium in the video game before it’s officially unveiled in 2025 (EA plans to release the game this summer).
Do you think playing home games in KC next season will diminish any home field advantage? — @kusteveh
I don’t think so. Kansas City is home to a lot of KU alumni and about 45 minutes from Lawrence, so it isn’t too bad. Plus, Kansas has a plan in place to ensure students get down to KC for the games.
