Kansas Jayhawks Basketball: Conner Frankamp Transfer Doesn’t Help KU

The Kansas Jayhawks basketball team announced that sophomore guard Conner Frankamp is leaving the program, according to Gary Bedore of the Lawrence Journal World and KUSports.com.

Conner Frankamp surely would have been in line for an increase in minutes over his playing time last season. In his freshman campaign, Frankamp saw action in 27 games, getting 8.3 minutes a game. He scored 2.5 points a game, but only committed three turnovers all season.

More from Kansas Jayhawks

The Jayhawks still have a number of guards fighting for playing time. Frankamp was in competition with fellow sophomore Frank Mason, plus freshman Devonte Graham, for time at point guard.

Wayne Seldon, Jr., Brannen Greene, Kelly Oubre, and Sviatoslav Mychailiuk are all vying for time at the other two shooting guard positions.

Frankamp obviously didn’t think he was going to make Head Coach Bill Self’s eventual rotation. Self doesn’t really like to use more than a 9-player rotation once Kansas gets into the middle of the schedule.

ESPN College Basketball Insider Jeff Goodman seems to agree with how Frankamp viewed his situation.

Kansas shooting guard Conner Frankamp is transferring. Was behind too many guys -- and would have played sparingly.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) October 31, 2014

The loss of Frankamp won't hurt Kansas much. He was behind Mason/Graham at PG, behind Selden, Greene and Mykhailiuk at the 2.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) October 31, 2014

Bill Self didn’t make it seem as if it was that clear. According to KUSports.com, Self indicated Frankamp was in line for significant playing time.

"“This was disappointing news to us. Conner is a fine young man, a very good basketball player and certainly part of what we had envisioned not only our future but also as an impact guy for this upcoming season,” Self said, indicating he would have been “definitely been part of our rotation” and “playing significant minutes” during the 2014-15 season, which opens Monday versus Washburn.In fact, Self said he would have started in the exhibition on Monday night."

The loss of Frankamp will certainly hurt the Jayhawks’ depth at point guard. Even if Frankamp didn’t make the rotation, his ability to protect the basketball on the offensive end was a valuable skill set. As he proved late in the season last year, he could be a calming force and could protect the basketball.

Now, Kansas will be shorthanded if injuries or foul trouble creep up for Frank Mason and Devonte Graham. None of the other perimeter players look to be point guard material.

There was something that caused Frankamp to believe he wasn’t going to lay a big role on this season’s team. Even if he wasn’t going to make the rotation this season, he could have requested a red shirt. By transferring, he will lose a half of a season of eligibility.

From his statements to the Journal World, Frankamp cared more about immediate playing time than waiting his turn, as many Kansas players must do.

"“I’ve been thinking about this for a while now,” Frankamp said. “I love KU and I love the Jayhawks. I feel like I’ve improved quite a bit since I’ve been here. I love my teammates but I just don’t feel like it’s the right fit for me. We have many good guards and so many big-time players. I want to be at a place where I could play a bigger role."

Championships and wins don’t seem to be high of Frankamp’s priority list. Evidently, neither is patience or a sense of team.

More from KC Kingdom

Frankamp’s desertion leaves the Kansas Jayhawks a bit thin at point guard, not only for this season but for the future. Self will need to pursue point guard prospects in recruiting probably earlier than he might have intended. Still, Mason and Graham are young and talented.

Maybe Frankamp wasn’t looking forward to competing for minutes over the next three seasons. In a way, that is understandable, but that attitude wouldn’t have worked at Kansas anyway.

Bill Self and the Jayhawks will recover and move on. Frankamp’s departure will hurt Kansas in some games, but Self still have plenty of talented players, and now they will just have to play a few more minutes each game. Kansas will win without Conner Frankamp.