Kansas Jayhawks 2014-15 team preview

The Jayhawks deal in whens, not ifs. When they sort out their rotation. When they lock down their defense. Coming off a 10th consecutive Big 12 regular-season

The Jayhawks deal in whens, not ifs. When they sort out their rotation. When they lock down their defense. Coming off a 10th consecutive Big 12 regular-season title, Kansas again sits at the top of the conference, and it seems as if nothing has changed -- except so much has.

After losing three starters (including two top five NBA draft picks), the Jayhawks reloaded with three five-star recruits (bruising power forward Cliff Alexander, slashing swingman Kelly Oubre Jr. and Ukrainian sharpshooter Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk). Freshman Devonte Graham, a mere four-star prospect, will give Kansas its first true point guard in four seasons.

While coach Bill Self says, “Our guys aren’t that far apart, from a talent standpoint,” he takes pains to make one distinction clear: His best player won’t be one of the newcomers. It will be junior forward Perry Ellis, the team’s second-leading scorer (13.5 points per game) last year. Self hopes Ellis will add three to five points to his average while becoming a more vocal leader. “I am a real quiet guy,” says Ellis, “but when something needs to be said, I’m going to try to say [it].” He’s already counseled the younger Jayhawks about team chemistry. “When they figure it out,” Self says, “they’re going to get pretty good.”

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Projected top seven scorers

name	pos	class	ppg	rpg	apg	o-rating
Perry Ellis	F	Jr	16.1	7.7	1.3	126.9
Cliff Alexander	F	Fr	11.7	6.8	0.8	117.4
Wayne Selden	F	So	11.2	3.6	2.1	115.3
Kelly Oubre	F	Fr	10.6	4.4	1.2	117.4
Frank Mason	G	So	7.2	1.7	2.4	113.2
Brannen Greene	F	So	6.5	3.2	0.9	111.8
Devonte Graham	G	Fr	6.3	2.3	2.2	104.6

Projected Big 12 standings

rank	team	projected conf. record	2013-14 conf. record
1	Kansas	15-3	14-4
2	Texas	12-6	11-7
3	Iowa State	12-6	11-7
4	Kansas State	10-8	10-8
5	Oklahoma	10-8	12-6
6	Oklahoma State	8-10	8-10
7	Baylor	7-11	9-9
8	West Virginia	7-11	9-9
9	Texas Tech	5-13	6-12
10	TCU	4-14	0-18