2023 Men's Basketball Recruiting

[brevity]

Kansas gets a new scholarship opening, whether or not they wanted it.

247 Sports: Four-star guard Chris Johnson asks for release from Kansas

This afternoon, 247Sports learned from sources that top-50 senior Chris Johnson requested a release from the Jayhawks men's basketball program.

His decision to back out of his pledge comes after the addition of transfers Nick Timberlake and former McDonald's All-American and incoming sophomore guard Arterio Morris.

Chris Johnson is a 6-foot-4 combo guard and RSCI #51 for the 2023 class. If released from Kansas, he would be the highest ranked incoming freshman without a college commitment.

[brevity]

Kansas gets a new scholarship opening, whether or not they wanted it.

247 Sports: Four-star guard Chris Johnson asks for release from Kansas

Chris Johnson is a 6-foot-4 combo guard and RSCI #51 for the 2023 class. If released from Kansas, he would be the highest ranked incoming freshman without a college commitment.

SI/FanNation: Longhorns Land Commitment from 2023 4-Star G Chris Johnson

So Chris Johnson stays in the Big 12, for as long as Texas does. And maybe he started a trend?

ZagsBlog: Four-star wing Marcus Adams Jr. requests release from Kansas



The phrases "time here", "in-person love" and "find out where I truly belong" suggest that he's been on the Kansas campus and had second thoughts about being there. What incoming freshman hasn't? Here's hoping this doesn't become a trend.

Adams is a 6-8 forward who reclassified to 2023 and is ranked #57 by RSCI. According to this Scholarship Tracker (Google Spreadsheet), this release will give Kansas 3 open scholarships. Originally he picked Kansas over UCLA and Syracuse.

[scottdude8]

ZagsBlog: Four-star wing Marcus Adams Jr. requests release from Kansas



The phrases "time here", "in-person love" and "find out where I truly belong" suggest that he's been on the Kansas campus and had second thoughts about being there. What incoming freshman hasn't? Here's hoping this doesn't become a trend.

Adams is a 6-8 forward who reclassified to 2023 and is ranked #57 by RSCI. According to this Scholarship Tracker (Google Spreadsheet), this release will give Kansas 3 open scholarships. Originally he picked Kansas over UCLA and Syracuse.

Not sure I'm with you on this one, brev. There are plenty of reasons a new freshman might get on campus and get cold feet that we wouldn't have an issue with for a regular student (homesickness, not feeling comfortable in the campus atmosphere, mental health challenges, etc.), so without knowing more about the situation here I'm not sure we should rush to judgement. More specifically to basketball, if a coach can change his roster at the last minute through the portal, why can't a player change his mind at the last minute if the opportunities he was sold on during recruiting are no longer there? While in an ideal world recruits pick their school based on the school, culture, atmosphere, and opportunity, the reality is playing time is a huge factor as well. If that changes suddenly, I don't see why an incoming freshman shouldn't have the freedom that we now give established players in the transfer portal.

Now again, this is something where some regulation from the NCAA (which of course will never happen) would make things a lot nicer. There should be an "end period" for transfers, graduate or not, so that freshmen know the team they're joining in the summer. Easy solution: have the "transfer window" end two weeks before summer practices can officially start (beginning of July?), and then add in a two week period where freshman can request releases from their LOIs and "pre-transfer". Add in a mechanism by which prospective grad transfers have to declare their intention to grad transfer beforehand (in case they need a semester to fully graduate or something) that's universal and must be respected by both incoming and outgoing institutions (so that, for instance, the Terrance Shannon/Michigan situation of last year can't happen), and things get much smoother and more predictable. Again, though, this will never happen

[Phredd3]

Again, though, this will never happen

Never is a long time. I think at some point, the NCAA (or a successor organization to manage college basketball) will bite the bullet and enter into a CBA to resolve those kinds of issues. It's a multi-billion-dollar business. Structure is needed, and I think the institutions will eventually realize that when the current system breaks down under its own weight. It won't happen soon, but I think eventually it will happen.

[DavidBenAkiva]

Kansas convinced Zach Clemence, a 6'10" F to come back to Lawrence after he had entered the transfer portal and then committed to UC Santa Barbara. I believe I had read that Clemence was planning on spending a redshirt year for KU. Now, though, I think he might be compelled to play this year. The Jayhawks have about as good a starting 5 as you'll find in the nation. They are razor-thin in the frontcourt behind their starters, though. Losing Marcus Adams is going to force the Jayhawks to hope for the best health all season; lean heavily on KJ Adams and Hunter Dickinson to provide 30 minutes a night and Clemence to provide 20+ minutes a night; put a walk-on out there for a few minutes a game; or find someone in the transfer portal to join before the season begins. I bet they go into the portal.

