This KU basketball senior expects team to ‘play for their lives’ moving forward. Here’s why
As KJ Adams prepares to play No. 24 Arizona on Saturday, he’s experiencing a wide range of emotions.
After all, it’s his last game in Allen Fieldhouse.
Kansas will celebrate Adams and six other Jayhawks (Dajuan Harris, Hunter Dickinson, Zeke Mayo, Shak Moore, Patrick Cassidy and Dillon Wilhite) as part of the Senior Day celebration. Game time is 3:30 p.m. Central.
Adams was part of KU’s 2021 recruiting class. He vividly remembers the recruiting process, during which the forward chose KU over Florida, LSU, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oregon, SMU and others.
“I feel like they had a lot of other players in their mind. I kind of almost, in a sense, fell in their laps a little bit, wanting to come here a little more than they anticipated for me to come,” Adams said. “I kind of knew this was my place before they did.
“I just wanted to be here, whether there were other good players or not — I just wanted to be a part of this great program.”
The KU senior’s favorite memories are the 2022 National Championship game and KU’s win over UConn last season.
“Before I went to my mom’s funeral, that (UConn game) was a very impactful and monumental moment in my life,” Adams said. “Having that support right before that ... meant everything to me.”
For Adams and KU (19-11, 10-9 Big 12), it’s been an up-and-down season. But after a slow start in conference play, Adams is playing some of his best ball.
He’s averaging 17 points and 6.3 rebounds over the last three games. That’s up from his averages of 9 points and 4.3 rebounds this season.
Despite Adams’ recent play, the Jayhawks have struggled down the stretch. KU has lost two straight to ranked opponents and remains unranked.
Time is running out for Kansas to get back on track.
The game on Saturday marks the end of the regular season. Every game after is an elimination game, as Kansas will play in the Big 12 Tournament next week and NCAA Tournament the following week.
Naturally, Adams has a different mindset for those games.
“Everybody is back hungry again,” Adams said. “Everybody is ready to essentially play for their lives and try to get to that ultimate goal of Final Four and national championship.”
Before that, the Jayhawks will have to play a formidable Arizona squad. On Saturday, Kansas will wear its iconic crimson jerseys, which it has worn in Senior Days and Senior Nights past.
There’s also a winning streak on the line — KU has won 40 consecutive home finales.
Adams believes Senior Day is especially memorable for the parents “who sacrificed everything for them” and thinks that’s what the players are ultimately playing for.
Perhaps that extra motivation will help propel Kansas to victory.
No matter the outcome of Saturday’s game, Adams represents a dying breed in college athletics. He and Harris are the only scholarship seniors who played their entire careers at Kansas.
“Dajuan and KJ are going to be the exception rather than the norm moving forward, guys that have spent a combined 10 years in your program,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “They both mean a lot. … They have both gotten better and have played at a pretty consistently high level.
“I’m really proud of them.”
