Locked On Jayhawks - Daily Podcast On Kansas Jayhawks Football & Basketball - ROSTER IMPACT of Keanu Dawes Addition | How Will Bill Self Fill Team Around Dawes and Taylen Kinney

Starting point is 00:00:00 KU's officially on the board with Keanu Daz, really good edition for the big man from Utah. How does it affect the rest of the roster build and what KU now wants to do in the transfer portal? You are Locked on Jayhawks, your daily podcast on the Kansas Jayhawks, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's going on, Derek Johnson here and on today's episode of Lockdown, Jayhawks. We're going to be talking a little Bryson Tiller heading to Missouri. We're going to talk a little bit about some of the latest news of KU football and other KU basketball or transfer portal related things. But right off the top, we're going to be talking Kianu Dawes, the newest edition for KU, how it impacts not just KU, but the rest of the roster build as they look ahead to filling out everything in the transfer portal and some of the latest news and notes there. So if you missed it earlier today, Keanu Dawes committed early in the morning to KU basketball.

Starting point is 00:00:59 Now, I didn't really put this together until now, but is that an indication that this? This dude is just like a super hard worker, gets up early every morning and is ready to go. Who knows? But you look at Dawes, it was the first edition for KU and the portal and a really good one, a guy who's averaging 12 and 9 per game in the Big 12, right? Who knows what the averages will be at Kansas because you could argue, okay, he's going to get better. So would he be averaging 14 and 10? He's with a coach who likes to throw the ball inside because he average 15 and 10.

Starting point is 00:01:26 Then again, you probably have better pieces around you, unlike Utah, where maybe the shots get spread around a little bit more. I don't know. but I feel like he'll be an eight or nine, maybe 10 rebound per game guy, and he'll be a really good addition for KU in general. Something I didn't mention earlier in the bonus episode. So we did a deep dive episode on Dawes a couple days ago, which you can check that out.

Starting point is 00:01:46 We also did an episode this morning about the news and going over some different things with Dawes in the addition for KU. One thing I didn't mention that was where he's ranked by some of these transfer portal rankings on three and 24-7, both have him in the top 55, Evan Miyakao's website in the athletic. Both have him in the top 40. I'll be honest. I like to use the Evan Miyakaa and the athletic ones more than those first two,

Starting point is 00:02:08 but they all have their value to different areas. So basically if you're averaging it out, you're talking about somebody who's around that 40 to 45 range, pretty consensusly between those. And here is what the athletic blurb. I'm not going to read the entire blurb here, CJ Moore and Sam Vassini, who do it do excellent work. So I'll highly recommend checking that out,

Starting point is 00:02:27 but just reading a couple sentences from it. Elite defensive rebounder, top 31 in defensive rebounding rate, each of the last two seasons. Real playmaking chops, six foot nine is a smart cutter and roller. The part of the game that needs the most work is his jump shot. He is efficient inside the line. For a low usage guy, he produces and usually makes the right play. That is an excellent description of a player who is going to be a winning player for you as you're like third or fourth best player. And I think that's exactly what it is.

Starting point is 00:02:56 So I love this edition of Dawes. and now the challenge becomes what does KU need to do around him? As I view it right now, like, who knows? I think there's a chance KU could play money ball at one position. I've kind of felt like it was leaning the way of the center position for a while, that, hey, if Florey's getting $5 million, are you better off giving somebody $1.5, $2 million, and say now we have an extra $3 million to use,

Starting point is 00:03:23 you know, whether we want to spread it out, a million each to three different positions that we'd add on more or just get one huge player with the extra three or, you know, beef up the bench or whatever, that you play money ball a little bit at a position that is just rising in price, and then you have a little bit more money to work with in other spots. But is it entirely possible that KU would say, hey, let's actually spend big money on the center because it seems to be really important to build that right now.