In hindsight, keeping Christian Reeves, Ryan Young, and adding Sean Stewart to the frontcourt in the offseason was about as big of a win as Duke could have hoped. None of those guys are going to replace Kyle Filipowski if he is injured, but you know you can at least count on them to provide minutes and production if the worst should happen.

[budwom]

Kansas convinced Zach Clemence, a 6'10" F to come back to Lawrence after he had entered the transfer portal and then committed to UC Santa Barbara. I believe I had read that Clemence was planning on spending a redshirt year for KU. Now, though, I think he might be compelled to play this year. The Jayhawks have about as good a starting 5 as you'll find in the nation. They are razor-thin in the frontcourt behind their starters, though. Losing Marcus Adams is going to force the Jayhawks to hope for the best health all season; lean heavily on KJ Adams and Hunter Dickinson to provide 30 minutes a night and Clemence to provide 20+ minutes a night; put a walk-on out there for a few minutes a game; or find someone in the transfer portal to join before the season begins. I bet they go into the portal.

In hindsight, keeping Christian Reeves, Ryan Young, and adding Sean Stewart to the frontcourt in the offseason was about as big of a win as Duke could have hoped. None of those guys are going to replace Kyle Filipowski if he is injured, but you know you can at least count on them to provide minutes and production if the worst should happen.

I know this is a non hoops point of view, but selecting Kansas over Santa Barbara seems unnatural.

[its over]

Not sure I'm with you on this one, brev. There are plenty of reasons a new freshman might get on campus and get cold feet that we wouldn't have an issue with for a regular student (homesickness, not feeling comfortable in the campus atmosphere, mental health challenges, etc.), so without knowing more about the situation here I'm not sure we should rush to judgement. More specifically to basketball, if a coach can change his roster at the last minute through the portal, why can't a player change his mind at the last minute if the opportunities he was sold on during recruiting are no longer there? While in an ideal world recruits pick their school based on the school, culture, atmosphere, and opportunity, the reality is playing time is a huge factor as well. If that changes suddenly, I don't see why an incoming freshman shouldn't have the freedom that we now give established players in the transfer portal.

Now again, this is something where some regulation from the NCAA (which of course will never happen) would make things a lot nicer. There should be an "end period" for transfers, graduate or not, so that freshmen know the team they're joining in the summer. Easy solution: have the "transfer window" end two weeks before summer practices can officially start (beginning of July?), and then add in a two week period where freshman can request releases from their LOIs and "pre-transfer". Add in a mechanism by which prospective grad transfers have to declare their intention to grad transfer beforehand (in case they need a semester to fully graduate or something) that's universal and must be respected by both incoming and outgoing institutions (so that, for instance, the Terrance Shannon/Michigan situation of last year can't happen), and things get much smoother and more predictable. Again, though, this will never happen

Apparently WVU is looking at Adams Jr. Who is making that call?
https://www.yardbarker.com/general_s...17287_39028219

[fidel]

I know this is a non hoops point of view, but selecting Kansas over Santa Barbara seems unnatural.

First circle of hell vs pearly gates.

[brevity]

ZagsBlog: Four-star wing Marcus Adams Jr. requests release from Kansas

The phrases "time here", "in-person love" and "find out where I truly belong" [from the statement posted in the large image above] suggest that he's been on the Kansas campus and had second thoughts about being there. What incoming freshman hasn't? Here's hoping this doesn't become a trend.

Not sure I'm with you on this one, brev. There are plenty of reasons a new freshman might get on campus and get cold feet that we wouldn't have an issue with for a regular student (homesickness, not feeling comfortable in the campus atmosphere, mental health challenges, etc.), so without knowing more about the situation here I'm not sure we should rush to judgement. More specifically to basketball, if a coach can change his roster at the last minute through the portal, why can't a player change his mind at the last minute if the opportunities he was sold on during recruiting are no longer there? While in an ideal world recruits pick their school based on the school, culture, atmosphere, and opportunity, the reality is playing time is a huge factor as well. If that changes suddenly, I don't see why an incoming freshman shouldn't have the freedom that we now give established players in the transfer portal.

Update with a little more information.

ZagsBlog: Four-star Kansas freshman Marcus Adams Jr. transfers to Gonzaga

“I felt like KU wasn’t the right place for me,” Adams said “I see everybody in the comments and some reporters saying it was about playing time … it’s not. I felt like I would have been good there if I stayed, but I had a gut and heart feeling. I felt like it wasn’t a place for me. “The fans and all that showed me a lot of support during my time there, but I couldn’t see myself at Kansas for … years. There are no hard feelings. I just couldn’t see myself there.”

