Player, positional versatility bring serious flexibility to 2019-20 KU basketball lineup

By Matt Tait     Sep 30, 2019

article image
Kansas head coach Bill Self rips into an official during the second half, Thursday, March 14, 2019 at Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

When it comes to covering the Kansas basketball program, there are few things more fun than taking a look at all of the different lineups available to KU coach Bill Self before another season of Jayhawk basketball.

Most years, because of the depth and talent lining the Kansas locker room, this exercise is full of options and new ways to build a half dozen different lineups.

And this year is certainly no exception. In fact, this year might feature the most flexible roster in recent memory.

“You know, we could be really big,” Self recently to the Journal-World. “We could play bully ball, or I think that we could put a team on the court that’s small enough that you could play kind of the way we played the last couple years.”

And while we’ll take a look at a few of those options in a minute, the one thing that jumps out to me that’s even more impressive than Self’s ability to create different lineups is how much versatility he has with plugging several of his players into different positions.

That, by itself, unlocks the opportunity to turn two or three different lineup options into eight or nine.

The biggest trait that creates that reality is length. And although newcomers like Tristan Enaruna, Jalen Wilson and Christian Braun all bring good length — and, therefore versatility — to the program, Self said targeting length on the recruiting trail was not exactly his primary focus.

“We were thinking shooting as much as anything,” Self said. “But length is obviously a factor, too. I think we were in a mode to get the best players that we possibly could at that point in time. But the reality of it is, when you look at the best players out there, obviously length is a factor in getting the best.

“Even though we didn’t say, ‘We have to have length,’ that was one of the things we got.”

Because of that, and because the Jayhawks have so much depth at multiple positions this season, the combinations of lineup possibilities are virtually endless.

With the exception of point guard (for the most part) and center (because no one in college basketball brings what Udoka Azubuike brings to the floor), the Jayhawks can plug and play all kinds of players at the three other positions, while also having options at the point and even at center depending on what kinds of looks they want to give opponents.

Here’s a quick glance at some of my favorite potential lineups the 2019-20 Jayhawks could — *could* — use at different points during the upcoming season.

**Starting Five**

PG – Devon Dotson

SG – Ochai Agbaji

3G – Marcus Garrett

PF – Silvio De Sousa

C – Udoka Azubuike

*You’re going to have a hard time talking me out of believing this is KU’s best five to open the season. Experience, size, athleticism and two anchors, in Dotson at point and Azubuike at center, are the reason many have KU ranked among the top two or three teams in the country heading into 2019-20.*

**Second Five**

PG – Marcus Garrett

SG – Isaiah Moss

SF – Jalen Wilson

PF – Mitch Lightfoot

C – David McCormack

*You’ve heard the chatter before, about how KU’s second five could compete for a spot in the top half of the Big 12. And while that’s not always true, it certainly appears to be this season. In Lightfoot and McCormack, you’ve got experienced players who have started multiple games at KU in their careers. Add to that the veteran presence provided by Moss and Garrett and the scoring and athleticism of Wilson and you’re looking at a pretty stout lineup.*

**Power Lineup**

PG – Marcus Garrett

SG – Jalen Wilson

3G – Silvio De Sousa

PF – David McCormack

C – Udoka Azubuike

*Oh, what I would give to see De Sousa, McCormack and Azubuike on the floor together even just a few times this season. It’s going to take a monster opponent — which I’m not sure actually exists — and even then it might not be in KU’s best interest to roll this way exactly. But putting that trio out there with Dotson and Agbaji could be fun. Going with Garrett, who can play point, and Wilson, a versatile wing player, merely maximizes KU’s size at each spot in a realistic way.*

**Small Ball**

PG – Devon Dotson

SG – Ochai Agbaji

3G – Isaiah Moss

PF – Marcus Garrett

C – Silvio De Sousa

*What’s the opposite of having those three monsters on the floor like in the lineup before? Going small. Even KU’s “small” lineup isn’t actually that small. It just takes their biggest player off the floor and plugs Garrett into the 4, where he has played in the past and where Josh Jackson and Svi Mykhailiuk before him each had success as well. But there’s nothing small about Agbaji and Moss. Putting them out there together, though, gives KU its best shooting lineup, and that tends to be called a small ball look by some people.*

**Super Vets**

PG – Marcus Garrett

SG – Isaiah Moss

3G – Mitch Lightfoot

PF – Silvio De Sousa

C – Udoka Azubuike

*The elder statesmen of the roster make a pretty intriguing mix. With Garrett, Moss and Lightfoot in the 1 through 3 spots, you’re giving up some ball handling and athleticism. So we probably won’t see this at all this season. But if you’re looking to get the most experienced players on the floor together at the same time, this is your group.*

**Run Like The Wind**

PG – Devon Dotson

SG – Ochai Agbaji

3G – Tristan Enaruna

PF – Marcus Garrett

C – Jalen Wilson

*This one’s fun. No one’s ever going to call Wilson a center, but I dare you to tell him he can’t play there — especially in a lineup like this built to fly up and down the floor, making traditional position assignments irrelevant. Dotson, Agbaji, Enaruna and Garrett can all get up and down the floor with him and, in this lineup, you wouldn’t have to worry much about who was handling the ball or where he had it. In fact, as fast as this group could be, you might be looking at no more than two or three dribbles per player per trip down the floor. Like I said, fun.*

**3-Point Gunners**

PG – Devon Dotson

SG – Ochai Agbaji

3G – Isaiah Moss

PF – Christian Braun

C – Jalen Wilson

*The one subtle thing that jumped out at me during Dotson’s freshman season was how good of a 3-point shooter he was when he had time to catch, square, load and shoot. So plug him into the lineup with the best 3-point shooters and see how things go. Freshman Braun, who, at 6-7, absolutely can play the 4 if needed, would definitely be in this lineup. His stroke is so smooth, and he has range and often finds nothing but net with his jumper. Wilson’s another guy capable of getting hot from anywhere, and we already know that Moss was brought in for his 3-point shooting ability and that Agbaji has been working to improve his already-solid jumper all offseason. Let it fly with this group.*

PREV POST

Tadokoro leads Kansas to 7th-place finish in Lady Paladin Invitational

NEXT POST

53938Player, positional versatility bring serious flexibility to 2019-20 KU basketball lineup

Author Photo

Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.