After a breakthrough 2022-23 campaign that earned him plaudits and an award nod as the Big 12 Conference’s most improved player, Kansas junior KJ Adams Jr. is looking to take another step forward next season.
The 6-foot-7 Adams played primarily as an undersized center last year, averaging more than 10 points and four rebounds in the process, and so did most of his work near the rim. But with the arrival of highly touted transfer center Hunter Dickinson, KU coach Bill Self may need Adams to slide out to the power-forward position more often than not.
“He’s just telling me just to work on my shot a little bit more,” Adams said Sunday, “try to get more comfortable, get some more live reps, because that’s what’s going to help me if we make the transition (to power forward) or if we stay.”
Adams’ jump shot has been a subject of offseason scrutiny and speculation, with guard Dajuan Harris Jr. telling reporters last weekend that Adams “could be looking like a pro” if he gets it working for him. Adams said he’ll need to shoot more in 5-on-5 practice to determine exactly how the jump shot fits into his game, but freshman Jamari McDowell, who spoke to media for the first time Sunday, already had praise for the work Adams (a “super-freak athlete”) has put in.
“He’s actually really been hitting them in practice,” McDowell said. “It’s been looking really good and fluid, so you can really tell that he’s been working on that, seriously.”
Adams has also been working on his interplay with Dickinson since workouts started a week ago.
“Just trying to play off him, and just trying to do what we could to move around him,” Adams said, “because Hunter’s a very special player, so (I’m) just trying to move off him and make sure I can get open.”
With a team that features just three returners, building chemistry has been a near-constant priority and a frequent topic of discussion since the first contingent of players arrived. (Freshman Marcus Adams just made it to campus after graduating high school; seniors Parker Braun and Kevin McCullar Jr. are still away.)
KJ Adams has been the linchpin of some team-building efforts, including a taco dinner he hosted on June 3 that earned praise from both Harris and McDowell. (“My secret to cooking,” Adams said, “is having a girlfriend that does most of it.”) More recently, the team went out to Luke Combs’ concert in Kansas City Saturday.
“It’s been like we’ve been together for four years,” Adams said, “I think the team really clicks, and I think we generally like each other.”
Those good vibes extend to McDowell, who Adams said was “a little goofy sometimes, but he’s a good all-around player.” The freshman, despite a versatile offensive skill set, echoed the words of classmate Elmarko Jackson from Wednesday’s camp scrimmage when he said he wants to focus on defense in his first year.
