Kansas Basketball: 2019-20 season preview for the Jayhawks

Storylines

1.) Will Udoka Azubuike live up to the hype?

There is a lot of pressure for Udoka to perform with the expectations he has. The pressures of being named the Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year can possibly cause stress for Udoka early on. Fans will expect Azubuike to be playing superb right away. If you’ve watched non-conference games early in the year, teams are still learning how to gel together, players’ tendencies, and rotations that perform well on the court together. Udoka definitely can perform at a high rate, it’ll be whether he can perform with his caliber all year.

With the Big 12 being one of the top conferences in the country, lots of people’s eyes will be on Kansas. With their track record, Kansas is so used to performing well right away and is also known for putting up banners in Allen Fieldhouse. Since Udoka only played in 9 games last year, people will have questions throughout the season if he will play 30+ games. The McDonald’s All-American can definitely live up to the expectations.

2.) How impactful will Silvio De Sousa be?

Silvio De Sousa can be one of the top 3 guys on the Kansas roster. De Sousa was a huge part of Kansas’ run to the 2018 Final Four. Kansas gets a huge addition with De Sousa after winning an appeal with the NCAA. De Sousa will be looked to put up some big numbers to help Udoka Azubuike down low. The road looks good for Silvio though.

Most likely Silvio will come out hungry to get some minutes and perform. Sitting out a year is hard, but that’s a whole year of hard work getting better that opponents do not have on film. This is an advantage for the Jayhawks the whole season. My question is when it comes to conference play, can De Sousa change his gameplan with playing Big 12 opponents twice?

3.) Will depth be an issue?

I do not think so. The Jayhawks bring in some quality freshmen who look legit. Freshmen Christian Braun, Jalen Wilson, and Tristan Enaruna will look to be helpful this season. With freshmen, you never know how their game will translate at the college level, but this is three talented freshmen who can shine for the Jayhawks.

Marcus Garrett can hopefully help the Jayhawks in terms of minutes and depth. Also, Isaiah Moss, David McCormack, and Mitch Lightfoot can help when the starters come to the bench for a few minutes. These four can really help Kansas out with guard/forward play. Guys know their roles early on in the season, so the team will be ready to help contribute when needed.