How Big of an Impact Will Marcus Adams Jr.’s Departure Have on Kansas?

The freshman left campus and has asked to transfer just weeks after arriving this summer.

Freshman Marcus Adams Jr. announced Sunday that he would be leaving Kansas just weeks after arriving on campus for the summer. This sent waves of speculation and questions across the KUverse. Reports came out that Adams wasn’t performing well at practice. He told the Kansas City Star it was about fit and belonging.

I’m not here to get into the reason why he left. And I stand by the position that any fan that attacks a college kid online for a decision they make (that isn’t against the law) is sad and uncalled for.

But it leads to an interesting question: how big of an impact does this news have on KU this year?

If we were to give the news a score on a 0-10 scale, with zero being absolutely no impact at all and we won’t even notice and 10 being the world is ended, I think this probably around a three. And before going any further, I want to make clear that this is not because of Adams’ talent or skill level.

It seems as if the timing and the fact that this news comes after one of the most chaotic offseasons in recent Kansas basketball history plays a factor. Change causes panic and KU has seen a lot of change in four months. But if we are ranking departures, losing Ernest Udeh or Zuby Ejiofor probably hurts worse than this.

Why it’s impactful

A college basketball team can only have up to 15 players — not all of them being on scholarship — so losing any one of those 15 guys will have more of an impact than say on a football team (outside of quarterback).

The timing also factors in. The number of available transfers or incoming freshmen still available is small. By this point, especially with the Puerto Rico trip coming up, you want your roster finalized and the team on campus together beginning to gel. So while it sounds like Adams wasn’t going to provide much production as a freshman, the loss does diminish the Jayhawks’ depth and margin for error.

And I’m sure there will be some opposing coaches who will use this offseason and some of the players leaving Kansas as a negative against the Jayhawks. How effective it will be is unclear.

Why it’s not very impactful

Adams was a bit of an unknown in terms of what he would bring to KU. He put up really good high school numbers, but it wasn’t against top competition. But regardless, the team impact of freshmen overall is changing.

Recent history tells us that experience and NBA talent wins in the postseason. Having stud freshmen helps, but national champions are coming from teams led by juniors and seniors. And teams with freshmen who are paired with veterans have the most success from start to finish. And Kansas still has its stud freshman in Elmarko Jackson, who by all accounts is thriving so far this summer.

Which brings me to my next point. Adams’ value was always in the long term. If he was going to make a major impact, it was going to be in 2024 and beyond. Which is why this still could be impactful. But the state of transfers and NIL means nothing is guaranteed past the present. I thought Udeh would be an All-American for Kansas as a junior, but in the blink of an eye, he was at a conference foe. Trying to project two or more years out is now nearly impossible.

Adams’ comments are also telling. If it really is that he struggled to connect with his teammates and didn’t feel like he fit in, that’s the sort of issue that can cause issues in the middle of the season. Chemistry matters, and him either leaving mid-season or if this lack of fit becomes worse as the season goes along and causes a distraction, the impact is much greater then than it is in July.

The complete overhaul in roster plus the open scholarships while nearing August add concern or at least an odd, rare feeling for fans. But isolated and at face value, this one may sting because of the down-the-road potential. However, it’s nothing the program can’t overcome and not the biggest loss of the offseason.