The Furph



  • Furphy will have to watch his fouling! He tends to lean in after he gets beat. He’s better and his long arms help just needs to move his feet and take sharper angles.



  • Furphy has the highest ceiling of the young guys IMO. Hes gonna have his struggles but hopefully by March is ready



  • Depending on matchups, I wouldn’t be surprised if there are games where Elmarko plays more that Furphy… games where we need a guard more than a wing… But in general, I like how this team operated with Furphy starting.



  • He’s so jumpy! Hi motor. He seems to be really coachable.



  • @Crimsonorblue22 Furph is the man and not afraid. Self has figured this one out right just took a bit yet Furph was gone over December and wasn’t here as early as other guys. When look at the film and plus/minus it’s clear he’s night and day better than Elmarko so not sure why it took this long to replace him



  • @kuballin10 said in The Furph:

    @Crimsonorblue22 Furph is the man and not afraid. Self has figured this one out right just took a bit yet Furph was gone over December and wasn’t here as early as other guys. When look at the film and plus/minus it’s clear he’s night and day better than Elmarko so not sure why it took this long to replace him

    It’s an uncomfortable topic for some but I think Furph is ahead basketball wise because he played in another country and wasn’t in the putrid AAU system…



  • I’m probably way off base here, but I have been before so no difference. You know who Johnny kinda reminds me of ? - - -to me he looks like and kinda resembles to me anyways a young SVI M.,-- Furphy aggressive, might be a little better rebounder the SVI at this stage, lots of energy- -3 pt threat, which in time think Johhny gets even better. I dunno just reminds me of SVI some.



  • @BShark

    Coming from an NBA factory as well.

    Elmarko is just green to the game and it’s showing at this level. He isn’t close to his ceiling. Maybe his leap will come later in the season



  • If EJ can just focus on D and not let his man score his offense will come with time.



  • The Australian prince that was promised.



  • @BShark hope he plays like this for his parents! I love he how reacts w/out having to think. Nick is having more fun, fitting in. Marko is struggling. Need to find minutes. Has the talent! Still wish we had Udeh.



  • @Crimsonorblue22 - Udeh had 11 & 9 last night in 24 minutes in a loss vs Cincinnati. 6 offensive rebounds. Maybe he’s starting to break out.



  • Udeh made his choice. Would be nice to have him instead of Parker but the decision was understandable.



  • @Gorilla72 dont forget 5 steals!



  • @BShark

    Udeh blew the game in Allen and missed a game winning FT last night. We are absolutely okay without him being the difference between wins and losses.



  • So now we expect Furph to do this every game and he’ll get criticized when he doesn’t make the snuff! lol

    I’m hopeful we’ll see a lot more games like last night from “The Furph” this year, and feel positive that we will. OSU showed off our entire team by not showing up… but still… we typically go down to Stillwater and play poorly. Not the case last night!

    Furph definitely looks like our best fifth option… the team flows best with him out there. Without question!



  • @drgnslayr said in The Furph:

    So now we expect Furph to do this every game and he’ll get criticized when he doesn’t make the snuff! lol

    I’m hopeful we’ll see a lot more games like last night from “The Furph” this year, and feel positive that we will. OSU showed off our entire team by not showing up… but still… we typically go down to Stillwater and play poorly. Not the case last night!

    Furph definitely looks like our best fifth option… the team flows best with him out there. Without question!

    Oh you know he will get criticized , it’s the nature of the beast here lol. - -It will be all roses and candy when he does like he did last night BUT when he has a off night , some turnovers , gets beat on the on the defensive end, makes a couple of silly fouls , we will have a couple that I know of here that will be on him like White on Rice - -It will be Johnny get your gun lol. -I think he is gonna be good for us still reminds me of a young SVI



  • @drgnslayr said in The Furph:

    So now we expect Furph to do this every game and he’ll get criticized when he doesn’t make the snuff! lol

    I’m hopeful we’ll see a lot more games like last night from “The Furph” this year, and feel positive that we will. OSU showed off our entire team by not showing up… but still… we typically go down to Stillwater and play poorly. Not the case last night!

    Furph definitely looks like our best fifth option… the team flows best with him out there. Without question!

    I’m upset he was unable to duplicate his first half performance in the second. Bench him.



  • From The Athletic:

    Furphy had 15 points (which ties his season-high) on 5-of-6 shooting, three made 3s, seven rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and no turnovers against the Cowboys. KenPom even gave him the game MVP designation for that performance. Two games is a small sample size, but is Furphy the fifth starter Kansas has been waiting on? It’s too early to say, but something here smells intriguing. Per CBB Analytics, the lineup Self started the last two games — despite only playing 92 minutes this season — is Kansas’ most efficient (amongst lineups that have played at least 10 minutes) by a significant margin. — Marks



  • He is a freshman and missed some time, so he will have ups and downs. But, he has a good stroke, size, goes after rebounds, is better for spacing, and has a high bball IQ.

