Locked On Jayhawks - Daily Podcast On Kansas Jayhawks Football & Basketball - KU Basketball 2023 Recruiting Class Breakdown with Jason Jordan

Episode Date: October 28, 2022

Breaking down the Class of 2023 recruiting class for Kansas Jayhawks' basketball with Jason Jordan of Sports Illustrated. KU already has three commits in Chris Johnson, Elmarko Jackson and Jamari McDowell. Scouting reports on all three, themes of the class for Bill Self, some talk on the incoming freshmen, center position and Gradey Dick. Plus, what else is on the ledger for 2023, including Mikey Williams.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!SweatBlockIf you or someone you love is experiencing embarrassing sweat or odor try Sweatblock. Save 20% with promo codeLocked On at sweatblock.com. Also available on Amazon.LinkedInLinkedIn jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at Linkedin.com/lockedoncollege Terms and conditions apply.Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!Underdog FantasySign up on underdogfantasy.com with the promo code LOCKED ON and get your first deposit doubled up to $100!SimpliSafeWith Fast Protect™️ Technology, exclusively from SimpliSafe, 24/7 monitoring agents capture evidence to accurately verify a threat for faster police response. There’s No Safe Like SimpliSafe. Visit SimpliSafe.com/LockedOnCollege to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On today's Locked On Jayhawks, we're joined by Jason Jordan as we're going to go over the KU basketball recruiting class for the class of 2023. You are Locked On Jayhawks, your daily podcast on the Kansas Jayhawks, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. I'm Derek Johnson. You can hear me as well on Rock Chalk Sports Talk on KLWN in Lawrence from 3 to 6 Monday through Friday here on Locked on Jayhawks. Thanks for making LOJ your first listen every day. We're free and available wherever you get your podcasts. And on today's edition, you can see him next to me.

If you're watching on YouTube jason jordan joins us from the show from sports illustrated we're going to break down the class of 2023 for the kansas basketball team obviously on bye week for football basketball season starts up next week so no better time to do this right now but first today's episode is brought to you by underdog sign up on underdog fantasy.com with the promo code locked on and get your first deposit doubled up to $100. So Jason, appreciate the time coming on here today. KU already has three commits for the class of 2023, Chris Johnson, Jamari McDowell, Elmarco Jackson. And I guess we'll just start and break each one of these down individually. Let's start with Chris Johnson. He was the first one to commit

for the class of 2023. What is KUU getting what is the scouting report on Johnson well he's a first and foremost playmaker and a crafty ball handler which makes him a great playmaker but he's also an efficient scorer in his own right so he's a guy who definitely will hunt his own shot but I think he's an underrated playmaker just because you know he, he's a high IQ guy. So he's a guy who's going to make winning plays, going to make the extra pass, doesn't force it. So he's not going to be a guy who's going to have a lot of a great deal of turnovers. And he plays in an amazing system at Montverde under Kevin Boyle, who is potentially the best. Probably let's just go and say he's probably the best coach in high school basketball.

So he's going to, you know, absorb a lot of that. A lot of his players come in ready to go from day one. But, you know, Chris is a guy who's also a defensive hound. You know, a lot of people don't talk about that. Like he brings a lot of energy on both ends of the floor. So he's not just a guy who a lot of elite guys rest on defense. More do than don't, if we're being very honest. But he's not a guy who rests on defense. So he's a guy who checks off a lot of boxes. Great size for a

common guard at 6'4", 6'5", and very, very confident, which is one of the things I really like about him. I like a cocky player on the court. I like a player who plays with that type of edge, and he definitely has that going for him for sure. Well, he was a guy who was, I don't know, dropped like a little bit in some of the different recruiting rankings, maybe 10 spots or so, but it sounds like he's had a good start to his senior year. Do you know how that's going so far for Johnson?

