Flory Bidunga, 5-star Kansas basketball commit, towers over opponents on soccer pitch: Look

Watch the 6-foot-9 Kansas commit, nation's No. 1 basketball center, feature on the Kokomo (Indiana) soccer team

Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports | Oct 5, 2023

Flory Bidunga is used to towering over opponents on the hardwood.

The 6-foot-9, 5-star Kansas Jayhawks basketball commit has made a name for himself as a high-flying, shot-blocking interior presence for Kokomo (Indiana), one of best active dunkers in high school basketball — and the nation's No. 1 center in the class of 2024, per 247 Sports.

That makes Bidunga, a projected 2025 NBA lottery pick, look even more imposing on a soccer pitch — drawing comparisons to NBA bigs with soccer backgrounds such as Joel Embiid, Pau Gasol

While many of the nation's best recruits in their respective sports have specialized in just that sport by the time senior year rolls around, Bidunga used up his high school soccer eligibility as a standout forward for the Wildkats.

Top Flight: Meet the best high school basketball dunkers in the country

And while football/track or football/baseball might be more common combinations for multi-sport standouts, it is rare and remarkable to see a player on the soccer pitch stand as tall as an NBA-projected center, though there are several active professional soccer players around the world who do.

Kokomo beat Lebanon 2-1 on a late goal from a free kick by Javier Carrera Torres in the first round of Indiana class 3A Marion sectional on Monday. On Wednesday, the Widlkats lost 3-2 to Lafayette Jefferson in the sectional semifinals.

Flory Bidunga, Kansas commit and the nation's top-rated center, swats away a shot in the Indiana Class 3A state basketball tournament in 2022. — Flory Bidunga, Kansas commit and the nation's top-rated center, swats away a shot in the Indiana Class 3A state basketball tournament in 2022 / Photo by Julie Brown, SBLive Sports

On Monday, Bidunga had several opportunities on goal and notably saw one blocked on a breakaway in the first half.

Kokomo rounded out SBLive/Sports Illustrated's way-too-early Power 25 national basketball rankings at No. 25 and return the bulk of its core from last season.

Practices start Nov. 6 and games begin No. 20 for high school basketball in Indiana.

Below are photos of Monday's sectional playoff game and scroll to the top of the article for video.

(All photos and video by Julie Brown for SBLive Sports)

kokomo indiana — Photo by Julie Brown, SBLive Sports

Flory Bidunga Kokomo October 2, 2023 Photo-Julie Brown00

kokomo indana — Photo by Julie Brown, SBLive Sports

-- Andy Buhler | andy@scorebooklive.com | @sblivein

Published Oct 5, 2023

ANDY BUHLER, SBLIVE SPORTS

Andy Buhler is a Regional Editor of Texas and the national breaking news desk. He brings more than five years of experience covering high school sports across the state of Washington and beyond, where he covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason served on state tournament seeding committees. He works on the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a degree from Gonzaga and is based out of Portland, Oregon.