whats up with Vick?



  • kinda curious, about Vick. the word was originally he was going to announce about re-classifying the middle to the end of last week as if he was re-classifying to 2015 or going to stay put until 2016. Then we heard he was going to announce yesterday, and we got nothing. Have heard say maybe Coach Self has to him to stay put until we find out about Paschal, even the we got the commit from the Mississippi transfer wanting to possibly keep a place open for Paschal if he still wanted to come to KU. Soo, has anyone heard anything else heard anything about the situation?



  • Probably our number 1 question right now.

    Here’s another one: suppose Chukwu is willing to come to KU, and Vick is willing to wait a year to make room. Do we take a Chukwu in the hand and a Vick in the bush?

    I know HEM has warned that if Vick doesn’t come this year, he may go elsewhere next year - so there would be risk involved.

    If you could be sure of getting Chukwu now and Vick next year, would you prefer that? Or do you want Vick now no matter what happens with Chukwu?

    P.S. I am not saying Vick is waiting on Chukwu’s decision: I have no idea - although the longer he waits to reclassify the more I will wonder.



  • Ah, now the question of linkage has gained more footing. Yesterday was supposed to be the day for Vick to announce his reclassification decision. Could he do it today? Sure. But this all has more traction now.

    @ParisHawk Thanks for correctly stating my current thoughts on Vick … when he was the #133 player, I was a bit more bold in saying we would not see him at KU if he didn’t reclassify. Getting the big ratings bump changed my “would not” to a “may not.” I just think that the longer a kid sits without actually signing, the more risk that is present (and time to decommit like he’s done before).

    And how might Vick feel now if when he committed he thought he was very wanted and needed for this coming season, and now KU is saying, uh, “wait”?

    But that’s speculation. KU might not be saying all of that.

    Again, from yesterday, there is more traction as well with the idea that someone might depart if Chukwu does come into the fold – to make room for Vick.

    More interesting speculation now.

    I had also read where Chukwu is to visit Iona after Kansas. So the plot thickens.



  • Unless a current scholarship player is on the docket to leave the program, we come down to crunch time regarding the one open scholarship. Vick or Chukwu? Self knows that he needs another big man for 2016-17. Self, by inviting an SMU guard to fortify our current perimeter play, knows that there is an immediate weakness for 2015-16. If Chukwu flies away without commitment, I think Vick will sign on the dotted line. If Chukwu does commit, then we go into 2015 hopeful that Greene’s surgery was successful. Also, hopeful that Vick does not change his mind again before signing for 2016.



  • My take on the situation is that Vick’s jump in the rankings makes things complicated. IF he plays above his current ranking all summer he could potentially increase his value. Being able to put that you were a McDonald’s all American on your resume changes things. Im not saying that he will make the cut or that he could increase his ranking any more than he already has BUT his family is surely aware that he could play his way into some of the games next April. More exposure could equal more money in the long run? I think he stays in the 2016 class.



  • On the old website someone stated that Coleby had signed a “grant and aid”, and speculated that that may leave a scholarship open for Chukwu. What is the difference between a “grant and aid” and a scholarship? And does that make a difference as to the number of open scholarships?



  • @HighEliteMajor Here’s a question for you or anyone that has knowledge of it. Could, say Hunter, or Landen, or anyone else play an active part in the WUG’s & then still transfer before fall semester ? Another question: Are a medical redshirts & a typical redshirt treated the same ? In other words would it be possible for a player to get the MRS after already sitting out the year like LL did ? Am only trying to figure out how & why Self wants Vick now (Greene RS) & how he might have schollies to land Vick & Chukwu both ?



  • @oldhwkfan It’s a “grant in aid”.

    Usually an incoming freshman will sign a “letter of intent”. That binds the player and the school for one year.

    You can only sign one letter of intent, period. When a player transfers, he can’t sign a letter of intent but he signs a “grant in aid” whereby the school agrees to give him a scholarship.

    Self can only talk about players who have signed something - either a letter of intent or a grant in aid.

    In both cases, it means the school has granted a scholarship.



