New Portal Approach?
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It seems to me that there is a new ideology shaping the way the Kansas basketball staff is approaching the transfer portal this offseason. A couple of seasons ago their approach was to go after the biggest names in the portal (Dickinson, Storr, Griffen). That approach failed miserably. Last season their approach was to target players who fit the profile of a “Bill Self player” (Council, White, Dawson). This approach was better but still left something to be desired. This year, it seems their approach has been to target players who were playing their best basketball at the end of the season.
Let us assess each player who committed to Kansas via the transfer portal this offseason to demonstrate that this is indeed the coaching staff’s approach.
Leroy Blyden Jr.
Over the first 11 games of the season, he averaged 13.6ppg on 41% from the field (but 43% from 3), 2.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.9 turnovers (for a 2.4 a/to ratio), and 1.8 steals per game.
Over the last 11 games of the season he averaged 17.5ppg on 48% from the field (but 38% from 3), 4.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.8 turnovers (for a 3.0 a/to ratio), and 1.8 steals per game.
His numbers in every area were better in his last 11 games of the season than in his first 11. The only exception to this rule is three-point shooting, but that was very anyways strong in both samples. His improvement as a rebounder is eye-popping.
Bear in mind, this comparison of samples is especially telling because neither sample includes his 36 point explosion, which is a statistical outlier.
Keanu Dawes
Keanu Dawes scored in the paint and rebounded well throughout the whole season. His numbers in those departments do not change much from early season to late season, though it is worth bearing in mind that he was facing much better competition by late season.
However, one area in which Dawes did improve greatly as the season progressed was three point shooting. Over his first 11 games, Dawes was 3/25 from three, good for 12%. For the rest of the season, Dawes was 29/76 from three, good for 38%. He more than tripled his efficiency from three, and did so while continuing to take multiple attempts a game and against better defenses than he faced early in the season.
Dennis Parker
Dennis Parker is the only player in this portal class who does not follow this rule. His numbers fluctuated randomly throughout the season, with no clear patterns.
However, whatever Dennis Parker may lack in evidence that the staff is taking this approach, Christian Reeves makes up for in spades. Indeed, perhaps no player in college basketball improved more from the first half of the season to the second half than Reeves
Christian Reeves
In his first 18 games of the season, Reeves averaged a lowly 7.7ppg, a pitiful 6.2rpg, and a woeful 1.2 bpg. However, over the rest of the season (13 games), Reeves averaged a princely 15.7ppg, a herculean 9.9 rpg, and a stately 1.7 bpg.
Ultimately, 2 out of the 4 portal gets for Kansas were clearly better all-around basketball players at the end of the season than they were at the beginning. Then there is an additional player who might not have improved “all around,” but he improved a key area (three point shooting) so much that it still improved his overall impact on the game substantially (as his efficiency went up quite a bit and defenses have to respect a 38% shooter from downtown far more than they have to respect a 12% shooter). Thus, I think it is fair to say that 3 of the 4 portal gets were markedly better overall later in the season than they were earlier in the season, which suffices to prove that targeting improving players is the coaching staff’s new method. I hope it works out.
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Vernon is reporting the Serbian guy committed but eligibility concerns loom.Mihailo Musikic Will only be announced if he's eligible according to him. We shall see