Yeah, well, I mean, at Mount Vernon, you're going to be a part of a system, right? So you're going to have to fill a role. And I think his role is being a playmaker and a guy who gets downhill and scores the ball. But, you know, they're not lacking for scorers there. So you got to get in where you fit in. And that's where he's also, you know, going to contribute there as a defensive hound, like I was talking about. So he brings energy on both ends of the floor and he has done very well in their preseason games. And, you know, that's why they're ranked number one in our power 25. I think, you know, they could potentially win their seventh national title. Jamari McDowell was the second commit for KU.

What is KU getting in McDowell? Like a utility guy. So he's a 6'5 athlete, but he can play one through three. But I think where he's really going to earn time is his ability to defend. He's 6'5, but I think he has like a 6'8, 6'9 wingspan. And he uses that amazingly well. He did this summer, did very well with the Houston Defenders.

And he plays passing lanes like a veteran defensive back, right? So his length is what really enables him to be a lockdown defender. I think he could definitely carry that over in year one. I think he could really contribute on the defensive end in year one but you know when we talk about how great a guy is you always say this I always have to make this stipulation so he's he's gifted offensively too because when we talk about defensive and the first thing we leave with this defensive like oh he must really be bad on the offensive it must be a project but Jamari's definitely not a project I mean I think he's going to earn time in that rotation first because of his ability to defend and his

ability to play passing lanes. But I mean, you know, he's a capable scorer as well on all three levels. You know, not the most dominant scorer in the class, but definitely capable. Definitely a guy who gets downhill and gets to his spots and finishes plays, plays above the rim. So definitely a guy who thrives in athletic finishes too. His layup package is amazing. So, you know, that's the thing now. But it's true. Like he's crafty and able to make unorthodox shots. So that's how he's going to contribute there.

Yeah, I think we saw that. We saw that a lot with Christian Brown this last year and how useful that can be, especially when you get out in transition. Absolutely. The last guy here was the most recent commit just, I don't know, a couple weeks ago. Elmarco Jackson, who's also the highest rated recruit, kind of depending where you look and whatnot, where he comes in, whether it's top 25, top 20 or whatnot.

What is Kansas getting with Elmarco? Well, a winner, high IQ guy. He's actually the guy who sent his boys, Chris and Jamari home in the UAA finals, dropped 26 on him. So he had a big summer. I've watched him a bunch of times in the UAA. But, you know, a heady point guard, he really dictates pace very well. That's one of the things that really stands out about most guys are really good. And most point guards are really good in transition. And, you know, when it gets to having to slow it down and they have to think the game through, it's kind of like,

hurry up, hurry up, hurry up. But he can play at two speeds, right? So he can really run the show on the offensive end. He can take his cues from the sideline. And he can play off his instincts. So he's a high IQ guy. Efficient scorer in his own right. So when he decides to score and, efficient scorer in his own right. So when he

decides to score and that comes often, like I said, he had 26 against his future teammates. He's able to do that. He gets to his points on the court. I haven't seen guys that have been able to stay in front of him. When I watched him this summer, he was getting by whoever, whenever. But he's not always looking to score. I would say that he's looking to make plays, make the winning play first before he's looking to score. So, you know, I wouldn't exactly call him a pass first point guard, but a guy who's always going to make the right play, whether that's pulling up for the floater, going on in and absorbing contact and finishing through that, or making the kickout play, getting a touch of the paint and kicking out,

or, you know, creating off the high pick and roll or the high screening roll and, you know, picking pop. He's great. He's great vision all over the court, all over the court. But the biggest thing about him is the way he's able to dictate the pace of the game. And he's a hound on the defensive end too, so he guards 94 feet. So that's why he's so highly rated because he's probably one of the best two-way point guards in the class. As far as how long you envision these guys being in school, obviously you never really know getting into the mind of the players

of what ideally they're trying to do or whatnot, but how do you envision the college careers going for those three commits? Yeah, I don't, I mean, right now today, I don't say, oh, you enjoy them for nine months, not with this group. Like, you know, so there it's a good, good, a really strong group, you know, but then you guys last year you had MJ Rice and, you know, those got three McDonald's All-Americans. I don't think you have that this year, right, if I'm being very honest, but you have a really good group. And, you know, sometimes you get a little spoiled, especially you guys. You get a little spoiled because it's like, oh man, how many guys are going to see the McDonald's game? And that's not the litmus test.

