It's the end of June, and there are five big questions looming over the 2018-19 Kansas Jayhawks. We're projected to be a top five team, some have us as the number one team in the nation. Here's my top five questions -
1. Dedric Superstar?: Much of the preseason hype is premised on Dedric Lawson and his presumed superstar status. He was impressive in his two seasons at Memphis and has the ability to stretch the floor, though his three point percentage in his sophomore year dipped to 27% after shooting 35% his freshman season. He looks like our best player, he seems to be the guy we'll rely on, and he seems to be a potential all-American. A lot is riding on Lawson and his assumed stardom. Will he really be "the man"?
2. Moore Up Or Moore Down?: Is he a point guard, or is he just the dreaded short "combo" guard? Much of the opinion flowed against Moore, and against the possibility of Moore starting this season (other than perhaps early). But of late, there seems strong momentum that Moore is a much more complete player than we have thought and the Moore is fully capable of being one of our three starting guards, and excelling with the ball in his hands. Can Moore run the show?
3. DeSousa Eligible?: A disgusting topic. As other posters have observed, can we stomach another season of NCAA delays, a player sitting out, missed games, and the story line dominance that we recently suffered with Billy Preston? Self sounded a quite optimistic tune recently, saying everything from their end indicated DeSousa would be playing. But I'm not so sure. Apologies for the FBI rehash, but my pessimism stems from the core premise of the Federal indictment -- that the defendants in that case defrauded the universities by the payments, which made the players ineligible under the NCAAA rules, thus depriving the schools of their anticipated benefit. If DeSousa plays, well, where's the fraud? Bruce Bowen and De'anthony Melton are examples of where this could go. DeSousa is a force, and having this guy getting 25-30 is a game changer. One reasonable school of thought is that Dedric and DeSousa, together, might be our best post combo. The guy improved immensely in short period of time with the consistent game action Self provided (note the backhanded reference to past players who were denied such an opportunity to develop, but I digress). But you canât play if you aren't eligible, or if the NCAA indicates there are questions and then delays. I think this is why the NCAA moved to Indy many years ago, so we could protest and heckle. Will DeSousa be in uniform this season?
4. Backcourt Youth Ready?: We've had the luxury of upper classmen filling out the ranks of our backcourt. Now, that all changes. Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes are presumed starters, Charlie Moore has one college season under his belt, as a redshirt sophomore, and most project Marcus Garrett, a sophomore, to be a big minutes guy as well (and possibly start). This is a huge reliance on youth. We've been focused on Grimes of late and his apparent path to stardom. We know it won't be that easy. If Self and Vick are able to reach pact on his return, surely laden with Self's strict requirements, that might change the dynamic. But odds are sharply against that. As is, we have huge unknowns with the ball in their collective hands. If this piece fails, we know the result. Can the youth step up in the backcourt?
5. Can We Drain The Three?: Lots of type space dedicated to the importance of the three pointer over these many years at this site, and what a change we have seen. Self has embraced the three, and went all in last season on the three ball. Even more, his team was eliminated by the ultimate three ball squad, which won the NC. Now we come off that three point high and see a team with question marks at every spot when it comes to the long ball. I asked the question a few weeks ago when it was suggested that we could shoot 37% from three as a team (after shooting 40% last season) -- name one player on KU's roster that you assume will shoot 37% by himself? By a plurality, it seemed, Mitch Lightfoot won the vote. I'm sorry, that ain't gonna cut it. But there are leaps that can be made. I compared Grimes a bit to Victor Oladipo in style of play, and then looked at O's stats. He shot 30% from three his freshman season, the just 20% his sophomore season, before leaping to just over 40% his breakout junior season. Regardless of the assumed return to a more conventional, feed the post offense, we will need effective three point shooting to win the national title, with reasonable volume. We can't assume an alternative path. Are there any guys here who can breakout from three?
Those are my top five questions for the season, as we we sit here in June. Others might include whether Vick will return, whether McCormack can be denied minutes, whether Self goes back to the high/low (or if high three rates are here to stay), whether Doke's weakness at the line will be exploited further by the opposition, whether Garrett can shoot without cracking backboards, and whether Mitch Lightfoot might redshirt (or if he forces a major role once again, by performance or circumstance).