Parks commits to KU women’s basketball, giving Jayhawks 2nd marquee addition in 2 days

By Henry Greenstein     Nov 20, 2024

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University of Kansas basketball recruiting

Make it two momentous commitments in two days for the Kansas women’s basketball program.

A day after in-state forward Jaliya Davis, a five-star prospect on some services, pledged to join the Jayhawks in 2025, similarly high-ranked guard Keeley Parks did the same on Wednesday evening.

Parks, a 5-foot-11 guard from Norman, Oklahoma, is 247Sports’ No. 17 player in the class of 2025 and ESPN’s No. 29. She picked KU over her hometown Sooners and in-state Oklahoma State Cowboys, after previously considering other schools like Baylor, North Carolina, N.C. State and UCLA.

With Parks coming in along with a trio of future Jayhawks who are already signed — Davis from Overland Park, Libby Fandel from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Tatyonna Brown from Colorado Springs, Colorado — the KU staff is assembling a talented group to surround current sophomore star S’Mya Nichols and a core of recently added transfers in the years ahead. Parks, Davis and Fandel are all consensus top-50 players in their recruiting class.

Parks is the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Oklahoma after averaging 26.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.6 steals as a junior for Norman High School, where her father is the head girls basketball coach.

Brandon Clay, director of scouting for 247Sports, wrote of Parks: “For most programs, Parks would project as an off-guard who can help handle the basketball in pressure situations and remain composed. She shoots well from the outside and is in excellent physical condition. Parks will continue to develop at the college level as her frame fills out in the weight room.”

Parks visited KU for Late Night in the Phog and later for the men’s basketball game against North Carolina. She has a sister, Mikayla, who plays for Kansas State.

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Written By Henry Greenstein

Henry is the sports editor at the Lawrence Journal-World and KUsports.com, and serves as the KU beat writer while managing day-to-day sports coverage. He previously worked as a sports reporter at The Bakersfield Californian and is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis (B.A., Linguistics) and Arizona State University (M.A., Sports Journalism). Though a native of Los Angeles, he has frequently been told he does not give off "California vibes," whatever that means.