I don't think what I said above was all that critical. I didn't speculate about playing time, or question his feelings. I just pointed out that, like many incoming freshmen, he got on campus and had some doubts. That's almost universal. What's unusual is that he felt compelled to act on those initial impressions immediately.

I said "Here's hoping this doesn't become a trend" because I would rather see incoming recruits who spent months to years buying into a program not experience the equivalent of buyer's remorse. On this board we hear some variation of the line "We won't know for sure until they show up on campus" when it comes to the uncertainty of recruiting, whether it's wild speculation about Caleb Foster a couple of months ago, or someone else in a previous year. If Adams' actions did become a trend, we would no longer relax when the jersey numbers were issued, or the roster is released, or even when the freshman are on campus and having their first summer practices.

Changes to a program can happen, even in the eleventh hour. Look no further than what happened in West Virginia, and UNC-Charlotte to a less pronounced degree. But Kansas is pretty stable right now, even if the roster is bit fluid. Bill Self's health issues, whatever they are, were well-established news at the time Adams made his decision.

Adams was in the Class of 2024, committed to Kansas in March, and reclassified to 2023 after that. So he's making big life decisions at a time when he would ordinarily be gearing up for his senior year in high school. This is what he said about Gonzaga:

“I like how coach Mark Few reached out to me,” Adams told The Kansas City Star. “It looked like a good fit for me. They said they needed me. I was (at the) right spot (as) a 3-and-D wing. They needed a guy that could shoot the rock, make plays and facilitate. I was that guy. They reached out and showed a lot of interest.

“I looked through it with my parents and my family. It was the best fit.”

The Kansas City Star has a paywall, but you can technically get around it, and that article makes it clear that while Gonzaga players have reached out to him online after he announced the news, and that he appreciated the warm welcome he didn't feel he got from Kansas, he hasn't been to Spokane yet. Even he doesn't know how his gut and heart will react.

[brevity]

Kentucky, who already bonded this summer while winning GLOBL JAM in Toronto, have decided they need one more.



ESPN: Top European prospect Zvonimir Ivisic commits to Kentucky

Ivisic is a surprising and significant addition in August, as he turns 20 years old next week and already boasts significant experience at the professional level. He is coming off an outstanding showing at the FIBA U20 European Championship a few weeks ago, averaging 11.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 blocks and shooting 34% from 3 in 19 minutes per game for his home country of Croatia...

At 7-foot-2, Ivisic is a formidable shot-blocking presence who can step out to the 3-point line and finish with authority around the basket. He brings excellent mobility for a player of his height...

Ivisic could fill a major void in the frontcourt as both Aaron Bradshaw, the No. 6 prospect in the 2023 high school class, and Ugonna Onyenso, currently projected as a first-round pick in 2024, are injured. Onyenso is expected to return in September, while Bradshaw is expected to be cleared in time for the regular season after having foot surgery.

Crazy to think that John Calipari can bring in a unicorn type this late in the recruiting season, 3 weeks before classes begin. Ivisic withdrew from the 2023 NBA Draft, and is #33 on Jonathan Wasserman's Top 50 Big Board for 2024.

When it comes to recruiting, Duke may be playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers, but Kentucky plays a really good game of checkers.

[dlmzzz]

Kentucky, who already bonded this summer while winning GLOBL JAM in Toronto, have decided they need one more.



ESPN: Top European prospect Zvonimir Ivisic commits to Kentucky



Crazy to think that John Calipari can bring in a unicorn type this late in the recruiting season, 3 weeks before classes begin. Ivisic withdrew from the 2023 NBA Draft, and is #33 on Jonathan Wasserman's Top 50 Big Board for 2024.

When it comes to recruiting, Duke may be playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers, but Kentucky plays a really good game of checkers.

Ummmm, is the new definition of unicorn "really tall, and can hit rim when he tries a three"?

[JasonEvans]

Ummmm, is the new definition of unicorn "really tall, and can hit rim when he tries a three"?

I'd say hitting 34% is a good deal better than "can hit the rim." Duke has had several dudes who chucked 3s all the time in recent years who would have killed for 34%!

[dlmzzz]

I'd say hitting 34% is a good deal better than "can hit the rim." Duke has had several dudes who chucked 3s all the time in recent years who would have killed for 34%!

OK, so my snark may have been overblown. But I'm sticking with my opinion that "unicorn" has gotten seriously watered down.

This dude is 7'2". Is 34% from three really the shot you want him taking?

For comparison:
Hunter Dickinson shot 42% from three last season. Let 'er fly, big fella!
Zion shot 34% from three. OK fine, you be you, but you know that's not what we really wanna see, right?

