Kansas Hoping It Won’t Fall Victim to Zuby Ejiofor Revenge Game

After transferring from Kansas following his freshman year, power forward Zuby Ejiofor did not know what his future college basketball career would hold. However, he has turned into a better player than any Jayhawk fan could have imagined when he first departed.

Ejiofor is set to face the same school where his collegiate career started four years ago today in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. As the 2026 Big East Player of the Year winner, he has high expectations going into this game to prove his former team wrong.

Why Zuby Ejiofor Left Kansas Basketball

Ejiofor was a promising 4-star recruit from Garland, Texas, coming out of high school. He appeared in 25 contests his freshman year in Lawrence, averaging 1.2 points and 1.7 rebounds, including some crucial minutes in the team's tournament loss to Arkansas in the Round of 32.

Many people viewed him and Ernest Udeh Jr. as the future frontcourt duo for the Jayhawks for years to come. But instead, head coach Bill Self decided to look into the transfer portal for a new big man, who would eventually be the polarizing Hunter Dickinson.

Although he had no intentions of leaving the university so quickly, his father helped decide that Kansas was not the right fit for him anymore. His time to prove himself as a player was running out, which is why he chose to find a fresh start in Queens, New York.

"It was a crazy experience," Ejiofor said in an interview with The Athletic. "I didn't want to leave. But when my dad has something on his mind, he acts on it. He knew I had to go elsewhere. He knows what's best for me. At the time, I didn't understand it. Now looking back on it, he made a great decision for me and my family.”

Ejiofor joined head coach Rick Pitino in 2023, the same year the Hall of Famer replaced Mike Anderson at the helm. The Red Storm did not make the postseason in Pitino's first year, and Ejiofor was still a bench player who averaged just 11.2 minutes and 4.3 points per game as a sophomore.

Still, he would blossom into one of the Big East’s best players in 2024-25, taking home the Big East Most Improved Player award a year ago. He has now reached unprecedented heights.

Across 35 games this season, the 6-foot-9 phenom is averaging 16.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.2 blocks, underlining his all-around impact on the game. He was voted the best player in his conference and has taken a massive leap from where he was a few years ago at KU.

Although his time with the Jayhawks didn't go as planned, Ejiofor holds no grudges against Coach Self and the program. He said Self was brutally honest with him when Dickinson initially transferred in, and that he had to do what was best for himself.

"He [was] pretty crystal clear on, he's going into the portal to recruit some guys that are able to come into the team and just create a successful season right away," Ejiofor added. "He was brutally honest with me and alongside Ernest as well, so that's why I respect him a lot. He told me early on that he was going to recruit. Hunter ultimately made his decision. And then after that, my pops came down. We had the talk and it was a good conversation, but we were able to find ourselves in the portal."

As all Jayhawk fans know, Dickinson's tenure in Lawrence was rocky and didn't result in much success, even with the strong statistics he posted. Ejiofor now has one more chance to prove to Self that he made the wrong decision as he looks to help SJU eliminate the school that didn't believe in him.