I mean, go look at NBA rosters, you know, and you probably won't see a whole lot of McDonald's All-Americans, but you can go in the G League and find them, so just throw that out there. But these guys are guys that are going to, you know, stay for multiple years, and, you know, I think they, you know, have – they're definitely going to be fan favorites, right? Because these guys are workhorses and they're playmakers. And they're guys who check off a lot of boxes. And they're guys who are going to help you win.

So you want that extra title, want another title. You want to feel how you felt. That's how you won this year. Let's be very clear. That's how you won. You had guys who were contributing over the course of their careers. And so that's what you're getting in these three guys. They'll be there for a while, but all four, maybe not one.

I don't see that, but they're going to be guys who are going to help you win for sure. I don't want to talk some of the theme stuff overall of the recruiting class here in just a moment. But first, this episode is brought to you by Underdog Fantasy, the easiest place to spice up the college football season. It's easy to sign up

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That's Underdog Fantasy, promo code LOCKEDON. Get in on the sports and college football pick-em action today. So something that kind of seems to be a theme to me with these recruits is maybe you have a little bit more questions about the shooting overall with the three guys. Is there any worry for you about all these guys coming in? And I think of KU having DeJuan Harris back at point guard. He could still be back for next year as well as another year after that.

And he's a guy who can make open shots, but he's not someone you're drawn up plays for. He's not someone who is, you know, catching and shooting around a screen or something like that. Would you have any concerns about maybe the shooting there or the pairing between possibly El Marco Jackson and DeJuan Harris? No. You know, I think Chris Johnson definitely could. I mean, he's not a, he's not a, a lot of times when you label shooters as shooters and then,

and then in our mind, even subconsciously, we're like, and that's all they can do, you know? But that's not the, that's like a But that's not like a new age combo guard. Like Chris Johnson could definitely knock down threes, but he's at his best when he's got the ball in his hands creating. But if you want to get a piece of the paint and kick out, he's definitely a guy that can knock that shot down. So I think Chris is potentially a guy you could draw plays for

to get his shots off. And El Marco, no, I think they can coexist because at the end of the day, they're playmakers. And if you look at the recipe for success, look at Baylor, look at you guys last year, you flood the court. I say this all the time. You have to flood the court with playmakers. And the biggest thing with that is buying into the role.

Talking about Texas, Tyrese Hunter, you know, the biggest thing with that is buying into the role. Right. And, you know, talking about Texas, Tyrese Hunter, Marcus Carr, you know, I've talked about them last week and there were a lot of big questions about can they coexist? But the reality is they both they both have a chemistry and they both understand their role. So that's the biggest thing. Right. Yes. Can can coexist? So the short answer is yes, they can coexist. The bigger answer is do they have that chemistry? Do they have that gel? And can they accept their roles? And, you know, at the end of the day, do they like each other? They like each other more times than not. It's not going to matter who has the ball in their hands.

They're going to play off. I like the idea of flooding the court with potentially, specifically at the guard position, playmakers. But, you know, the recipe now is playmakers, long, athletic, rim runners who are also playmakers. But, yes, the short answer is absolutely those guys can coexist. Well, what you mentioned with KU winning the title last year, not having a bunch of, you

know, five-star guys, high-end four-star guys who may be stuck around for a while. And when you see them already having three commits and like you said, maybe outside of El Marco, the other two might not be McDonald's All-Americans. And, you know, you see something where it seems like kind of the common theme between these three players is guys who can play kind of multi-versatility where you can play maybe as the one, the two, or the three between the different positions that give you kind of a switchable team and whatnot. Do you read anything into the theme of this class and what Kansas has done lately into maybe what they are trying to do moving forward?