  • @globaljaybird I don’t know about playing in the WUG then transferring. But I suspect they could. The new year begins, I believe, with fall enrollment. But I’m not sure.

    On redshirts, you get 5 years to play 4 seasons. So one redshirt. A medical redshirt could give you a 6th year to play that 4th season. So you can get one of those, even if you have a redshirt season already, like Lucas or Traylor or Mickelson.



  • @ParisHawk

    “In both cases, it means the school has granted a scholarship.”

    The way I understand it… a LOI is not a scholarship. It’s a contract commitment to come play ball at that school. A scholarship’s “main workings” are the grant in aid. Big difference here… because a player can usually squirm out of a LOI and as long as they haven’t received a benefit yet (which comes from signing a grant in aid) he can transfer without having to sit a year. Once a player receives a benefit, he is truly committed because the NCAA makes them sit a year if they transfer.

    This could come in play if Vick signs a LOI with Kansas and doesn’t reclassify, then later wants out of his LOI. Most schools let guys go without too much struggle. And if schools put up a battle they are viewed as not putting the players first, which will give them a recruiting black eye. Savvy players know they can hire an attorney and get them out of a LOI easily.



  • @globaljaybird I’m pretty sure they could transfer after games. I know Taylor cox is getting a 6th year for fb. It’s a process and not guaranteed.



  • @globaljaybird Taylor cox

    Taylor Cox will actually turn 25 this September, during the opening weeks of the season, which only partially explains a turbulent and injury-plagued three seasons at Kansas. Cox, a former junior-college transfer, is returning from a torn Achilles that wiped out his entire 2014 season. The Achilles injury, suffered in the preseason, came just one year after Cox took a medical redshirt in 2013.

    In all, Cox hasn’t played in a college football game since Sept. 7, 2013 — otherwise known as the season opener of Charlie Weis’ second season. Now Cox is finally back, the veteran member of a rebuilt backfield under new Kansas coach David Beaty.

    Cox, who rushed for 464 yards on 91 carries in 2012, will battle for playing time with sophomore Corey Avery, senior De’Andre Mann and junior-college transfer Ke’aun Kinner. After being granted a sixth year by the NCAA, Cox will be the rare junior-college transfer that spends four years on campus. But first things first: Cox, a native of Mill Creek, Wash., will continue his recovery process with an appearance in the Jayhawks’ spring game on Saturday.

    Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/campus-corner/article19151466.html#storylink=cpy



  • @drgnslayr From the National Letter of Intent home page:

    The NLI is a binding agreement between a prospective student-athlete and an NLI member institution:

    • A prospective student-athlete agrees to attend the institution full-time for one academic year (two semesters or three quarters).
    • The institution agrees to provide athletics financial aid for one academic year (two semesters or three quarters).

    I see your point that the NLI is a commitment and the grant is actually fulfilling the commitment.

    I don’t think Vick can sign an LOI anyway. Late signing period ended May 20th, no?

    P.S. Looking at the NLI site, “NLI must be accompanied by an athletics financial aid agreement”



  • Chukwu wouldn’t be visiting Kansas if there was no way to bring him on board. Period.

    @REhawk has it right… either we have a current player prepared to transfer or flip to walk-on status, or Vick may still keep his 2016 classification.

    I tend to believe it is the later. I’m thinking he is ALL KU now… a total team player who will do what is best for the team. If we get Chukwu and Vick doesn’t reclassify because of it, he should earn a lot of brownie points. I know he does in my book.

    His current jump in ranking is for 2016. 2015 rankings are completed and he isn’t a Top 100 prospect. Big difference because being ranked a year away has less relevance. Players can make big leaps up or down in a given year. I still look at his rise coming from two things: 1. the “Self bump” (yes, it is real), and 2. with 2015 gone, it sheds new light on the guys left for 2016. The hype is in full tilt because Kansas signs him early and he’ll be part of the next crop of talented players.

    I am still excited with the idea of landing Chukwu. There just aren’t many quality footers out there. He is listed by some as 7’2"… which makes me believe he is at least 7’. Compare that to other footers that later only end up being 6’9 1/2"… I bet he has a crazy long reach, too!



