KU Basketball: Five Bold Prediction for Jayhawks This Season
By Joel Wagler
The KU basketball is gearing up for the season, which starts on November 1 with an exhibition game against the Washburn Ichabods.
The Kansas Jayhawks will enter the season highly ranked. CBS Sports has them slotted in at number three in the preseason, after Duke and Kentucky. They are ranked number two in the AP Poll, according to KUSports.com
KU will be tested right away as they face Indiana, ranked ninth by CBS Sports (12th in the AP), on November 11, in Hawaii, then travel 5,000 miles to play number one Duke in New York on November 15th.
This roster is a unique one for head coach Bill Self. He only has ten scholarship players available to play. He pocketed one open scholarship for next season, and two others are held by transfers who must sit out this season according to NCAA transfer rules.
Self loves a tight rotation and this year he will have no choice. He has five big men and five guards he can play. All of these players should see plenty of time, especially in the non-conference portion of the schedule.
There are some interesting aspects to this roster. It is a great mix of seasoned veterans and raw youth. The relatively shallow player pool should allow all players to gain minutes, but you can see where Self might rely heavily on his starters.
So, what can we expect from this KU basketball team? With Frank Mason III at the helm, you can bet this team will be tough.
Self’s teams are usually tight defenders. There is no indication this version will be any different.
What are some things you might not expect? Let’s take a look at some predictions you won’t see every day.