Another day, another Kansas basketball player added to a preseason watchlist.
One day after learning he had been named the preseason newcomer of the year by the Big 12 Conference men’s basketball coaches, KU junior Dedric Lawson found himself on a list of 20 players in the running for the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award.
The annual honor, now in its fifth year, recognizes the top power forward in Division I men’s college basketball after each season. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
By mid-February, the watchlist of 20 players for award will be narrowed to 10, and, in March, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Malone and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The winner will be announced April 12, 2019, in Los Angeles.
Lawson joins KU freshmen Devon Dotson (Bob Cousy Award) and Quentin Grimes (Jerry West Award) as Jayhawks named to various national watchlists thus far ahead of the upcoming 2018-19 season.
Named a preseason all-Big 12 first team pick along with his top newcomer honor, Lawson is in his first season of eligibility at KU after sitting out last season after transferring from Memphis. During his last on-court action, the Memphis native averaged 19.2 points and 9.9 rebounds for the Tigers, recording 19 double-doubles during his sophomore year in 2016-17.
As a freshman, Lawson averaged 15.8 points and 9.3 rebounds with 17 double-doubles for Memphis.
Yoeli Childs, BYU
Zion Williamson, Duke
Juwan Morgan, Indiana
Dedric Lawson, Kansas
Dean Wade, Kansas State
Reid Travis, Kentucky
P.J. Washington, Kentucky
Jordan Murphy, Minnesota
Jordan Brown, Nevada
Luke Maye, North Carolina
Drew McDonald, Northern Kentucky
Chris Silva, South Carolina
Mike Daum, South Dakota State
Grant Williams, Tennessee
Devontae Cacok, UNCW
Bennie Boatwright, USC
Simisola Shittu, Vanderbilt
Eric Paschall, Villanova
Noah Dickerson, Washington
Sagaba Konate, West Virginia
Players can play their way onto and off of the list at any point during the 2018-19 season.