  • I think, if indeed coach Self HAS possibly told Vick to hold off on his decision, which maybe he has since we’ve heard nothing, maybe he wants him to hold off until after Paschal has made his visit. I feel if Paschal wants to come like has been stated, then we should offer and keep Vick where e is now, take the chance on him re-considering his choice next year, stay in 2016. we will have a much bigger need for interior players next year with the departures of Perry, Jamari, Hunter, and more then likely Cheick, then we will at the shooting guard, so if we have the chance for Paschal I say take him and let Vick stay at 2016



  • I don’t buy it. We recruited Vick for 2015 because we need him this year.

    We didn’t recruit him with the intent that he was going to stay in 16 class. If he does in fact stay, its because he didn’t have enough time to qualify, not because Self has told him to wait. The intent of Vick all along was that he would be a Jayhawk this year. Just because Coleby took Chukwu’s spot at the moment doesn’t mean that Vick is being swayed to wait.

    Why would we wait for Chukwu, a player who can’t go to Korea & can’t play this year?Because he’s 7’2 and everyone seems to want him around here… Coleby stole his spot, Self wanted him and got him. Seems to me we are done recruiting unless Vick doesn’t qualify. I’d still be recruiting Chukwu until we know Vick’s intent, seems ill advised to quit now. If he qualifies he goes to Korea and we are done recruiting.

    We could have Coleby, Bragg, Lucas, and Diallo next year… And any possible recruits…

    I don’t buy that someone will transfer to make room for Chukwu. That’s losing someone to play this year, for someone who has to sit. There’s too many good recruits in 16 to stockpile sitters. I don’t buy that we need Chukwu, when we can get Bolden, or Herard, or another just as talented recruit.



  • @ParisHawk

    I don’t really know all the exact details. I am of the opinion that the real commitment starts when the recruit receives his first benefit. I’m not sure if the NCAA sees it as his first stipend or receiving anything from his scholarship, like books or signed into housing. Or… if the commitment is real just upon signing the GIA. I’m sure there are many in here that know the exact rules on this.

    I’m under the opinion that guys have walked free from LOIs without having to sit a year… as long as they didn’t advance with their GIA.

    “Looking at the NLI site, “NLI must be accompanied by an athletics financial aid agreement””

    Something is confusing about that. Otherwise… all players who sign a LOI would have to sit a year before becoming eligible somewhere else.

    REQUEST TO ALL:

    Please fill in the holes here!



  • @drgnslayr

    A letter of Intent binds the players to the school and he would need a release to play elsewhere. The grant-in-aid without a letter of intend bind the school but not the player; remember that is how Xavier Henry was able to leave UK and come to KU?

    A player could also get financial aid based on need but not necessarily get an athletic scholarship; however, the amount and benefits are not even close to those of an athletic scholarship. It is possible that a transfer that will have to sit one year does not get the full benefit of a scholarship in the year he sits and gets only financial aid based on need.

    At leas that is my understanding of how this things work and I could be wrong.



  • @HighEliteMajor

    Why would he visit Iona? Any player with NBA aspirations would be crazy to go to Iona instead of one of the major programs. Yes, he would likely get more playing time but if you are not confident that you can become a starter at a major program, chances are you are not NBA material anyway, in which case why waste time recruiting him. I will guess that the Iona trip is a favor to a friend or recruiter and not really a likely destination, although this just a guess on my part.



  • @BeddieKU23

    I think Self has the right focus… Kansas basketball first, WUG second. If need be, he can bring in another player if we need it for WUG. He could bring in a better player than Vick (older with D1 experience). Self is thinking ahead for Kansas basketball, and well he should.

    Chukwu wouldn’t visit us if there still isn’t the possibility he can play here.

    I’m sure Self has had to assure Chukwu that signing Coleby does not indicate less of a desire to sign him.

    What I like about signing Chukwu is that first, he is a bird in the hand. We’ve missed on most of the big men we’ve gone after and I certainly wouldn’t count on us signing Bolden. Plus… why not sign Bolden with Chukwu? I see Bolden possibly being a big 4… His height is listed as 6’10" (which probably means 6’8" to 6’9" ). He would probably take a year of Hudy to be effective at the 5 at Kansas. Chukwu will already have a year of that before he becomes eligible. I kind of see Bolden as a guy who won’t explode until he reaches the NBA for a while. He seems OAD material. If he stays another year, he would be phenomenal. He’s just like Oubre. We just got a taste of his game then he’s gone.

