A closer look at KU’s 2025-26 men’s basketball roster as the NCAA transfer portal opens
The Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball team will have many new faces next season.
The question is, how many? Jayhawk fans will find out the answer soon enough as the NCAA transfer portal opened Monday.
KU’s season ended Thursday with a loss to Arkansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Afterward, Jayhawks coach Bill Self was candid about what matters most as he thinks ahead to 2025-26.
“You can go after the kids that you get a great bargain on (with NIL),” Self said. “You get a good deal on it and all that stuff, but it doesn’t matter unless they fit in and can help you win.”
Here’s a look at Kansas’ roster as transfer portal season begins:
Very likely to return
Center Flory Bidunga, guard Elmarko Jackson, guard Jamari McDowell, guard Noah Shelby (preferred walk-on)
The most interesting name on this list is freshman big Bidunga. He averaged 5.4 points and five rebounds in 16.3 minutes per game and showed flashes of immense talent.
On Saturday, incoming 5-star recruit Darryn Peterson cited Bidunga as the player he’s most looking forward to playing with next season.
A source close to the situation told The Star that Bidunga is not considering entering the portal. The source didn’t anticipate that stance changing anytime soon, assuming Bidunga’s upcoming meeting with KU’s coaches goes as planned.
Bidunga’s current plan is to take a one-week break from basketball, allowing himself time to recharge and reflect on the season. After that, he will meet with Self and his coaching staff to discuss his future.
All indications are that he’ll remain a building block for the Jayhawks’ future. Another source reiterated this sentiment to The Star.
Meanwhile, redshirt freshman guards Elmarko Jackson and Jamari McDowell should return to game action next season. Jackson (torn patellar tendon) continues to make great progress from his injury, which he suffered last June.
He has told The Star that he always saw himself as 2-3 year player at Kansas, so this timeline aligns with that. Jackson should be fully healthy by the time next season starts.
McDowell and Jackson have excellent reputations in the locker room. The pair helped out the coaching staff with insights this season and helped younger players assimilate.
All schools will have 15 roster spots next season, but KU will really only have 14 due to self-imposed sanctions from the NCAA situation. Shelby (a preferred walk-on) will likely return, but depending on the roster crunch it could be difficult for him to carve out a spot.
Could return ... or transfer
Guard AJ Storr, guard David Coit, guard Rakease Passmore, guard Rylan Griffen, forward Zach Clemence
David “Diggy” Coit, who stands 5-foot-11, was well-liked by coaches, teammates and fans alike. As for a return to Kansas?
Things may get a little tricky.
A source described the predicament as a “fluid situation.” Coit has a desire to return but has clear limitations as a player — for example, defensively.
It’s yet to be determined what KU will want out of guards occupying its currently open roster spots in 2025-26. There’s a chance both KU and Coit decide to go their separate ways. A source told The Star that if there’s a “fit there at the end of the cycle, he would be welcomed back with open arms.”
Guards AJ Storr and Rylan Griffen are two other players to keep an eye on. Both had underwhelming seasons after transferring to Kansas with high expectations.
Storr struggled after transferring in from Wisconsin, averaging just 6.1 points per game (he’d put up 16.8 per game for the Badgers a season prior). But a source said he remained positive and engaged throughout the season.
Clemence, meanwhile, considered leaving KU before this season began. He didn’t play much when healthy and was hampered by a groin injury during the second half of the season. He almost departed for UC Santa Barbara before the 2023-24 season but chose to stay at KU. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he entered the portal now.
And freshman Rakease Passmore is an interesting case. A top-100 recruit in the class of 2024, he didn’t play much this season. He averaged five minutes a game in 23 outings.
McDowell and Jackson raved about Passmore’s future, but it wouldn’t be surprising if he chases a situation with more set playing time.
The incoming freshmen
Guard Darryn Peterson, forward Bryson Tiller, forward Samis Calderon
KU’s incoming freshman class is ranked No. 27 nationally, per 247Sports. The crown jewel is five-star Darryn Peterson.
Self called him the “the best player we’ve recruited since we’ve been here.”
Peterson is the Jayhawks’ top-rated recruit since Andrew Wiggins. (Both 247Sports and ESPN rank him as the No. 2 prospect in the class.) He’s expected to be a one-and-done and likely top-five lottery selection in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Meanwhile, Tiller spent the past semester at KU. He continues to recover from an ankle injury he suffered last May. And Samis Calderon is excited about the prospect of playing under Self.
“I am playing for one of the best coaches of all time,” he told The Star late last year. “So I expect to win a lot.”
Eligibility: Exhausted
Guard Dajuan Harris, guard Zeke Mayo, guard Shakeel Moore, forward KJ Adams, center Hunter Dickinson
The Jayhawks must replace at least 80% of their starting lineup next season, as Hunter Dickinson, Zeke Mayo, Dajuan Harris, and KJ Adams have all exhausted their eligibility.
There’s a small chance that Dickinson and/or Mayo could get drafted, but an NBA evaluator recently told The Star he doesn’t see either player being picked.
Whatever comes next in their respective careers, Dickinson, Harris, and Adams were staples in the Jayhawks’ starting lineup the last two seasons. Adams suffered an Achilles injury in KU’s tournament loss to Arkansas.
Naturally, Self was emotional afterward.
“He and Juan, more so than anybody, because they’ve been here the longest besides me. That’s 10 years (combined) of spending most of every day with them ...
“They’re like sons to me. It’s one thing to lose the game, but to see him (Adams) potentially lose a year on top of the game — that’s a pretty big blow. Say what you want about those kids, but they’re winners and they compete every day. It’s just disappointing to have anybody go out that way.”
Adams and Harris, in particular, were KU lifers. The duo embraced Kansas at every moment. Finding that level of loyalty in college basketball can be tough in this day and age.
This story was originally published March 24, 2025 at 10:31 AM.