[jv001]

I'd say hitting 34% is a good deal better than "can hit the rim." Duke has had several dudes who chucked 3s all the time in recent years who would have killed for 34%!

Ain't that the truth. DJ, Keels and Cam to a degree came to Duke with good high school shooting percentages but didn't live up to that at the college level.

[AGDukesky]

Ain't that the truth. DJ, Keels and Cam to a degree came to Duke with good high school shooting percentages but didn't live up to that at the college level.

Heck, Kennard only hit 32% his freshman year

[DukieInBrasil]

Kentucky, who already bonded this summer while winning GLOBL JAM in Toronto, have decided they need one more.



ESPN: Top European prospect Zvonimir Ivisic commits to Kentucky

Crazy to think that John Calipari can bring in a unicorn type this late in the recruiting season, 3 weeks before classes begin. Ivisic withdrew from the 2023 NBA Draft, and is #33 on Jonathan Wasserman's Top 50 Big Board for 2024.

When it comes to recruiting, Duke may be playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers, but Kentucky plays a really good game of checkers.

wouldn't the part about "significant experience at the professional level kinda make him inelligible for NCAA ball? Does Kentucky not have to abide by that rule?

I'd say hitting 34% is a good deal better than "can hit the rim." Duke has had several dudes who chucked 3s all the time in recent years who would have killed for 34%!

Kyle Filipowski comes to mind. As does Tyrese Proctor, although Tyrese did shoot much better than 34% for most of the year after an atrocious start.

[jv001]

wouldn't the part about "significant experience at the professional level kinda make him inelligible for NCAA ball? Does Kentucky not have to abide by that rule?


Kyle Filipowski comes to mind. As does Tyrese Proctor, although Tyrese did shoot much better than 34% for most of the year after an atrocious start.

Flip and Tyrese have something in common with Cool Hand Luke. They all returned for their sophomore seasons.

GoDuke!

[cbolden1]

wouldn't the part about "significant experience at the professional level kinda make him inelligible for NCAA ball? Does Kentucky not have to abide by that rule?


Kyle Filipowski comes to mind. As does Tyrese Proctor, although Tyrese did shoot much better than 34% for most of the year after an atrocious start.

One Caveat to this and a big one is that people are comparing full seasons to just 7 games

[Owen Meany]

Kansas quietly added another player for 2023 - Johnny Purphy "breakout Australian star from BA Centre of Excellence", according to Travis Banham. He sounds intriguing according to this article
https://247sports.com/college/basket...-24-213552772/
which lists Duke and Unc among teams who expressed interest and/ or offered the young player who recently reclassed. I don't recall his name coming up, so I'm not sure how much interest, if any, Duke may have had.

[brevity]

ZagsBlog: Four-star wing Marcus Adams Jr. requests release from Kansas

ZagsBlog: Four-star Kansas freshman Marcus Adams Jr. transfers to Gonzaga

Adams was in the Class of 2024, committed to Kansas in March, and reclassified to 2023 after that. So he's making big life decisions at a time when he would ordinarily be gearing up for his senior year in high school. This is what he said about Gonzaga:

“I like how coach Mark Few reached out to me,” Adams told The Kansas City Star. “It looked like a good fit for me. They said they needed me. I was (at the) right spot (as) a 3-and-D wing. They needed a guy that could shoot the rock, make plays and facilitate. I was that guy. They reached out and showed a lot of interest.

“I looked through it with my parents and my family. It was the best fit.”

Adams told The Star his decision wasn’t about playing time with the Jayhawks.

“I felt like KU wasn’t the right place for me,” Adams said “I see everybody in the comments and some reporters saying it was about playing time … it’s not. I felt like I would have been good there if I stayed, but I had a gut and heart feeling. I felt like it wasn’t a place for me. “The fans and all that showed me a lot of support during my time there, but I couldn’t see myself at Kansas for … years. There are no hard feelings. I just couldn’t see myself there.”

The Kansas City Star has a paywall, but you can technically get around it, and that article makes it clear that while Gonzaga players have reached out to him online after he announced the news, and that he appreciated the warm welcome he didn't feel he got from Kansas, he hasn't been to Spokane yet. Even he doesn't know how his gut and heart will react.

And now this. Is there any chance he can just go back to high school? G League? Overseas? Gap year?

ZagsBlog: Marcus Adams Jr. leaves Gonzaga one month after transfer

Adams has left the Gonzaga program and will remain in the transfer portal.

Joe Tipton of On3 first reported the news, and a source confirmed Sunday that Adams is no longer with the program. Adams never officially enrolled at Gonzaga, so he will remain in the transfer portal.