Kansas basketball coach Bill Self updates KJ Adams Jr.’s status, more ahead of Kansas City

LAWRENCE — Kansas basketball has another opportunity to protect home court Tuesday, when it welcomes Kansas City to Allen Fieldhouse for a 7 p.m. tip-off.

The No. 3 Jayhawks (7-1) are undefeated at home this season, with a recent win against now-No. 5 UConn. The Roos (3-5) are looking for their first win away from home. Kansas’ non-conference slate is starting to wind down, but each game will allow head coach Bill Self and company to continue to develop ahead of Big 12 Conference play.

Here are five things to think about before the Jayhawks tip off:

KJ Adams Jr. is back with the team

Junior forward KJ Adams Jr. traveled home over the weekend, with the Kansas coaching staff coming, as well, to celebrate the life of his mother — who died last month. But Self said Adams, who missed practice Sunday, arrived back Monday morning and would be available for practice. Self added that it was an honor to be present for the celebration of Adams’ mother, and noted that Adams’ mother was someone who lived her life doing so much for so many others.

Here’s how Bill Self feels about his team at this point in the season

Self likes where things stand when it comes to Kansas’ record. Not only are the Jayhawks 7-1, but they are 3-1 in the marquee games they’ve played in against Kentucky, Marquette, Tennessee and UConn. The lone defeat came against Marquette.

But Self said, from an execution standpoint, they are still quite a ways away from what they could end up becoming. He noted there is a lot of room for improvement. They’ve just got to keep developing guys so the team doesn’t take a step backward when he goes to the bench.

“I actually think (graduate senior forward) Parker Braun didn’t get a chance to play the other day,” said Self, mentioning the team’s main backup for senior center Hunter Dickinson. “I actually think he’s been the most consistent guy of guys five-through-nine. It’s just hard to play him when Hunter’s not in the game because you lose so much scoring.”

Here’s how Nicolas Timberlake can earn more consistent minutes

Graduate senior guard Nicolas Timberlake joined the team as a transfer from Towson who was known for his ability to hit 3s. However, during his time at Kansas, he hasn’t been able to sustain much of a role. Against UConn, he barely played.

Self said that he loves Timberlake.

But early after checking in against UConn, Timberlake made some major errors. It ended up not being the game for Timberlake, considering how important each possession was. Self added that Timberlake will be all right, noting his guard needs understand the scouting report, what they’re trying to run and what they need from him from a rebounding standpoint.

Here’s what Bill Self thinks about Kansas City’s team

Kansas City is coming into the matchup with a losing record, but Self pointed out that includes a couple defeats on the road against now-No. 6 Baylor and now-No. 12 Colorado State. He said the Roos have a much better roster than they’ve had the past couple years, and could be a dangerous team in The Summit League. Among the team’s characteristics, he highlighted that Kansas City has guys who can score.

Kevin McCullar Jr. is raising his NBA draft stock

Graduate senior guard Kevin McCullar Jr. came back to Kansas for one more year, in part, because of how it could help him make a better jump from college to the professional ranks. And Self knows the way McCullar has played has helped improve his draft stock. Self said he would be shocked if McCullar isn’t thought of as one of the best two-way players on the perimeter in the nation.

Why McCullar has been able to have that impression, Self explained, is because of how far McCullar has advanced as a scorer. Self thinks that improvement has made people take the other aspects of McCullar’s game more seriously. Defensively, McCullar is still that standout he’s always been.

“I think he’s off to a great start,” Self said. “He’s not going to score the ball, even though he is right now, as consistently as what Ochai (Agbaji) or (Jalen Wilson) has done, but up until this point he has and he’s just been great.”

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Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas basketball coach Bill Self updates KJ Adams Jr.’s status