Kansas Jayhawks Q&A: Fixing KU basketball’s issues & looking ahead to Big 12 Tournament
Kansas coach Bill Self provided an injury update on first-semester forward Bryson Tiller on Thursday.
Tiller, redshirting this season as an early enrollee, has been limited in practice due to an ankle injury.
“He has not been cleared,” Self said. “He’s having tests done coming up here pretty soon, but he has not been cleared. And hopefully he will be, so we can get him out there and see where he is. But at this point, we’re being very precautious.”
Before he arrived in Lawrence, Tiller was a part of Overtime Elite. He hadn’t played in OTE games since May due to his injury.
Last season, he averaged 12.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 28.1 minutes per game for the City Reapers of the Overtime Elite League.
Self has high hopes for Tiller.
“Bryson is ultra talented,” Self said in November. “If he hadn’t gotten hurt he would be a top-5, top-7 kid in the class. He hasn’t been able to do much in the last six or eight months, but he’s talented. He’s 6-10 and can play anywhere on the floor.”
With that, it’s time for another Kansas mailbag. Thanks, as always, for the questions!
Does their play in the Big 12 tournament matter this year? Seems like the last few years the team was already slotted into a spot by the committee. Given the record, missed expectations, etc., does this year actually matter? @mikvogel
It does for a couple of reasons. First, the Jayhawks probably have no chance at a top-4 seed without at least a solid performance in the Big 12 tournament.
Second, it’s an excellent test for March. One of the most significant issues with this team is its consistency. KU went about a month of playing .500 basketball until it won its last two games (against pretty mediocre competition).
If the Jayhawks can string together a couple of wins before March Madness in the Big 12 tourney, it will help them build confidence. Remember, KU is the team with the most Division I experience in college basketball. The Jayhawks are dangerous if they play close to their ceiling.
That all starts with a deep Big 12 tournament run.
How can we get our guards and small forwards to drive to the basket to lead to high-percentage shots and getting to the free throw line. We need to generate more scoring, and getting to the line more would really help. Also how do we solve the rebounding issue? @Ndlong7
Unfortunately, two things cause the first issue. First, the spacing between Hunter Dickinson, KJ Adams and Dajuan Harris isn’t good when they share the floor.
Dickinson and Adams tend to clog the paint because opposing teams don’t really respect either player’s jump shot. If the paint is clogged, it is much harder for a guard or forward to drive.
On top of that, none of KU’s guards (outside of Zeke Mayo) are particularly fond of driving to the basket and initiating contact.
As for the rebounding issue, KJ Adams must be more consistent. He’s the most athletic player on the Jayhawks but averages 4.4 rebounds per game.
The easy solution is to play freshman Flory Bidunga more, but his perimeter defense isn’t good enough yet for him to play heavy minutes in every game. I don’t think there’s a real solution outside of KU’s top players making a more consistent effort on the boards.
What’s your best guess for the KU backcourt next year? Coit staying, Peterson in and Jackson and McDowell back from injury/redshirting gives you four guys to work with all of whom aren’t natural point guards. What’s the fix there? A pure pg with a lot of experience (Bennett Stirtz?) Or something else? @ben_h_hooke
I expect Darryn Peterson to initiate the offense. Based on his highlights, he certainly can play the point guard role. I was told it was also something he wanted to do at the college level.
That said, the Jayhawks will likely bring in another guard from the transfer portal. That guard likely battles with Elmarko Jackson for the starting spot alongside Peterson.
Earlier this season, I wrote about how Jackson is approaching this lost season.
What % of these quality early fball commits will KU be able to hang onto? @JAndrew_Cochran
This is an excellent question. Under coach Lance Leipold, KU football has done a fantastic job keeping its high school recruits.
Right now, the Jayhawks have 13 commitments in the Class of 2026. Seven of those players are from Kansas — which is a very positive. It’s certainly easier to keep in-state recruits than out-of-state recruits.
Kansas has locked up some players who will get legitimate looks from Big Ten and SEC programs. For example, safety JJ Dunnigan received offers from Oregon and Tennessee.
If I were to guess, Kansas will keep a very high percentage of its recruit, upwards of 80%. Still, a lot can change before the players arrive on campus.