    Chukwu is a legitimate footer. Those have become rare and hard to find, especially those that can run around without tripping over themselves.

    Maybe I’m wrong about Bolden and he wouldn’t be OAD material. His ranking isn’t that high so far… but he has definite post moves. Not many of those guys around. And if he grows another couple of inches, watch out!



  • After looking at the graduate transfer situation, there is nobody that makes sense to transfer to make room for Chukwu at this point. Even with Nic Moore in the mix for the WUG, KU is still short a guard which is why Vick is trying to reclassify. Vick is the the guy to sub in for an injury next season, especially if Greene’s hip takes longer than expected to heal or if he has a setback of some kind.

    Brannen Greene would be the only possible transfer option and that would solely be because of disciplinary reasons and not to make room for someone else. The only way Paschall Chukwu comes to KU at this point is if LeGerald Vick isn’t cleared to reclassify into 2015 because KU needs Vick more in 2015-16 than Chukwu in 2016-17 at this point.

    I think what’s going on is Chukwu hasn’t canceled yet because Self is waiting on an official word from Vick (supposedly some time today) and when Vick announces that he’s reclassifying, we may hear the next day that Chukwu is longer taking his visit this weekend.



  • @drgnslayr

    I don’t know much about Bolden other than the mixtapes, ranking & interest in KU. I’d have to watch some of his actual games to understand what kind of talent he projects to be. Looking at his body, he looks to be more than a OAD. I don’t see the elite attributes that usually come with the OAD bigs, but I do see a player that would benefit from the KU system and already has post moves to work with.

    With the Vick situation, do we forget that just 2 weeks ago we were knee deep in recruiting a wing for 2015. Mack, Eubanks, and then Vick. I just don’t think anything has swayed or changed the fact that Self wants another Guard/Wing for 2015 not only for the WUG but for this year. He’s 1 injury away from being a necessity. He could be that talented to earn backup SG minutes this year, we just don’t know.

    Coleby wasn’t the sexy pickup, and frankly was such a last minute visit and quick commit that it took the rug under from people on why this happened and what that means for Chukwu.

    Coleby provides the same theoretical scenario that we all know, we lose 3 possibly 4 big men after next year and having another post with system experience will greatly benefit the team. We got it, we should have Bragg & Lucas at the minimum, and if we are lucky a 2nd year from Diallo.

    Self is leveraging his bets in case Vick doesn’t have the necessary stuff to re-classify. It’s smart don’t stop selling your program to him until you know Vick can play.

    Chukwu is all potential, potentially a great big, potentially a big that is still a few years away from his best basketball.



  • @Texas-Hawk-10 why is Vick dragging his feet? like I stated earlier, first it was surpose to be the middle to the end of the week last week, THEN it was going to be yesterday, Now your saying sometime today. he has to know by now if he is re-classifying or not, so why is he holding back? some people justified the signing of coleby because they said chukwu was dragging his feet and hadn’t committed to Ku. bottom line is Coleby visited and committed before Paschal was even scheduled to visit, you can’t be down on a kid and not saying you, but you can’t truly expect a kid to commit to a school before he steps foot on campus. the ONLY thing that I could possibly think of the reason for offering coleby was maybe coach self had a feeling our chances of landing paschal were not good. that was my thought before, but since have found out with Paschal still going to make the visit makes me believe there is something else. HAS TO BE., and like others have said makes me believe Vick is staying in the class of 2016, he might be thinking stay put and see how much higher he gets rated, develop more and could de-commit to us period. has signed nothing binding. I fully believe coach self has talked to Paschal and re-assured him you wanna come, there is a spot here not to worry. again if not then WHY? he knows what he wants. classify or not.



  • @jayballer54 You can bet the farm that HCBS has an ace in the hole for Chukwu should he want to be a Jaybird. .A walk on will give a scholllie up in a heartbeat if Bill can get a footer, project or not.



