Kansas’ frontcourt remains one of the most unsettled parts of the roster, and a new twist last week only added to the fog.
Multiple reports said KU had landed a commitment from Mihailo Mušikić, a 7-foot center from Kraljevo, Serbia. But the move was far from finished, because his NCAA eligibility is still unclear.
Mušikić is 24 and has played professionally, which puts him in a tricky spot under the NCAA’s new five-year rules. He was born on March 25, 2002, meaning his five-year clock began in the fall of 2021.
At the same time, players who begin in the 2026-27 academic year can choose between the new and old eligibility models, which leaves open the possibility that Mušikić could still work through the older system.
That older path would likely turn on how much compensation he received during his career in relation to “actual and necessary expenses,” along with how long he has played professionally. And even with the reports of a commitment, the situation is not locked in. On the same day those reports surfaced, a source told the Journal-World that KU was recruiting Mušikić but that there was “nothing done at all.”
So the Jayhawks are still left staring at a frontcourt that could break several different ways.
If Mušikić does not get approved, KU is back to leaning heavily on a pair of bigs with their own question marks. Reeves is the more established piece, but health is the issue.
He had shoulder surgery in the spring after playing through the injury at Charleston, and Bill Self said in June that Reeves will not be able to practice with full contact until October. That makes it fair to wonder how quickly he can handle major minutes once the season starts.
Reeves’ Charleston numbers show why KU is hoping for a clean bill of health. He averaged 11.1 points and 7.8 rebounds in just 21.4 minutes per game there. But if he is not ready right away - or if he misses early games altogether - the Jayhawks may need much more from Mušikić than expected, or they may have to lean into small ball.
That would not be completely foreign territory. KU has already had to use smaller lineups while Reeves has been out, and Keanu Dawes at center is at least a familiar option in that setup.
A group featuring Taylen Kinney, Leroy Blyden, either Dennis Parker Jr. or Kohl Rosario, Tyran Stokes and Dawes would bring speed, agility and shooting. But it would also be a matchup-specific answer, because Dawes is the biggest player in that group at 6-foot-9 and 225 pounds.
Self has already said he does not want to play small, so the question is whether he ends up having no choice.
There is also the possibility that Davion Adkins becomes more useful than expected. He was a four-star recruit, but his stock slid from No. 33 overall when he signed with KU to No. 74 by midsummer.
Even so, the early feedback has been encouraging. On an offseason edition of “Hawk Talk,” associate head coach Jeremy Case described Adkins as more versatile than many thought, pointing to his ball skills and saying he can shoot “better than we thought he could.”
Assistant coach Jacque Vaughn also praised his curiosity and persistence.
Adkins, a lefty from Arlington, Texas, is listed at 6-foot-9 and 205 pounds, so he probably is not built to anchor the middle every night. Still, Case suggested he could see time at center, and his 7-foot-2 wingspan gives him another tool there. If he can do more than simply back up Dawes - if he can play next to him at times and handle the ball well enough to open up different looks - KU gets another small-ball option without having to rely entirely on Reeves being ready immediately or Mušikić being cleared.
For now, that is the story of this frontcourt: a lot of possibilities, not many certainties, and a whole lot still waiting to be resolved.
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