If you're a fan of basketball or simply just enjoy making a bracket, then the best part of your year begins this weekend. The brackets are out, the teams have been given their respective seed's, and now the entire country patiently waits to see which Blue Blood team will get upset first.
The Kansas Jayhawks, who are regarded as one of the Blue Blood team's look to find a way to redeem themselves and regain the full support of an ever so spoiled fanbase. Here are the make or breaks for this team going forward.
1. Grimes Time
https://heavy.com/sports/2018/11/kansas-quentin-grimes-big-12-record-stats/
In order for this team to play deeper into the tournament on prime-time television, it has got to be Grimes time. In any ordinary basketball team, I would argue that one specific player's poor performance should not be a determining factor in an entire teams loss.
Well, this KU team is anything but ordinary and has yet to find any form of consistency in Bill Self's rotations this season. This season, Coach Self has had the task of putting together an ever-changing lineup. This team who started the season as the #1 ranked team in college basketball finished the season ranked 17th in the country.
This Kansas team was plagued by injuries, the suspension of Silvio De Sousa, and the departure of Lagerald Vick later in the season. The loss of these players due to unforeseen circumstances became a setback to the team, but what I want KU fans to realize is that our team was not ranked first in the country based off of any of these losses.
Think about it, Vick had openly left KU to try to play professional basketball and was a last minute addition to the team. Azubuike is one of the most dominant post players in college basketball but his game going into this season was limited to only being effective in the paint. Silvio De Sousa showed many promising signs in the latter part of last season but even then he was not expected to be a starter this season if he was to be eligible.
The team was ranked #1 based on the addition of incoming freshmen Quentin Grimes and Devon Dotson, and the leadership, or lack thereof, will be the determining factor in how far this team goes.
Grimes was ranked the 8th best player coming out of high school and was projected to be a lottery pick in the NBA after a quick pit-stop at KU. If you've watched any of Grimes this season, then you know he has had his fair share of struggles at the next level.
However, March Madness has been known to be a place for players to make their names known. A perfect example of this is former Jayhawk Malik Newman catching fire and leading last season's team to the Final Four.
Will Grimes be able to replicate this and do the same? I sure hope so. Grimes is a 6'5, 210 lb athletic guard who has the size and ability to score at will. During Grimes senior year of high school, he averaged 29.5 points, grabbing 8.6 boards, and 4.9 assists per game.
Grimes being regarded as a five-star recruit in high school was not a mistake, but what the Jayhawks need is for Grimes to prove to them that it wasn't a mistake.
Right now, his overall performance as a Jayhawk might say otherwise. This season Grimes's performance has been inconsistent and his averages of 8.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 2 assists a game simply do not do enough for what this team needs of him.
If Grimes is able to find confidence and consistency and catch fire this March Madness, then I believe this KU team has a chance. If Grimes plays like five-star Grimes, then he will be able to help lead this team offensively and bring about a new-found hope in fans. The Jayhawks have arguably the best fanbase in the country and will be thrilled to see Grimes find his game.
2. Dotson's dimes
https://basketballsocietyonline.com/devon-dotson-scouting-report
Devon Dotson has done everything and more for his team this year.
At the beginning of the season, there were rumors going wondering if Self would star junior point guard Charlie Moore or freshman point guard Devon Dotson. It is typically a better idea for coaches to allow their freshmen and younger players to slowly become accustomed to the game at the next level despite how talented the newcomer may be.
I truly thought that Self would have started Moore this season, but in having the pleasure of watching Devon Dotson this year, I soon understood Self's decision to go another route. Dotson stepped up big time and became the starting point guard for the University of Kansas.
The point guard position is highly regarded on every team but especially in Lawrence, Kansas, as Dotson would be following behind former Jayhawk fan favorites in Frank Mason and Devonte Graham.
Dotson has proved himself and has been a quiet leader on this team. Dotson has been able to facilitate the floor, dish out assists, score the ball when the Jayhawks need a basket, and he is not afraid to sit down and play defense.
I believe that Dotson is a perfect example of the consistency that this KU team has needed all season but especially going forward into the tournament. I don't have any doubt in my mind that Dotson will be able to continue his stellar play into the tournament, and I believe that is something that fans should be excited about.