  • There is such a thing as a “Run off” waiver that could be used.

    This would allow a player to be eligible for immediate transfer providing the head coach admits that he cut the player from the team without any misconduct. The player would also have to be in good academic standing.

    The reason most coaches don’t do it is because they have to admit they kicked a player off of the team for essentially no reason and that looks very bad when recruiting.

    But, I believe this would allow someone like Hunter or one of the bigs who wants to leave to actually transfer schools and not have to sit out a year. It could easily be a mutual benefit for us and a guy like Hunter.



  • @HighEliteMajor Thanks - I wondered if a guy could actually get 2 RS’s. Also consider that Greene is coming off a surgery & Vick may be an absolute necessity regarding such a possible RS for him.



  • @jayballer54 I don’t know definitively, but my best guess on why Vick hasn’t announced his reclassification yet is that there’s a hold up in the process beyond Vick’s control. Whether it’s a Clearinghouse or Bill Self related delay, I don’t know at this point, but that’s the most logical explanation at this point.



  • he will enroll at ku



  • Lost in all of this a little bit is that Self is REALLY working hard to construct this roster for success here. If he’s juggling things, and if he has to make a tough decision on a kid, that’s what he has to do.

    I mentioned this a few seasons ago … We want him on that wall, we need him on that wall.

    He made a very tough call on a soon to be senior last season (Tharpe). He made a very tough call on a relatively popular kid (White). It would be much easier for him to let things play out on good kids. Agree or disagree with his decisions – the constant activity to try and make Kansas better is exactly what we should want in a coach.

    It is a harsh world, and decisions have to be made in many cases coldly, and based on the reality of CBB – winning.

    I don’t think that we have any doubt that Self’s decisions are geared toward winning. Good stuff.

    Give me Chukwu, or give me death!



  • @blackmild33 Right on … Vick reclassifies to 2015. Done deal.

    Now, does Chukwu visit tomorrow? Is there another shoe to drop? Or are we done?



  • @HighEliteMajor ku is out of scholarships unless somebody transfers



  • guess we don’t have to worry now, since he announced. but good question on Chukwu, someone stated. walkon would give up scholi, ummmmmmmmmmmmm am I that blind? don’t really think a walk on can give up a scholarship can they? that’s why they are walk on- - - -they don’t have a scholarship t give up, I now think we ARE DONE. don’t really see Paschal coming now for sure.



  • When Michigan men’s basketball Austin Hatch took a medical red shirt it opened up a scholarship to recruit a top 10 OAD. If Brannen Greene takes a medical red shirt does it open up a scholarship for KU?



  • @Statmachine Exceptional circumstances approved by NCAA. Hip surgery vs. plane crash and prolonged recovery. Not a consideration here, but good point.



  • Is Michelson related to the pro golfer?



  • So I am counting out everything to make sure I have the roster situation for next year (not WUG) figured out.

    I count the following:

    Seniors (3) - Ellis, Mickelson (redshirt), Traylor

    Juniors (4) - Greene, Lucas (redshirt), Mason, Selden

    Soph (2) - Graham, Mykhailiuk

    Fresh (3) - Bragg, Diallo, Vick

    That’s all of the scholarship guys that I am counting, unless I have missed someone. That means that KU still has one more scholarship for this year. Chukwu and Coleby would both be eligible for the 2016-17 season after sitting out this upcoming year. With Mickelson, Traylor and Ellis all leaving after the 2015-2016 year, I don’t see any reason that we can’t accommodate both players.

    Am I missing something? Is my math wrong?



  • @Statmachine Austin Hatch is no longer on Michigan’s basketball roster. The exemption they got was a medical hardship so that he could stay on scholarship to complete his degree at Michigan, but his playing career is over and that’s how they cleared that scholarship spot.

    @justanotherfan You’re missing Coleby who makes it 13.



  • At this point, I hope Chukwu cancels his visit (either he cancels himself of Self cancels for him) now that Vick is officially in the class of 2015. Nothing against him personally as I would’ve preferred him over Coleby, but what’s done is done and now we’re talking about removing a piece of title contender this year to make room for someone who’s nothing but potential at this point in 2016-17.

