Ahead of Puerto Rico trip, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self praises Kevin McCullar Jr.

LAWRENCE — The newcomers have been as advertised, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self said last week.

Transfer center Hunter Dickinson (Michigan) is the player Self thought he’d be. The same goes for a few other transfers in guard Nicolas Timberlake (Towson), forward Parker Braun (Santa Clara) and guard Arterio Morris (Texas), as well as freshman guard Elmarko Jackson. To date, ahead of the team’s Aug. 1-8 trip to Puerto Rico, there hadn’t been any surprises.

But, Self added, he has been impressed with the progress made by one returner. Self said Kevin McCullar Jr., a veteran guard, has been the Jayhawks’ most improved player. And it hasn’t been close.

“He’s by far the most improved player that I’ve seen, that we’ve seen, so far, and certainly been the best player, I think, on our team, so far,” Self said. “That can obviously — it could be somebody a different day, but he’s been the most consistent so far.”

Following the path Ochai Agbaji, Jalen Wilson took

When Self thinks about the potential breakthrough McCullar is trending toward, he thinks about former Jayhawks Ochai Agbaji and Jalen Wilson. Both players went through the NBA’s pre-draft process, before returning to college for one final season. McCullar, who has gone through it multiple times now, is doing the same.

Self said going through that process allowed them to get a feel for what it takes to play at that level, and discover what they need to address about themselves. For Agbaji and Wilson, Self explained, that was confidence and aggressiveness. And for McCullar, Self noted, the answer is the same.

McCullar may have showcased aggressiveness defensively a season ago at Kansas, after he transferred in from Texas Tech. But there’s an emphasis on expanding that to all aspects of McCullar’s game. It’ll help McCullar hold his own the next time he tests how much his Big 12 Conference success can translate to the professional ranks.

“You realize that you go to a combine and you hope like heck you shoot it well in the drills during a combine, one day, when you’ve — people have seen you play for four years, but on this one day it means more than everything else,” Self said. “And hopefully you get to the point where you don’t need that one day, and that’s where I think (McCullar) is.”

Appreciating the opportunity

Agbaji returned for the 2021-22 season, helped the Jayhawks win Self’s second national championship and became a first-round pick in the 2022 NBA draft. Wilson, who was on that national title winning team, returned for the 2022-23 season, helped his team win another Big 12 regular season title and became a second-round pick in the 2023 NBA draft. Time will tell what the future holds for McCullar.

But McCullar does have a chance to have the kind of season where he can start his NBA career with more security about his immediate professional future. Self thinks so and McCullar has alluded to as much, too.

McCullar said he considers being back at Kansas for another season to be a blessing. While with the Jayhawks, he’s going to try to be as vocal of a leader as he can. It’s a different situation for him now, as he’s one of the guys who can help newcomers acclimate to what it’s like to play for Self.

“It’s the best decision for me,” said McCullar, whose improvements as a shooter have already impressed Timberlake. “I’m so, super excited, I came back, and I’m enjoying every day.”

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Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas basketball coach Bill Self praises Kevin McCullar Jr.'s game