    In another thread, I said if he was playing 20-25 minutes, he would be a 10 and 5 guy. I’m going to adjust that. It will be a bit match up dependent, but he should generally be getting 30 minutes a game from here on out. And, not all at the 2. He should be able to take Kev and KJ breather minutes, as well. If so, I think he can be a fairly consistent double digit scorer - similar to KJ - and 5-7 RBs per game.

    EJ should be getting mostly Juan sub minutes. Just doesn’t work well to have 2 guys who don’t look to score on the floor together for any period of time. Puts more pressure on the other 3 and allows the defense to sag.



  • I think, not 100% sure, he gets tired in 2nd half, conditioning issue. Once his strength and conditioning improve, he will have better performance in second half.



  • @AsadZ

    Yeah I think your right. He didn’t have an off-season at KU and then was limited to begin the season with shin splints. He seems to be finding ways to overcome all the obstacles thrown his way. Future pro



  • Furph is a Flying Fox, biggest bat in Oz, Aussie Batman.

    Hes actually from French Lick Indiana and is a total hick. Furphy’s a made up name.



  • @benshawks08

    I’m thinking you are being sarcastic here… but there is something to this.

    Might he be gassed going into the second half? I’m fine with getting 20 good minutes out of the Furph per game. Also… since he’s an unknown in the B12, he is probably starting to earn some respect and emphasis in scouting.

    And for those who are thinking he will run off to the NBA after this year… or even next year… here is a good read on Gradey Dick’s first year in the NBA.

    Imagine had he stayed in Lawrence. Imagine the piece he would have provided for us while taking his time developing his body (part of it is to just build on his age). He would have left Lawrence a legacy player with status and could have had a much easier transition into the next level, without having to dig himself out of a tough situation.

    I still stand by my comments that Dick should have stayed!

    https://raptorsrapture.com/posts/concerned-raptors-gradey-continues-struggle



  • @drgnslayr Gradey Dick signed a 4 year / $21,422,551 contract with the Toronto Raptors, including $21,422,551 guaranteed, and an annual average salary of $5,355,638.



  • Plus I have seen him in ridiculous commercials when I set my VPN to Canada. Kid is making bank.



  • @approxinfinity

    Yep. And now they seem concerned he could be a bust. The game is more than about money, and sometimes, like poker, you hold onto a hand and not bet the pot early.

    I hope Gradey makes it, and I think, to some level, he will. I just wonder what would have happened if he didn’t race to make money.



  • @drgnslayr except in poker your King cant blow out his knee and you wont accidentally expose your Ace.



  • @approxinfinity

    Yep… good counter point!



  • @approxinfinity

    Does he stand at a higher chance of injury playing in a league above his physicality over college ball, which is more at his physical level? He wasn’t even physical enough at Kansas.

    It seems like an obvious answer to this, but I’m not sure. Toronto has a lot invested in young Gradey and he has access to the very best in sports medicine.



  • @drgnslayr interesting thought. What if the nba draft / ncaa rules change to allowing the kid to stay at college a year after getting drafted rather than going to g league? Just retain the draft rights to them? Is this not allowed and a reason why this isnt a thing?



  • @approxinfinity

    I like it!



  • @drgnslayr wouldnt teams often salivate at the idea of leaving guys to develop with Self, given how we finishes guys skillsets?



  • @approxinfinity

    And in an environment where the fan base is totally supportive! We’ve embraced players like Kevin, Jalen Wilson, and Christian Braun!



  • @approxinfinity said in The Furph:

    @drgnslayr except in poker your King cant blow out his knee and you wont accidentally expose your Ace.

    If you play with the wrong people, someone else might blow out your knee, and your ass…I mean Ace…might never be seen again.



  • @approxinfinity baseball did it for a long time. The old draft and follow. But they got rid of it by pushing up the deadline to sign players. I imagine the union would want exactly zero part of it



  • I just wonder how many NBA busts from guys who left early, especially those who were good college players like Grady, made a mint, but never saw the court in the league would have traded in all that money for the opportunity to stay in school and be the BMOC? Economics determines some of that I’m aware, but how many have regrets?

    I know some say once a Jayhawk always a Jayhawk. I understand that but that’s not for me. You got to earn that title for me. Good luck Grady, but you gave up the chance for a ring, which they’d probably be overwhelming favorites right now had he stayed. Enjoy your future career in Europe.



  • @wissox run-on sentence ahead - I love KU with all my heart, but if I was as marginal of a talent as Brady and had the option to make $21million guaranteed as opposed to 3 additional years of collegiate glory, I would not have to think too hard about it. It would take most households over 100 years to earn that. Brady didn’t have a choice in my opinion. I don’t think he’s an nba level talent and would have been exposed.