Yeah, well, I mean, it's what you said. I mean, it's literally you said. I mean, it's literally flooding the court with playmakers. I mean, you know, all these guys, you know, Jamari's 6'5", Chris is 6'5", Amarco's like 6'4", 6'3". You know, great size for their position, but they all have the ability to create plays. They all can grab the rebound and go. They can all be the outlet pass, right? And that's what it is. They can all be the outlet pass and they can all fill lanes.

I mean, you look at Alabama. Look at what they do. A lot of people want to play quick like they may not shoot as quick and as much as they do. But, you know, and I know Kansas has a system. I know they have to, you know, people talk about the number of passes they have to have and stuff like that. But when you have a court full of playmakers, that just, you know, that coincides with what Bill Self clearly wants to do with getting the ball around, everybody touching the ball. So when that's the focus, it's clear why he would take Jamari, El Marco, Chris. Because these guys – I mean, look at somebody like Chris. He's at Montverde like we talked about.

I mean, he has to share the ball. Nobody at Montverde is going to average 25. That's never going to happen. Not going to happen. Kansas, you're not going to average 25, you know, because you're going to come there and you're being a traveling all-star team. So you have to learn to share the ball. You have to be, you have to be a playmaker and that's clear in this class. And even in the 2022 play. Well, I do want to ask you about some

of that 2022 class, because we're about to start this next season and KU is going to be relying on a lot of those youngsters who were on that 2022 class and maybe didn't play a ton played sparingly a season ago and they're looking for maybe breakouts there and I think the most intrigue is going to be at the center position whether it is the class of 2021 or the class of 2022 Zach Clements hoping for a year to break out might be some hesitation there Ernest Uday seems to have a high ceiling there. Zuby Ejiofor did some good work in some circuits prior to coming over. As you've kind of tracked along those guys with Ejiofor, Uday, and Clements along the way now coming to KU,

what are kind of your thoughts on what KU could have at the center position this year? Oh, you got options, and that's the best thing about it, right? I mean, I really like Uday. I really like – I've always liked him, right? I just like a guy who's a workhorse, checks off a lot of boxes, rim protector, great hands, you know, and, you know, Zach kind of fits the bill as well.

But the biggest thing I would say is size and versatility, right? And their ability to rebound and especially earnest. I, you know, I think your best option is earnest at the center position. I've had this conversation last week. Just because he checks off a lot of different boxes. And, you know, he's able to finish plays, plays above the rim. But, you know, a lot of guys, when we talk about fitting that mold, they're like, oh, he's a, again, like we said earlier, he's a workhorse. I had this conversation with Montrezl Harrell years ago, and guys don't like to be the junkyard dog. But the reality is if that's who you are, you know,

a lot of people make a lot of money filling their role. And I think Ernest is a guy who is completely okay with filling his role. He's not a guy who's out there trying to be a guard. He's not a guy who's out there, you know, trying to work on a three point shot. I mean, he, he fits the bill in the paint and I think, you know, I think he's the best option down there at the center position, but you have, but you have options.

Yeah. Grady Dick isn't ranked in, you know, like the top 10 or anything, wherever you look. But if you, if you just change up, because I know with a lot of the recruiting rankings, it's not just based on what are you going to do your first year of college? It's based on your basketball career. It's based on, you you know what you're going to do over the course of a certain period of time if you were just valuing the incoming freshman class from the class of 2022 for just impact as a true freshman in college basketball around what range do you think Grady

Dick would rank meaning in in his class? Yes. Yeah, he would definitely be in the top 10. He would definitely be in the top 10. But honestly, and I'm going to go to another freshman, you guys, MJ Rice, he was seven for us. And so the way we did it, more so we weighed heavily where people were like, oh, he could be a pro. But the reality, I'd hate them. Listen, most people don't realize the potential that you give them.

