Kansas Jayhawks KJ Adams Could Sneak into 2025 NBA Draft

The Kansas Jayhawks could see KJ Adams be selected in the 2025 NBA Draft after another year of improvement in Lawrence.

Kansas junior forward KJ Adams Jr. (24) reacts to a foul call in the first half of the Sunflower Showdown inside Allen Fieldhouse Tuesday, March 5, 2024. / Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Kansas Jayhawks are poised for a bounce-back season, after turning in a disjointed 23-11 season which saw them get bounced in the second round of the NCAA tournament. With the perfect combination of high school talent, hitting the transfer portal and returners, the Jayhawks should once again reign supreme at the top of college basketball.

One of those returners is big man KJ Adams. The Austin, Tex. native helped lift the Jayhawks to a National Championship as a freshman in 2021-22 and in three years in Lawrence is averaging eight points, three assists, four rebounds, and over a stock per game.

Adams has grown each year on campus, trending toward becoming the perfect modern big man. The Senior is a prolific screen setter who can be a guard's best friend as a pick-and-roll partner who can live above the rim. This is an area of his game that is set to pop in his final year with the Jayhawks as Kansas vastly improves their guard play.

On the defensive end, the ability to switch to at minimum three positions could be very appealing to NBA teams ahead of the 2025 NBA Draft with the need to hit on cost-controlled second-round picks becoming more important.

The major drawback to Adams is his funky jump shot which has little to no chance of improving. At times his mechanics are uncomfortable to watch and in the modern NBA, rarely do teams fall in love with non-shooting or non-shooting potential bigs. Though, Adams can impact the game in a ton of other ways including as a passer to make up for his lack of shot.

The 2025 NBA Draft is loaded with talent, but perhaps a second-round steal could be the Kansas Jayhawks product.

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