Starting point is 00:03:48 And let's play money ball with a different position. Like, he's basically the idea you get one money ball level starter, the player who you think is going to be like your fifth option on offense and just say, we're going to just survive there and we're going to max out the other four positions and try to make sure we have a good bench. And to that notion, maybe it's not center. What if they said, hey, we're going to start Col Rosario and then we'll just max out the other four positions. I don't know. If you have a good bench and four elite starters with Col Rosario, that works to me, you know, but even better would be if you max out all five starting spots and you have Col Rosario

Starting point is 00:04:23 coming off the bench with two other players, right? That's the most ideal scenario. I'm just tossing different ideas around, right? But regardless, right now I'd view Rosario, a long roundabout way of getting here, being somebody who would come off the bench. Right now, I view Kansas says having two starters, Talen Kinney at one of the guard spots, and then Keanu Dawes at the four, right? So that basically means you're looking to fill another guard spot, a wing spot, and a starting center spot. And then you figure out, you know, the bench and the depth pieces and those things after that. But the main ones you're looking at bringing in three starters. So let's go through those, right?

Starting point is 00:05:01 As far as the guard position goes, I do think going back to the idea that like Dawes is somebody who makes a lot of winning plays, makes the right play, is a good rebounder. He is an efficient score, but he's not somebody who typically is scoring, you know, 20 points each and every night, although he did in the game against Kansas. You want a guard who can create their own shot. You want a guard who can handle the basketball next to Taylin, can. you want a guard who can make threes, right? Because you could easily let, let's say you even win the dream lottery and land

Starting point is 00:05:34 tyrant Sokes at the three. I do think Stokes is a better three-point shooter than some people have given him credit for, but what are we talking about coming in? Like what if he shoots 33% from three at Kansas, you know as a freshman? Kinney, known as a good shooter, but again, as a freshman, what if he's 34% from three? Daw's 31% from three. What if you don't get much three-point shooting from the center, if at all? Or if you do, it's like, you know, 20-something percent.

Starting point is 00:05:56 that's not a lot of, you know, that's a lot of average to below average shooting on the floor. You would really need your two man to carry the way and be an elite shooter. So that's why I look at, you know, can your other guard be a really good shooter? That's obviously something really important. Can they create shots? Can they be a shaker for you and be a bucket? Kansas is a waiting word on Terrence Hill. It seems like he visited Kansas then wound up visiting Tennessee and haven't seen.

Starting point is 00:06:26 a decision being made there one way or another, so we'll see what happens there. I still really like his game. A couple of the other guards have fallen off the board. Cruz Davis, for instance, went to Texas Tech. But it does seem like Kansas has moved heavily in the direction of Leroy, Lydden, who I love his game. If you bring in Hale or Blyden, I would be absolutely in love with that guard portal edition for KU. We'll have a deep dive on Blyden in an episode coming out Friday morning. So you want to check that one out and why I am so high on his game. specifically, but it seems like that's kind of the path you're going down. Then you look at the wing position.

Starting point is 00:07:00 That feels like one where it's your big game hunting, right? You're hoping that Tyron Stokes picks you. If Stoke doesn't pick you, do you look to whoever at that point in time is the top available wing in the portal? And if we get to a point where Stokes makes his decision and the portal games have come and gone and that the wing position is dried up, does Kansas go one of two ways? Did they say, hey, we're just going to play a jumble lineup and bring in another forward to play huge at three, four, and five? Or do they say we're going to bring in another guard who can create and score for us?

Starting point is 00:07:33 And we'll just try to be really big at the four and five and then go small at the one through three, right? Different options you could go to. But I think that's where you're looking to do some big game hunting as well. And then you look at the starting center. Knowing what we know about Kinney and Daw's games, what skill sets should KU be looking for at the center position? I think you want a really good rim protector for one, right? I don't know what Kenny's going to provide on the defensive end at his first year. Daw's excellent defensive rebounder.