And then we don't go back and say, hey, remember you said this is that because we've moved on. It's been through three, four years. Right. Nobody remembers that. I don't like that. So I think my thing is, what did you do? What did you do this year? What did you do and who did you do against? Right. So if you look at look now, take that into consideration. Now you're ranking for Grady Dick in the top 10. Now you're ranking MJ Rice in the top 10. So, you know, I definitely think those guys are going to be super impact players for you. I think a lot of people is wild how people discount MJ Rice. You know, I think you guys are going to love him.

And I think he's going to be a superstar for you guys this year. I got to talk to him the other day at KU Men's Basketball Media Day. Loves to, he's a good singer. He can sing some Alicia Keys songs, so you know he can get up there. So we'll see what he can do on the basketball court as well. As far as the rest of the class of 2023, I don't know if KU is full up right now. Technically, they'd be over scholarships at the moment for next year, but they're going to lose players, whether it's into the NBA draft or the transfer portal or whatnot. Is there anyone out there in the class of 2023 that you see KU going hard after or that you see would maybe be a logical fit for Kansas? I mean, you know, they're in the mix with some guys, you know, Kansas as you well know, probably,

probably the biggest one you guys are linked to in that class is Mikey Williams. So, I mean, that would be interesting just because of what you already have, but we'll see. I do think, and this is kind of, we talk about trends. Now the new trend for coaches is to leave a couple spots for transfer portal guys, just because that's because that's the world we live in. That's what it is now. And, you know, I had so many coaches at Peach Gym tell me,

hey, man, you better tell these guys, man, ain't no more four and five man classes. You know, we got to leave spots for these transfers. And so that's just the reality of the situation. So to your point, you guys are going to lose players in the ways you say 100%. But I do think that every staff, every staff that I talked to is holding out spots for portal guys. Yeah. I wonder with, you brought up the name Mikey Williams. I don't know how much the El Marco Jackson commit maybe affects that as kind of being, I don't know, a potential lead guard, combo guard.

But how much on the recruiting circuit is that a conversation about? Because he has the NIL deal with, I believe, Puma, right? And obviously there's no college basketball team that has Puma as their endorsement. So what's kind of the conversation on the recruiting trail about that? You know, I mean, a lot of people think, it's probably, I would say, split down the middle. A lot of people think he'll never go to college.

You know, I know that they're saying he will. A lot of coaches I've talked to are like, that kid's not going to college. But then a lot, you know, he's taking visits. He's obviously came there, taking more visits, and I think we'll know something before the season starts.

That's what I've been told. But we'll see. You know, with this particular prospect, things are up in the air, and there are a lot of different rumors you know when you it's the price of fame right he's probably the second most famous high school athlete

and uh or maybe third behind Archie but uh behind Brian and Archie he's probably third maybe second he probably won't like that we said that but um you know uh I think we could know something by December but then we might not know anything until April. It's a lot. Nothing is definitive with Mikey's recruitment. I'll say that. That's the best way I can say it. Well, Jason, I appreciate the time, man,

and look forward to having you on again down the road because obviously with KU basketball and recruiting, it is a never-sleeping cycle, as I'm sure it is for you. Absolutely, man. Thanks for having me. All right. Thanks, man. That is Jason Jordan joining us here on Locked on Jayhawks.

I am Derek Johnson. That's going to do it for today's edition of the show here. On Monday's show, we're going to look ahead to the week ahead with KU basketball and KU football both having a game next week. If you have anything you'd like for the show to talk about or want to follow along on the action, you can reach out at DJohnsonRadio on Twitter. And don't forget to subscribe to the show

so you're getting all the latest with Locked on Jayhawks. That'll do it for today. Have a good rest of your day. I'll see you on Rock Chalk Sports Talk later. Adios.