Kansas forward Davion Adkins has already started turning heads this summer, and the buzz around him says plenty about where this Kansas team wants to go.
The Jayhawks are trying to get bigger, deeper and more athletic than they’ve been over the last four seasons, and Adkins fits that blueprint. The forward/center gives Kansas help at two spots, and assistant coach Jeremy Case made it clear on Hawk Talk last week that the staff sees real value in him. Case also said Kansas under-evaluated Adkins, which is a notable admission considering the way the freshman is being talked about now.
Case said Davion Adkins will rotate between the 4 and 5. Said he's a better shooter than the staff thought and is very athletic.
Also said that Luke Barnett is a great shooter. Can really score from behind the arc.
He also mentioned that Trent Perry is a glue guy, and they…
- JayhawkSlant (@JayhawkSlant) June 24, 2026
That lines up with the 247Sports evaluation Adam Finkelstein put together a year ago, when he described Adkins as highly athletic and bouncy while also noting he needed to improve his footwork and strength. Finkelstein also pointed to his rim protection and the possibility that he could grow into a strong defensive player.
Finkelstein wrote this in the scouting report:
“He’s much more of a play finisher, than playmaker. He's just starting to develop some footwork around the paint and a jump hook, but needs to continue getting stronger, raise his release point in the lane, improve his right hand, and ability to put the ball on the floor when facing up.”
The encouraging part for Kansas is how Case framed Adkins now compared with that earlier report. Calling him a better shooter than expected suggests growth over the last year and opens the door for him to become the kind of stretch four, or even stretch five, Kansas has been looking for. That’s the type of role the Jayhawks hoped Bryson Tiller would fill, and still might at Missouri.
The decision to use Adkins at both frontcourt spots makes sense. At the four, he looks like a natural backup to transfer Keanu Dawes, and his game should give Kansas something a little different there than Dawes does. At the five, he gives the Jayhawks needed insurance behind Christian Reeves and Paul Mbiya.
That depth matters. Reeves, if healthy, and Mbiya are expected to handle most of the center minutes, but Reeves’ health is a concern and Mbiya, while an excellent rim protector and athlete, is still raw on offense and prone to fouls.
Adkins’ role could end up being important for another reason, too: it should give him a chance to play enough minutes to speed up his development. If that happens, Kansas could be looking at a player who is on track to become an impactful starter down the line.
The offensive upside is easy to see. If Adkins can become a reliable shooter from three, he can fill the stretch-four role that matters so much in today’s game. Add in the fact that he can defend inside, and the fit becomes even cleaner.
The scouting report also labeled him a finisher, which matters with the way Bill Self likes to use lob plays in the half-court. With his bounce and athleticism, Adkins looks like a natural candidate for those actions. And if he can get comfortable in the pick-and-roll, he could become one of the more fun players to watch on this roster.
For now, the signs are positive. Case’s comments suggest Adkins is trending toward a real bench role this season, and his mix of versatility, defense, athleticism and improving offense should put him in position to make an early impact.
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Jeremy Case, though, sounded like someone who sees more than the headline traits when he recently discussed Stokes on the radio. For a player whose long-term ceiling is already getting plenty of attention, it is the smaller details that can tell you whether the hype is real, and Kansas appears to believe there is another layer to Stokes that might not be getting enough notice yet. [Read more 🡒]