    Why are we trying to find a way to fit Chukwu into the mix now? KU will not be a serious national title contender in 2016-17, they are however a legitimate national title contender in 2015-16 (4th favorite in Vegas). Let come what may in 2016 recruiting, but Bill Self needs to leave this roster alone now and focus on winning the 2015-16 national title starting with the opening of the WUG practices next week. Use Nic Moore to make Mason and Graham better PG’s, use the WUG to develop Ellis and Bragg’s perimeter games because they will see some minutes at the 3 in the WUG because of Greene and Svi being out.

    KU is a serious threat to win a national title in 2015-16 and they have been given an opportunity to get an extra month of unlimited practice and some games against top flight competition at this age range. Bill Self needs to take full advantage of this head start he is getting courtesy of USA Basketball.

    Paschall Chukwu, you had your opportunity to become a Kansas Jayhawk, you didn’t act quickly enough on it, sorry but it’s time to find another place to play besides Kansas. The road to Houston starts next week with the opening of practice for the WUG.

    ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK!!!



  • @Texas-Hawk-10 “KU will not be a serious national title contender in 2016-17.”

    Uh, why not? Mason a senior, Graham a junior, Svi a junior, Selden a senior (or maybe Josh Jackson in his place)?

    Bragg a sophomore, plus two guys (Chukwu and Coleby) in our system for a full year (assuming we land Chukwu)? Plus recruits, like Bolden? Add in senior Lucas.

    Good God man, have you been smokin’ weed?

    2016-17 is definitely a potential title year.



  • @HighEliteMajor Don’t forget about the over seas trip next summer. Another head start opportunity next summer also.



  • @HighEliteMajor Did you order the code red?



  • Paschall Chukwu -What does Coach know that we don’t? What happens when a footer visits a campus that has no scholarships available?



  • @Texas-Hawk-10 it has already been announced that he’s going to be in 2015



  • @HighEliteMajor No, I’m not smoking weed, but I’m wondering about you right now. There’s two things about your rationale right now that don’t line up with how I’ve known you to think.

    You were very critical of Bill Self forcing Andrew White III out last year (for who turned out to be Svi) , and now you’re advocating that Bill Self do exactly that (I’m guessing to Greene based on your 2016-17 roster) this offseason. Why the 180, is it personal bias for White and personal bias against Greene?

    You yourself called 2016-17 a POTENTIAL title contending team. 2015-16 IS a title contending team. You proposed a lot of what if’s to make KU a title contender in 2016-17 compared to the reality that Mason, Graham, Selden, Greene, Bragg, Lucas, Coleby, and Vick. Svi is currently a projected mid 1st round pick on multiple credible projection sites so he’s not a guarantee for 2016-17. Using what if’s to justify kicking a player off team that is currently a title contender to bring in someone to help a team that might be a title contender is very flawed logic, especially for someone like you.

    I get you’re a big fan of Chukwu, I was a big fan of Williams, but Williams isn’t coming to KU and nobody on this team should be sacrificed to make room for Chukwu no matter how big your man crush on him is because nobody in the frontcourt is eligible to transfer and KU doesn’t have the depth in the backcourt to sacrifice someone for a player who won’t help KU on game nights in 2015-16.

    @blackmild33 I know Vick has announced for 2015, that was my point in my post. People are still trying to justify kicking someone off the team and bringing in Chukwu now that KU’s scholarships are filled and I think it’s a stupid at this point to do that.



  • This Chukwu visit puzzles me, now that Vick has committed. I am happy with our current 13 scholarship players. It seems to me that Mickelson got short changed on playing minutes last season, but I feel good about his senior season. I don’t see Brannen Greene as a good fit for Bill Self Basketball, but I can’t envision Self nudging him out the door. Now that the 13 slots are filled, why would Chukwu waste an official visit to take a looksee in Lawrence? Or is that term “official visit” and subsequent NCAA ruling a moot point for transfer players?



