Big 12 Conference Preview: #1 Kansas Jayhawks

2013-14 Season Results: 25-10, 14-4 conference record. 1st in the Big 12, 57-60 loss to Stanford in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

Key Losses: Andrew Wiggins (NBA draft), Joel Embiid (NBA draft), Naadir Tharpe (NBA draft), Tarik Black (graduation).

Key Returners: G Perry Ellis, G Wayne Selden, G Frank Mason, F Jamari Traylor.

2014 Recruiting Class: Cliff Alexander (ESPN 5-star, #1 PF), Kelly Oubre (ESPN 5-star, #4 SF), Devonte Graham (ESPN 4-star, PG), Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk (NR, SG).

At this point it’s hardly rocket science as to how head coach Bill Self recruits and reloads every year in Lawrence. When you produce the no. 1 pick in the NBA draft, it’s pretty easy to convince the nation’s top prospect to come join your program. That is the case for the 2014-15 Kansas Jayhawks – gone are freshman superstars Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid, replaced by incoming freshmen Cliff Alexander and Kelly Oubre, who headline the nation’s no. 4 recruiting class. It’s actually pretty exciting to see just how a program like Kansas retools after losing such talented players as Wiggins and Embiid. It’s expected of a program like Kansas to land at least one big-name, program-changing recruit. Will this season’s recruits, however, help Kansas out of their recent postseason funk?

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Such are the expectations of a program like Kansas – I use the term “postseason funk” to merely highlight the fact that the Jayhawks haven’t made a Final Four since 2012, when they lost to Kentucky in the national final. 2012 was also the last time Kansas made the Elite Eight, which is an accomplishment those familiar with the program have come to expect every season. Bill Self knows this, and he has built up a roster that actually has some experience, rather than one stocked with the nation’s best high school players from last season. Junior forward Perry Ellis returns as Kansas’ second leading scorer from last season, sandwiched between Wiggins (1st) and Embiid (3rd). Joining Ellis are sophomore guards Wayne Selden and Frank Mason, as well as junior forward Jamari Traylor. It’s a good deal of experience spread out over Ellis, Selden, Mason and Traylor, and that will go a long way in helping acclimate Alexander and Oubre throughout this season.

It’s no surprise that Kansas finished 1st in last season’s Big 12 standings while leading the conference in scoring at 80.9 points per game. They will continue to put up big numbers on offense this season while also finding a new identity on defense with the addition of Cliff Alexander. The big man can hold down the middle with authority and will definitely bolster Kansas blocks per game on the season. Expect the Jayhawks to continue to rebound the ball well, possibly expanding on their 37.6 rebounds per game pace from last season.

All of the stats just point to one thing – Kansas does just about everything above average. It’s the categories like points per game and total rebounds that put them above the other teams in the Big 12, and those same stats will help land Kansas atop the Big 12 standings come March. It will be yet another season-long conference dogfight amidst the Big 12, but this is something Kansas prepares for so well, season after season. That mix of leadership among the sophomore and junior players with the raw talent of the incoming freshman will combine to make Kansas a very tough team, at home or on the road. This might just be the year, as well, that the Jayhawks shake off their “funk” and make it back to the Final Four, if not at least the Elite Eight. Look to Tuesday’s huge matchup with Kentucky to see just how good this Jayhawks team will be.

Projected Finish: 1st

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