KU Basketball: Former Five-Star Prospect Carlton Bragg Jr. Transfers

The KU basketball team is losing another frontline play as Carlton Bragg Jr is leaving the program.

The Kansas Jayhawks will say goodbye to Carlton Bragg Jr, after two seasons, according to head coach Bill Self on Thursday.

This does not come as a shock after Bragg played seeing limited action in the NCAA Tournament. He saw only 28 minutes of action in the Jayhawks’ first three games and he never saw the court in the loss to Oregon in the Elite Eight.

According to Bragg in Kansas’ press release, via KUSports.com, he’s looking to start anew elsewhere.

"“I really enjoyed my time here at Kansas,” Bragg said in the release. “Kansas has the best fans and I do love the program. This past year didn’t go as well as I thought it would and it’s in my best interest to get a fresh start. I want to thank my teammates, coaches and the fans for all their support these past two years. I will always cheer for the Jayhawks.”"

As a high school recruit, Bragg was considered a five-star prospect and garnered tons of attention by other teams as an athletic and versatile power forward. During his career at Kansas, Bragg never lived up to the hype that proceeded him.

Bragg was ranked as the 21st best prospect in 2015 by ESPN’s Top 100.

On the court, Bragg averaged 4.4 points, 3.2 total rebounds, and a 53.3 field goal percentage per SportsReference. He never seemed to be comfortable as a KU big man. The bigger story was Bragg’s off court issues. These issues did not accumulate until his sophomore season, which made a small frontcourt seem even smaller with his suspensions.

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His off-court issues started with an incident at a party involving a fight with a KU student. It escalated even more when a police investigation turned up drug paraphernalia in his dorm on the KU campus.

Along with his off-court issues, Bragg was ineffective on the court. Most of the time Bragg seemed like a small fish in a big pond when he played near the basket. He had many head-scratching plays and was just overpowered by opposing teams frontcourt.

Even though Bragg had a difficult sophomore season he still had a role prepared for him if he continued on with his junior season. As a veteran, Bragg could have been a crucial piece to a now powerful frontcourt.

With the return of Udoka Azubuike and the addition five-star big man BillyPreston, though, Bragg most likely saw his role as a player at Kansas diminish. He didn’t have the play to back up a crucial role in the Jayhawks frontcourt which likely influenced his decision as well.

Carlton Bragg’s transfer decision should not affect the Jayhawks that much. Last year, the Jayhawks were a frontcourt with minimal options and Bragg still received little playing time. The one missing component to the Jayhawks’ frontcourt that Bragg could have solved would be experienced leadership.

Self now has another scholarship to give. Billy Preston and Marcus Garrett are signed and as is Arizona State transfer, Sam Cunliffe. With Josh Jackson leaving, Self should still have three left to give if he chooses.

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While this isn’t shocking news, fans probably never got the chance to see the best Bragg has to offer. Self and the KU basketball team will continue to reload for next year, and Bragg will be just a blip in the Jayhawks’ long history.

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