NCAA Basketball: Ranking 10 contenders for top-50 guard Chris Johnson

A couple of weeks ago, the Kansas Jayhawks lost one of its commits in the 2023 NCAA Basketball recruiting class in Chris Johnson. He’s a top-50 combo guard, listed at 6’4, and very capable of running an offense. With former UNC guard Simeon Wilcher now committed to St. John’s, that leaves Johnson as the top available incoming freshman.

There were plenty of teams that were involved for Johnson but according to on3 National Recruiting Expert Joe Tipton, there are 10 bigger names that are currently standing out. Each of them has plenty to offer for the guard but which makes the most sense?

Here’s a power ranking of the options.

10. Arkansas Razorbacks

For the record, there’s online speculation that star transfer Khalif Battle may not be eligible to play next season. If that ends up being the case, it would make sense for Arkansas to reach out to Johnson. But that’s a major risk to a guy that just left Kansas because of a crowded backcourt to go to one that’s bigger. The Razorbacks landed five rotation-level guards, returned Davonte Davis, and have a top-30 incoming guard joining in Layden Blocker. I simply don’t see the fit here.

9. Oklahoma Sooners

It doesn’t feel like it since Grant Sherfield did all of the work this past season but Coach Porter Moser did a good job rebuilding the backcourt. Guards Rivaldo Soares and Le’Tre Darthard will be around for one more year, while Siena transfer Javian McCollum has two years left. There’s also freshman starter Milos Uzan that’ll run the offense, along with top-40 freshman shooting guard, Kaden Cooper. It’s hard to envision a rotation spot for Johnson and that might be the case for a couple of years here.