Starting point is 00:08:03 I think he's a fine one-on-one positional defender. He doesn't create a lot of blocks or steals or anything, right? You want a five who can block shots, give you that, and give you rim protection to protect some of these young guards, right? Especially if you're bringing in a scoring first guard to pair next to Kinney, you definitely want a center who can be a really good defender for you, right? So there's different options you can go with there, but I think that's really important. I also, if you're looking at the rebounding stuff, because because Dawes is such a good

Starting point is 00:08:33 defensive rebounder, he's more of an average offensive rebounder, from the center position, I'm almost like, hey, if they're an average defensive rebounder, but they're good offensive rebounder, great, because that's a perfect pair fit to put next to Dawes. So that's not a requirement one, but it's like I would, I would, I almost prefer offensive rebounding at the five over defensive rebounding knowing that you have Dawes, but I do think the shot blocking and rim protection is the most important thing you're looking for in a five right now if you're KU. And then the other things, you know, post up scoring, the rebounding, like those are kind of the cherry on top things. It does seem like in general, KU wants more

Starting point is 00:09:12 athleticism, which, you know, Dawes is athletic for a four. Can you get an athletic? Can you get an athletic come two guard, right? And then I think just going back in general, like, KU needs real three-point shooting. They probably need it off the bench. Maybe Rosario can provide that. Maybe you get it from a guy like Blyden or Hill or one of these guards that you land to do. But I think those are the areas you're kind of looking for now. And, you know, ideally, Daws would only have to be like third on KU and scoring and can be the leading rebounder. And ideally, Kenny is, you know, using his passing game and really good vision and facilitating, and he only has to be the, you know, fourth or fifth option on the offensive end and that you have a different primary

Starting point is 00:09:51 scoring creation guard to kind of take some pressure off of him. Those would be the ideal situation. So we'll see what happens here in the portal for KU. All right. Bryson Tiller picked Missouri. It is certainly leading to a bit of an outrage from KU fans. We'll also get into some of the other latest portal and news in general around KU. This is locked on Jayhawks. This episode of the show is brought to you by Rocket Money. If you've ever opened your bank account and thought, where'd all my money go? You're not alone, keeping track of subscriptions, spending, and bills. It can get overwhelming.

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Starting point is 00:12:07 You can join the Everyday Air Club to get the ad-free version of Locked on Jayhawks by going to Lockedonjahawks.supercast.com. That is locked on Jayhawks. Dot supercast.com. So, Bryson Tiller was down to Miami and Missouri. And sounds like he got a bag to, I mean, it's just rumor stuff right now. So I don't know. Like, what type of money is he actually getting, right?

Starting point is 00:12:29 That's kind of a big question. But it does seem like he got a lot of money and ends up going to Missouri. And this has rubbed a lot of KU fans wrong. And I think in general, it's the furthering of the college sports is no longer what it was and you know this kind of sucks that we're at a place where like people are transferring to their rival and stuff yeah it's i i don't love it either right i don't like it right that's kind of the thing i'll say this though i and i've seen a lot of people very upset with tiller and you know i still think florrie is the bigger villain of the off season that might i think that's actually

Starting point is 00:13:02 going to be a very unpopular take among k u fans and i get it tiller's going to your biggest rival in missouri i totally get it right here's why i view flory still as the bigger villain and And then to me, it's, it's, I don't even know that it's as much of Flory as the bigger villain as Flory's whole camp, like Flory with his guardian and the whole group, I guess. But, you know, here's a couple of reasons why. There were a lot of KU fans, not everybody, right? There was a lot of KU fans that wanted Tiller back and wanted the continuity for Bell'suff. But there were also a lot of KU fans that were like, hey, this ain't working with Tiller. He's got to go. They can upgrade the position. And to be clear, I think KU did upgrade the position with Keanu does. But like, here's the thing. If you think, if you think, Bryson Tiller is not very good, then shouldn't you be happy he's playing for a team that you have to deal with? Like, don't you want your rival to be worse? You know? But here's the main reason to me. Tiller was kind of tossed aside.

