Jalen Wilson is on Pace to Make Kansas History

National championship in hand, Jalen Wilson made the decision to come back to Kansas to be the face of the 2022-23 Jayhawks.

Turns out, it was a pretty great decision. Wilson is on pace to becoming a first-team All-American and National Player of the Year candidate. His stock is the highest it has been since he arrived in Lawrence. And the Jayhawks around him have the potential to get back to the Final Four and maybe even become the first repeat champion since Florida in the mid-2000s.

All of this is happening because Wilson is in the midst of what could be one of the best offensive seasons in Kansas history. Wilson has been on a tear all season, peaking at the most recent five-game stretch where he has scored 133 points, the most by a KU player since the Big 12 came to be in 1996-97.

Let’s dive into the numbers. Wilson is averaging 21.3 points per game through 22 games and has amassed 469 total points. That’s already more than his total from all of last year (411), which was done in 37 games.

The Jayhawks are a lock for 11 more games—nine in the regular season, one in the Big 12 Tournament, and one in the NCAA Tournament. If Wilson maintains a pace of 21 points per game for those 11 games, he’ll end with 703 points. Surpassing 700 will put him past Dedric Lawson (700 points) for 10th most points in a season at Kansas. Frank Mason’s NPOY season saw him finish with 753, which is sixth best. Side note, Danny Manning has the most single-season points all-time at 952 and I can’t fathom that being caught by anyone.

But it’s unlikely Kansas plays just 11 more games. The aspirations for this team say this would be a major disappointment if the Hawks can’t win a game in the Big 12 or NCAA tournaments.

Instead, Let’s say Kansas loses in the Big 12 semis and second round of the NCAA Tournament:

13 games remaining at 21 ppg: 742 points, good for seventh best all time, passing Drew Gooden (734), Ochai Agbaji (732), and Nick Collison (702 points).

Making the Big 12 title game and the Sweet 16?

15 games remaining at 21 ppg: 784 points, good for fifth all time, passing Paul Pierce (777) and Frank Mason (753).

What about Kansas making the Big 12 championship game and returning to the Final Four?

17 games remaining at 21 ppg: 826 points, good for fourth all time, passing Wilt Chamberlain (800).

And, of course, the possibility that Kansas repeats as Big 12 Tournament and national champions.

18 games remaining at 21 ppg: 847 points, still good for fourth all time; third is another Danny Manning season at 860 points.

All Wilson has to do is continue to play how he’s been playing and he will have one of the 10 best scoring seasons in Kansas history. And even if his average diminishes a bit, a deep run would still put him in the area of top five or six. And considering where he was last year—a solid offensive piece but not a definitive go-to guy—this is a massive achievement.

The way Wilson is doing this is also incredibly impressive. He has fully rounded out his game, driving to the basket, hitting tough mid-range jumpers, and consistently knocking down shots from three. When Kansas has needed a big shot, Wilson has delivered.

What’s more impressive? He’s also doing it on the boards. Wilson has 693 rebounds for his career and has 188 so far this season, which equates to 8.5 per game. Another 11 games at this pace and he’ll have 281 rebounds on the year, which would keep him outside the top 10 all time for a season and career but still an incredibly impressive number. Another Final Four run and Wilson could end his career with more than 1,500 points and 800 rebounds.

Kansas needs more than just Wilson to make a deep run. We learned that from this five-game stretch. Wilson also said as much post-game after beating Kansas State. But there’s no question this is Wilson’s team.

And depending on how the next two months go, this run, combined with Wilson’s career accolades (including more than 1,200 career points and counting) could make Wilson’s name one that lives in Allen Fieldhouse forever.