Kansas Jayhawks Q&A: Flory Bidunga’s shooting, a desert island and transfer talk

Incoming Kansas men’s basketball big man Flory Bidunga has had a busy few weeks.

Bidunga graduated from Kokomo (Indiana) High School last Saturday and will arrive in Lawrence on Saturday. He’s spent the last few months intensely preparing to join the Jayhawks.

“I’ve been expanding my game. … I have to be ready for college basketball,” Bidunga told The Star. “I’ve been (working) on my dribbling and shooting.”

Bidunga believes his biggest strengths are his motor and shot-blocking ability. Meanwhile, he said his shooting is a work in progress.

“In high school, I wasn’t asked to shoot the ball from the outside,” he said. “Since you are a little bit taller than everybody, you have to play in the paint. I don’t feel like it is a weakness … but I’m really working on it right now and I’ve been working on it.”

When The Star asked if Bidunga would shoot 3-pointers next season, he replied,”Yeah, for sure.”

As for what Kansas fans can expect from him next season?

“I’m trying to win … and I feel pretty strongly about the team that coach (Bill) Self is putting together right now,” he said. “He knows it will be great. … I’m a winner, a hard worker and give good energy.”

With that, let’s get to another Kansas Jayhawks Q&A …

Which KU basketball player would make the best KU football player? @JordanGuskey

Conventional wisdom dictates that Kansas forward KJ Adams would be an excellent football player. Due to his size and speed, I could see Adams as a great tight end.

I also like Kansas guard Elmarko Jackson as a potential wide receiver or defensive back. He’s quick, has good hands and grew up playing lacrosse, so there’s a little bit of a transitive skill as he played another contact-heavy sport.

Also, Jordan, I appreciate the question.

How many commitments do you see KU football coming out of June with? — @Irrational41Jay

This is an excellent question. I think Kansas has at least one or two more transfer portal commitments. The Jayhawks still need to bolster their offensive line, and wide receiver depth would be another spot to consider.

Recently, JayhawkSlant reported that Kansas has landed a visit from former five-star recruit Bryce Foster. The Texas A&M center would be a massive get for the Jayhawks, as KU’s offensive line has holes to fill.

The Jayhawks lost starting center Mike Novitsky to graduation, left tackle Dominick Puni to the NFL and guard Ar’maj Reed-Adams to Texas A&M.

That said, Kansas did add former Michigan offensive lineman Amir Herring to the roster in early May. Foster is set to visit Lawrence this upcoming weekend.

Still, he’s a highly sought-after player, according to multiple reports.

On the wide receiver front, Keaton Kubecka, Jarred Sample, Doug Emilien and recent Syracuse transfer Bryce Cohoon are the only non-senior scholarship wide receivers.

So I wouldn’t be surprised if the Jayhawks keep adding to the WR group.

Two basketball scholarships left, what will happen with them? — @JonnyOrlansky

I think KU will fill in at least one scholarship and leave the other one open to fulfill its self-imposed scholarship sanction.

Now that former BYU commit Jaxson Robinson has committed to Kentucky, l wouldn’t be surprised if the Jayhawks looked at Miami’s Wooga Poplar again

Poplar recently withdrew from the NBA Draft. Last season, he averaged 13.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game.

The 6-foot-5 guard has played three seasons of college basketball. He shot 38.5% from deep last season, so he could provide additional spacing for this Kansas team.

For KU, he’d likely be a key bench piece who could, if needed, play starter-level minutes.

KU’s guard rotation is pretty deep. Kansas already has Dajuan Harris and former Wisconsin star AJ Storr as expected guard starters, plus portal additions Rylan Griffin and Zeke Mayo.

Not to mention returning players Jamari McDowell and Elmarko Jackson — who could improve greatly in their sophomore years.

The addition of Poplar would cement KU’s guard rotation as the best in the league and provide additional lineup versatility for Self — as Poplar could play some minutes at the wing.

If you had to be trapped on an island with one KU basketball player who would it be and why? — @NickSpringer29

I would have to go with KU center Hunter Dickinson. I feel like I’d never be bored. He’s an entertaining player on and off the court. He’s also quite the talker.

Plus, he’s pretty tall, so I feel like it’d be easier to spot him from afar — so we’d have a greater chance of being rescued.

Finally, I believe he likes to fish, which, I think, would be pretty important when stranded on an island.