  • @wissox I’m with you on not caring/forgetting about most OADs that played for KU. The ones I liked get fuzzy even. It’s just so little of them you see it’s not deeply engrained enough in the gray matter I suppose. I have more memories of TJ Whatley’s mustache than I do of say Josh Selby.



  • @dylans

    Interesting perspective. You may be right. The entire time Grady was here the only thing I saw in his game that said NBA was his fluid shot release (and potential for accuracy). I remember watching many of Steph Curry’s college games. He was small and fairly weak… but he had a real high basketball IQ and great handles while in college. More than Grady had.

    Time will tell on Grady.

    Had we won a title with Grady this year and he was perhaps our top scorer… and banging down 40+% from trey… wouldn’t he have been a top 10 selection in the NBA draft?

    @wissox

    I feel pretty much the same as you on OADs. I have enjoyed watching Wiggins and Embiid at the next level. I didn’t think either of those guys should have stayed at KU beyond one year.

    I would have rather used the scholie we gave Gradey on a development player who would be mashing it now and giving us depth! Gradey didn’t even propel us in his one year here.

    Still… not trying to trash Gradey. He didn’t come to KU with promises of more than a year and Self warned everyone early on that he would be gone.



  • So here we are… back to the all-time classic argument; are OADs worth recruiting?

    Evidently, Duke and UK think so. I’ve watched several UK games this year and they might do some serious damage in March, especially if they clear another footer into the lineup.

    Next year college basketball will all be about Duke. Cooper Flagg will give Duke more free PR than they could ever get anywhere else… even if they had won a Nattie! That kid better perform and Duke better bring home a title or the joke will be on them! Far more humiliating than when they bought Zion!



  • @drgnslayr said in The Furph:

    @dylans

    Interesting perspective. You may be right. The entire time Grady was here the only thing I saw in his game that said NBA was his fluid shot release (and potential for accuracy). I remember watching many of Steph Curry’s college games. He was small and fairly weak… but he had a real high basketball IQ and great handles while in college. More than Grady had.

    Time will tell on Grady.

    Had we won a title with Grady this year and he was perhaps our top scorer… and banging down 40+% from trey… wouldn’t he have been a top 10 selection in the NBA draft?

    @wissox

    I feel pretty much the same as you on OADs. I have enjoyed watching Wiggins and Embiid at the next level. I didn’t think either of those guys should have stayed at KU beyond one year.

    I would have rather used the scholie we gave Gradey on a development player who would be mashing it now and giving us depth! Gradey didn’t even propel us in his one year here.

    Still… not trying to trash Gradey. He didn’t come to KU with promises of more than a year and Self warned everyone early on that he would be gone.

    I just can’t hold it against these guys for supposed OAD if they feel or been told/advised to enter then if they feel they got that chance, they got to follow their dreams – it’s a business for them just like it’s a job for ordinary people --can’t be a hater – hate the game. - -Thing is about JO , Jo he WANTED to come back, Coach Self pretty much told him no , you need to enter the draft, you can’t do anymore here – GO so he did



  • Look, Bill told Gradey to get out of Dodge. Unlike some (some dude named Roy), Bill tells lotto picks to go and if you don’t I’ll kick your ass out. He’s like a good parent in that way, they know when to say hey it’s time to leave home and make your own way. JoJo REALLY wanted to come back but Bill told him absolutely not you’re going to the league and there’s nothing you can do about it so make the best of it. There are others like Ben and Thomas who felt the same but also they NEEDED to go to provide for their families.



  • @FarmerJayhawk

    Yes he did!

    When there is a guaranteed contract on the table, leaving is by far the safe bet.

    One can also argue it’s the best path for future success in the league, too. When teams invest a fortune on these guys you can rest assured they are being coached up to the max.

    I’m just a bit nostalgic and trying to squint my eyes and still see the possibility that college basketball isn’t 100% business… all the time.



  • What do we know about the Furphy family? If Furphy is predicted as a second rounder or G league, will he choose to leave to help his family?



  • @stoptheflop they just spent two weeks seeing America so I think they’re fine



  • I now think Furphy will start the rest of the way. I don’t see him getting supplanted unless there’s an injury.



  • Furphy has looked like a lottery pick since starting. I dont think he stays regardless of his parents financial state if he keeps this up.



  • @approxinfinity said in The Furph:

    Furphy has looked like a lottery pick since starting. I dont think he stays regardless of his parents financial state if he keeps this up.

    ya just thinking -not so sure Johnny is bck next year pretty solid - -15 again today and 6 rebounds-- been pretty consistent last 5 games now



  • I wouldn’t blame him if he is a lottery pick but like I always said about the NBA. They draft off of potential but do not give anyone time to develop that potential. Prime example is Gradey Dick I’ll bet anyone, any amount of money he never plays meaningful minutes after his 3 year rookie deal is up.


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