Kansas extends hoops scholarship offer to ESPN’s No. 12-rated player in Class of 2022

Jordan Walsh, a 6-foot-7, 195-pound senior small forward from Southern California Academy in Castaic, California, has been offered a men’s basketball scholarship by Kansas, he reported on Twitter.

Walsh — he is originally from DeSoto, Texas — is ranked No. 12 in the recruiting Class of 2022 by ESPN.com, No. 73 by Rivals.com and No. 88 by 247sports.com.

He has visited Oklahoma, Arkansas and TCU and also is considering KU, Auburn, Georgia, Arizona State, Florida State, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Texas, LSU, California and others.

“He is a very long and active dual forward prospect who projects as a wing long term but right now his offensive game is more that of a hybrid 4 (power forward),” wrote Brandon Jenkins of 247sports.com. “He has the upside to be a versatile asset at the high-major level. He has good bounce and fluid strides to add to his lengthy frame.

“Walsh is consistently productive on the defensive end where he is disruptive and on the glass,” Jenkins added. “He can lead the break after securing a defensive rebound and has a good looking jumper but it is not totally reliable. Developing a better feel for the game and becoming a more consistent threat when open from behind the arc are his main areas of focus.”

Walsh averaged 17.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game as a junior at Faith Family Academy in Oak Cliff, Texas. His team won Texas’ Class 4A state title. He’s decided to transfer to the California prep school for his senior year.

No. 6-ranked Whitehead sets decision date

Dariq Whitehead, the No. 6-ranked player in the recruiting Class of 2022 by ESPN.com and Rivals.com who recently made a campus visit to Kansas, will announce his college choice on Aug. 1.

Whitehead, a 6-foot-6, 190-pound senior forward from Montverde (Florida) Academy, who is originally from Newark, New Jersey, has also visited Duke and Florida State. He’s also being recruited by Kentucky, Auburn, Memphis, Maryland, Texas, UCLA, Oklahoma State and others.

He revealed his decision date in a post on Twitter.

Various recruiting analysts believe Duke will ultimately land Whitehead, who plays for Team Durant of Maryland on the AAU circuit.

“After speaking with Whitehead at the Summer Hoops Festival over the weekend, I got the vibe that Florida State is the only threat to steal his pledge from the Blue Devils, as Kansas seems to be in a distant third,” wrote Rob Cassidy of Rivals.com. “Whitehead’s official visit to Duke allowed him to become more comfortable with head coach in waiting Jon Scheyer and may have sealed the deal.”

Whitehead and MJ Rice, a 6-5, 220-pound senior combo guard/small forward from Prolific Prep in Windsor, California, who also has visited KU, told SI.com they are encouraged by the NCAA allowing players to make money off their own name, image and likeness.

“I’ve always felt that players should definitely be able to profit on their image and likeness,” Whitehead told SI.com. “I’ve never understood why they can’t. I mean if the school can profit, why can’t we? So, yes, this news of college moving in that direction definitely makes the college option even more attractive.” .

Whitehead’s brother, Tahir Whitehead is a 10-year veteran linebacker in the NFL who played for Carolina last season.

“He talks to me about a lot of opportunities and avenues to make money from your name,” Dariq Whitehead told SI.com. “He’s lived in that world for a long time, so he knows every aspect of that. He’s a great resource for me with everything about to change.”

Rice, who is ranked No. 17 nationally according to ESPN.com and No. 28 by Rivals.com, said: “I feel like these days the smart thing to do is to keep all of your options open. It’s not like it was five years ago when no one really thought about anything but college. But the NIL rights are big. Most players lean college a little anyway, so to have this is big for college basketball.”

Rice is considering KU, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh, Duke, and others. There are reports that Rice may elect to head to the NBA’s G League straight out of high school.

Marcus Carr lists KU, three others

Former Minnesota point guard Marcus Carr, a 6-2 senior from Ontario, Canada, has a list of KU, Texas, Kentucky and Louisville as possible transfer destinations, Carr’s mentor, Vidal Massiah, told Jon Rothstein of CBSsports.com.

KU currently has no scholarships available on its 2021-22 roster. As of Monday night Ochai Agbaji and Remy Martin had not announced whether they would remain in the 2021 NBA Draft or return to college for the 2021-22 season. They have until 11 p.m. Wednesday to withdraw from the draft if they wish to retain collegiate eligibility.

Carr averaged 19.4 points, 4.9 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game last season at Minnesota.

Center Udeh considering KU, others

KU is recruiting Ernest Udeh, a 6-10, 230-pound senior center from Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Florida.

Udeh, the No. 115-ranked player in the Class of 2022 according to Rivals.com, has been offered a scholarship by KU, Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Tennessee, Cincinnati, Stanford, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Creighton, Florida, Miami and others.

Analyst Rob Cassidy of Rivals.com wrote Monday that he’s looking forward to watching Udeh play at various AAU tourneys this month.

“Six months ago I had not heard of Udeh. He had no buzz. My first viewing of Udeh came during the first week of April, and instantly you saw his hands, his ability to run the floor, his touch around the basket and it was obvious he was a Power Five prospect,” wrote Cassidy.

“A follow up viewing of Udeh came in May during the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions where Udeh took over the weekend. We doubled down on Udeh and shortly thereafter he entered the Rivals150. Twenty-plus offers later it looks like we made the right move in betting on Udeh.”

Rivals.com recruiting analyst Dan McDonald describes Udeh as someone who is “explosive (with) great hands and the ability to dominate in the paint on both ends.”

Of KU, Udeh told Rivals.com: “They have a really great history with their big men like Joel Embiid and Udoka Azubuike. Udoka stood out to me when they offered me. They (KU coaches) have been showing a lot of love and how they can help me get to the next level with their development.”