It is a two-horse race to see which player is KU’s best on the season. David McCormack has continued to consistently perform, improving his defense to carry him when he has a down game on the offensive side of the ball. Garrett has been slipping of late, his lack of a jump-shot hurts his ability to produce points.
Both Ochai Agbaji and Jalen Wilson have provided negative average value of the last three contests. One wonders if they are playing too many minutes. A few minutes for Tyon Grant-Foster wouldn’t hurt the team on the defensive end, and might allow the starters to have fresh legs late in the game.
Christian Braun has improved his season Adj PPG +/- by upping his defense and offensive efficiency. He is a good player, and fringe-level starter at KU. To become a truly great KU player, he needs to provide more offensive production.
Bryce Thompson continues to make his Adj PPG +/- score more respectable. In 15 games this season, he has only added positive value in 4 of those games. However, 3 of those positive games have occurred in the five total he has played since coming back from injury.
Dejuan Harris made nice defensive plays against Texas, but his offensive woes plague his minutes. He rarely scores, and although he makes nice passes it rarely generates enough value to justify him getting substantial floor time.
Mitch Lightfoot is fighting to remain above -1.0. He doesn’t score enough, but on defense he has trouble coming down with possessions, especially for a post. Contrast this to Jalen Wilson or David McCormack.
Tristan Enaruna and Tyon Grant-Foster have seen their roles diminish. Of the two, Grant-Foster plays the stingier defense and should get some run when the starting wings need a break. Neither on offense are helpful, but of the two at least TGF has shown the ability to defend.
The team’s adjusted defense is now 9th nationally. Garrett anchors this end, but Agbaji, Braun, and now McCormack are proving to be capable and value-adding defenders. The team’s offense checks in at 58th nationally, with the only consistent performers being McCormack and Wilson.
Charting the Hawks 