Starting point is 00:14:00 Like, sure, I'm sure Tiller transferring did have a bit to do with, he probably didn't have the best relationship with Bill Self. That's probably from both sides of the party, right? obviously the benching toward the end of the season. And sure, whatever money Bryson-Tiller got, like, I'm sure KU didn't want to match it. Probably wasn't worth, you know, not having a great fit for Bill Self for, you know, paying him too much money, right? So from that standpoint, there is a little bit of, you didn't agree upon something and so you end up going somewhere else. But at the end of the day, there is a bit of an element of KU not wanting to match the role or the money or whatever with Bryson Tiller, that I could understand from Tiller's perspective

Starting point is 00:14:47 of being like, you kicked me to the curb. And as much as we want to admit it or not, a lot of us, not everyone, I'm sure some people are better than others at this, but a lot of us, when you feel wrong, do you want to stick it to the guy? You know what I mean? You want to stick it to the guy who made you feel wronged. And again, I know from our perspective, we can see it as well. This is a business and you're getting paid millions of dollars to like, this is just part of the game and clearly you weren't a good fit for bills up. I can understand how from his perspective, he would see it as you're kicking me to the curbs. I'm going to try to prove you wrong. I'm going to go to your rival. Again, I don't love it, but I at least can can understand it a little bit more. With Flory,

Starting point is 00:15:33 he was never tossed to the side. Florey never got to a point where KU was like, Hey, we don't really want you anymore. Hey, we don't think you're a good fit anymore. No, Flory left because his guardian was chasing the bag and was selling him off, you know, in January of 2025 to Bruce Pearl and Auburn. And then ended up coming back and was selling him off to Duke and some of these other schools in January and February this year too, with one foot out the whole way through. So like, I don't love where Tiller ended up transferring to, but I can at least understand it.

Starting point is 00:16:07 whereas with the Flory one, it's not as, I don't, I don't know. To me, that's still the bigger villain, but both are villains for KU fans at this point, right? And KU gets a chance to play both of them this season. The Louisville games in exhibition. And then this one's going to be at the sprint center, a team mobile center. So it'll be interesting how those go. But yeah, very interesting world we're in now with college sports. I will say, though, like I said, I do feel like Kansas upgraded with Keanu Dawes at the four positions.

Starting point is 00:16:37 because KU got much better rebounding. You know, as much as KU was playing two big lineups with Tiller, they weren't using it to the advantage of being a great rebounding team. Dawes is a better rebounder than Tiller. Dawes also has much better efficiency inside. Also, Daz isn't like a light out shooter. He's a fine shooter, but he's still much better and more consistent than Tiller. Now, obviously, the difference is with Tiller, you have that potential, right?

Starting point is 00:17:05 what could Tiller become and that's the thing that scares you uh you know could could it be another Zubi situation. That that's always what scares you in the back of your mind right. Um, but again like the Zuby one is different with Tiller. It's like would it have ever worked with Bilsop? Because it just seems like it seems like that was never going to like I always go back to I go back to like when when Tiller picked KU at a high school and I remember reading something. I forget where it was about how he compared his own game to, he liked to play like Jason Tatum. And that's great.

Starting point is 00:17:39 Like Jason Tatum, great player, top 10 player in the NBA, yada, yada, yada. Bryson Tillers a big. He's a 4-5. Jason Tatum is not. Jason Tayton is a wing. And so when I saw that, there was a little bit of a light bulb

Starting point is 00:17:53 that went off of my head going, are we sure this is going to be the best fit? Because I've seen this story before where Bill Self has a big man who doesn't want to play like a big man and that don't fly. And so I don't know if it would have ever been a great fit. Whereas you get Dawes,

Starting point is 00:18:09 I just think this is a better fit for kind of all parties involved, to be completely honest. But yeah, it certainly adds some intrigue and ruffled a lot of feathers with where Tiller ended up deciding to play. All right, other portal news and some KU football news next. This episode's brought to you by Ruggiet.

