Kansas Jayhawks Number Rankings: 21
A few weeks ago, we started a new series ranking current KU players against other KU stars who have worn the same number. This is the final installment of this series, covering all the major contributors in the 2022-23 season. We already ranked all the starters from last season, and if you haven’t already, click here to get started and follow the links.
Now we’re on to the final bench contributor. Click here and follow the links to read about Yesufu, Pettiford, Ejiofor, Udeh, and Rice to see how those guys compare to players from the past that have worn their number.
The idea behind these lists is as follows: I’ll list the guys who wore the same number, give a few blurbs about each player, and ultimately find a place where the 22-23 Jayhawk ranks.
Today we examine #21 Zach Clemence who is off to UC-Santa Barbara, as well as others who have worn that number (since 1983).
Other recent 21s:
Milt Newton. Four seasons, 1984-1989.
Milt is the only player in any of these articles to have played for both Larry Brown and Roy Williams. Milt really got cooking when he was afforded playing time starting in his junior season. Over the last two years, one of which included the 1988 national championship, Newton scored 14.7 points on average while grabbing five boards per game.
Sean Pearson. Four seasons, 1992-1996.
Sean was a solid four year contributor who reached one Final Four in 1993. Over the course of his stay at KU, he averaged 6.2 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.
Nick Bradford. Four seasons, 1996-2000.
After barely playing in his first two seasons on Mount Oread, Nick Bradford sprang to life in his junior and senior campaigns. In those two years, he scored at an 8.4 PPG clip while dishing out three assists per contest.
Nick Bahe. Two seasons, 2003-2005.
Before transferring to Creighton, Nick Bahe played sparingly for Kansas and averaged 0.9 points per game.
Markieff Morris. Three seasons, 2008-2011.
Markieff’s junior season was the one that put him on the map and got him drafted into the NBA. That season, he averaged 13.6 points and 8.3 rebounds.
Joel Embiid. One season, 2013-2014.
A one season wonder and a giant what if for Kansas when it came to the one postseason that he was unavailable to play in. Embiid was out with a back injury and Kansas lost to Stanford. In that one season at KU, the future Philadelphia 76er and NBA MVP scored 11.2 points and grabbed 8.1 boards per game. I imagine that Joel would be higher in the final rankings had he the opportunity to play in the Big Dance.
Clay Young. Three seasons, 2015-2018
The Lansing, Kansas native played a total of 111 minutes for Kansas.
How does Zach Clemence stack up?
This list is pretty stacked, so Zach playing limited minutes did help his standing here. And while Zach hasn’t lived up to his potential,the hope is that he can regain the magic as a Gaucho that made him a high level recruit. At KU, Clemence averaged 1.8 points and 1.6 rebounds per game. As Zach is transferring, sixth place is the best he’ll be on a list of greats to wear number twenty-one.
Final Rankings:
- Markieff Morris
- Milt Newton
- Joel Embiid
- Nick Bradford
- Sean Pearson
- Zach Clemence
- Nick Bahe
- Clay Young
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