Wilson and McCullar Withdraw From NBA Draft, Head to Lawrence
The 2022-23 Kansas Jayhawks basketball roster is complete.
Hours before the 10:59 p.m. CT Wednesday deadline for players to withdraw from the NBA Draft and return to school, Jalen Wilson announced he was coming back to Kansas for a redshirt junior season, while former Texas Tech Red Raider Kevin McCullar Jr. also announced he would take his name out of the draft and fulfill his commitment to Kansas.
Wilson will look to improve his shotmaking ability while taking on an increased role in the offense, and his rebounding will be a huge benefit as a small 4 in a young and inexperienced front court. Meanwhile, McCullar averaged 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in nearly 30 minutes per game for the Red Raiders last year. But the biggest contribution will be on defense, as McCullar is one of the best perimeter players in the country.
Wilson made a name for himself at the G League camp and NBA Combine, and seemed to impress scouts at team workouts, but now he will look to take the same jump as former teammate Ochai Agbaji and set himself up as a lottery pick next year.
Despite losing Agbaji, Christian Braun, Remy Martin, and David McCormack, KU is likely going to be considered a top-10 team nationally. Wilson and McCullar will join Dajuan Harris, Joseph Yesufu, Zach Clemence, KJ Adams, Bobby Pettiford, and others along with a freshman class that features elite small forward scorer Gradey Dick, 6-5 SF M.J. Rice, 6-7 four man Zuby Ejiofor, and 6-10 center Ernest Udeh.
The biggest question remaining is one that has become somewhat of a recurring theme for Jayhawk fans: How will Bill Self fit in enough minutes for all these guys?
Join the discussion! Come talk about this or any of our articles on the Blue Wing Rising Discord Server.
Follow Blue Wings Rising on Twitter.
Listen to the official podcast of Blue Wings Rising: The Rock Chalk Podcast.
