Kansas Target Darrion Williams Commits to NC State: What's Next for the Jayhawks?

Rated as On3’s sixth-best transfer portal prospect, Williams is an immediate impact player and would have given the Jayhawks a roster with Final Four capabilities.

With Williams and Sarr officially off the board, a question naturally arises:

What’s the next step?

Kansas is clearly in desperate need of a starting forward and frontcourt depth as a whole. Notable names such as RJ Luis (St. John’s) and Jamir Watkins (Florida State) remain available in the transfer portal, although it remains unknown whether either of them will even return to college basketball (both remain in the NBA Draft process).

More importantly, while Luis and Watkins would give the Jayhawks another go-to scoring option, neither would solve any frontcourt issues, as they’re both premier wings. 

North Carolina transfer Ven-Allen Lubin is a name worth monitoring. With three seasons of high-major basketball under his belt, Lubin has the experience and size (6-foot-8) to slide into Kansas’ starting lineup.

Last season at UNC, Lubin averaged 8.7 points and 5.5 rebounds. Pairing Lubin with Flory Bidunga would give the Jayhawks a solid one-two punch in their starting frontcourt. 

Regardless of what route coach Bill Self and the Jayhawks decide to go in the coming days, it’s clear that Kansas needs to attack the top remaining prospects now, before the talent pool – which has already thinned out – is entirely decimated.