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Starting point is 00:19:28 And I guess depending on you're listening to this, but Paul M-Bia is, quote, 100% Jayhawks, and wants to return to KU but has not yet reached final agreement. quote, we are trying to get him the deal he deserves. He is on emotion. We need to help him understand it's also a business. That quote coming from his management, Yassine Phila, Ysene Phila, who told the Lawrence Journal World and Henry via DM. So that becomes interesting because it's a perfect encapsulation of what a lot is happening in college sports

Starting point is 00:19:58 where it's like a player wants to do one thing, but the agency sears them another. Now, I do understand the agency is trying to look at. out for the kid and trying to get him the best deal possible. But at some point, we have to understand that, like, these people have to be able to make their own decisions to. If Paul and Bia decides he wants to leave 100K on the table to stay at Kansas, let him freaking do that. I don't know, whatever, but that just makes me like Paul and be more that he's like, nah, I kind of just want to stay here. So we'll see what ends up happening there. And then also as we look to potential shooting guard options, Jake Hall withdraws one of the best shooters in the portal from

Starting point is 00:20:36 New Mexico. We're going to do a deep dive on him sometime next week, but now I don't have to worry about that. So he's going back to New Mexico there. And then Aday Papula, really good shooter from Tulsa. He goes to DePaul. I've actually loki kind of liked what DePaul has done in the transfer portal here. He would have been the perfect like bench option as a sniper to come in and, you know, give you 15, 20 minutes per game and just knock down some three. So unfortunate that he's no longer there. But those are two of the bigger, you know, three point shooters that were available in the portal. Some KU football knows. We heard from some press conferences from the assistants today.

Starting point is 00:21:11 Sounds like Nick Morrow, who was a left tackle when he was at Cal coming in and playing some reps at right tackle. Now, it sounds like he was excited to do it. Now, I find that very interesting because Clements was the starting left tackle for KU last season, but you brought in a player in Morrow who was a starting left tackle before in his two years at Cal. So you would think, okay, is Clements going to move to right tackle? Well, sounds like both are going to get a shot at both positions. is how I kind of interpreted it, but it almost makes me think, okay, Morrow is going to start at right tackle. And I do go back and watch one of the games with Morrow. There were some struggles there

Starting point is 00:21:45 from the left tackle position. So maybe moving to right tackle helps him. And maybe just another year of familiarity helps Clements at left tackle. And, you know, they're off and running. Also her Tavaki Tuukalovatu is doing really well. That makes things very interesting in the competition because that guard position looks pretty good for KU. Does it lead to them moving a mere herring to center? Or do they just have basically a six-man rotation like we've seen before? The other KU football news comes in the recruiting realm. So we heard earlier this week that Trayvon McAlpine, who was the defensive tackle transfer from Tulane,

Starting point is 00:22:24 expected to probably be a starter and make a big impact and be one of the better players on the team, was banged up and kind of hurt, didn't really. get an extent like are we talking he's going to miss the season or miss time in the season or that he's going to be back for fall camp or back for the summer i i don't know we didn't really get a great clarification or news on that um maybe the fact that they're recruiting this kid is is a sign that it could be a bad injury for mcalpine which you hope not but um malachi brown he's a junior college defensive tackle i think he just visited kansas state he got an offer from kansas and it sounds like he might be trying to set up a visit to Kansas or something like that.

Starting point is 00:23:02 So on one hand, it would be good for KU to add more depth than another defensive tackle on the other. If it's an indication how bad the McAlpine injury is, that would not be great either for KU. That'll do it for this episode, though, of Lockdown Jayhawks. We'll have a bonus episode coming out tomorrow, what I'm really excited for with a player deep dive on Leroyd-Blyden Jr. So you're not going to want to miss that.

Starting point is 00:23:22 Don't forget to check out our Keanu Daz episodes and plenty of other deep dives right here on Locked on Jayhawks.

Locked On Jayhawks - Daily Podcast On Kansas Jayhawks Football & Basketball - ROSTER IMPACT of Keanu Dawes Addition | How Will Bill Self Fill Team Around Dawes and Taylen Kinney

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