  • I believe Chukwu’s proposed visit was for this coming weekend. It’s only Tuesday - i suspect we will hear something by tomorrow or thursday whether he’s changing his plans. We’ve all hashed this out over and over. ! There are no more scholarships.

    Can someone, let’s say Mickelson for,example stay in school and on the team but give up his scholarship ? And would Self ever ask a player to consider that ( okay im grasping like everyone else)



  • @Texas-Hawk-10 You know I was kidding about the weed comment I hope. Just a little levity.

    I do not like the fact that White got run. But at the same time, I like having a coach that is going to make the tough call to create the roster he wants. I may not agree with the decision, but I agree with the approach. No pleasant task. If the coach does not think the player will play (White), or his negatives outweigh the positives (Tharpe), and he clogs a scholarship for what Self perceives to be a better player, then Self is doing the right thing in my opinion.

    I think your logic fails here on Chukwu. If we lost either Mickelson, Traylor, or Greene, would you lose any sleep for the coming year? I wouldn’t. I love Greene, but not in Self’s system. Greene’s terrific, but my humble opinion is that Self doesn’t use him the right way. I’ve wasted a number of posts on that topic. I do think we’d be better if we lost Traylor. And with Mickelson, he’s just one big expectancy sitting on the end of the bench – and we got zero from his last season. Our season would have turned out the exact same way without Mickelson. So yes, I’d trade either big guy right now for Chukwu. And because we signed Vick, I’d part with Greene.

    But I do respect your position – sticking with “our guys” has a lot of merit. I generally agree with that. It’s just when a guy is scholarship clogger that I might depart.



  • @HighEliteMajor I personally wouldn’t be in favor of dumping Traylor or Greene for Chukwu, but if Mickelson were a realistic option, I wouldn’t be opposed to that.

    We’re never going to see eye to eye about Traylor value and skill so I’m not going to get into that again. One other aspect is that Jamari hasn’t graduated yet and has already redshirted so forcing him out ends his college career without a degree, that’s a very negative PR hit that would be all over the major sports websites painting Self as a terrible person (and deservedly so IMO) and would have a negative impact on recruiting.

    There’s two reasons I’m opposed to forcing Greene out. He’s too good of a shooter to leave alone and he was making strides in his defense before his injury. The other reason is KU doesn’t have the depth on the perimeter to afford dumping a perimeter player. If Greene is forced out, KU would be down to 5 perimeter players (Mason, Graham, Selden, Svi, and Vick) and would struggle to withstand an injury. Also throw in Svi is a projected mid 1st round pick next year on multiple sites and KU’s depth issues on the perimeter could be magnified and landing a quality 2016 becomes the top priority in 2016 recruiting over a big instead of the other way around.

    Hunter is the one guy I wouldn’t be opposed to trading out, but there’s not a way to do so without looking bad unless Hunter can fast track an August graduation, but that doesn’t sound like a viable option. Also the same negative PR I mentioned about Jamari applies here in forcing out a senior who’s already redshirted and hasn’t graduated yet.

    Of the 3 players you named, the 2 would be seniors aren’t going to graduate before August and therefore can’t transfer unless it’s to a D2 school without ending their careers. And KU doesn’t have the depth to logically send off a guard this offseason. I’m not opposed to making room for Chukwu in theory, but looking at the logistics of how it would have to happen combined with expectations this, that’s where I become opposed to the idea.

    Actually, one option I hadn’t thought of and I don’t know if you’ve mentioned is moving a player from scholarship to walk on if the parents have the means. I don’t know the financial status of players parents, but Perry or Landen could be a viable option for this route.



  • I might be wrong here but I don’t think we can just have a player pay their way to solve the problem. I thought you could only suit up so many players and if one scholarship player does take one for the team so we can add Chuckwu, then who doesn’t suit up? The obvious answer is a walk-on but man that seems like a tough pill to swallow, and not likely to be a coaches kid.



  • @CaptnMo There is no total roster limit, only a scholarship limit of 13. Moving someone off scholarship doesn’t prevent them from dressing up. KU moving someone off scholarship to clear room for Chukwu would put them at 17 total players and 15 players eligible to play in 2015-16, the same number of players KU dressed last season.


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