AP Photo/LG Patterson
Florida's Riley Kugel (left) shoots at Missouri's Aidan Shaw (right) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Jan. 20, 2024, in Columbia, Missouri.
Florida transfer wing Riley Kugel will not attend Kansas, according to multiple reports Wednesday afternoon.
CBS Sports' Matt Norlander first reported the news. The news followed comments from KU coach Bill Self in an interview with the NCAA on Monday that the possibility of long-time contributor Kugel joining the team was “up in the air.”
Self did not give a reason for the uncertainty of the commitment.
Kugel, who played two seasons with the Gators, became the first commitment of the transfer cycle to the Jayhawks on March 31, while the NCAA Tournament was still underway. This was followed by a short period of transfers for Zeke Mayo (South Dakota State), AJ Store (Wisconsin State), and Rylan Griffen (Alabama), but all three transfers were due to financial constraints on KU. Although there was an aid agreement on paper, Kugel never committed to it. The signing has been officially announced.
Instead, Norlander wrote that Kugel is “again being scouted as a senior major.”
The loss of Kugel, which appeared to be part of Self's recently articulated “eight starters” plan, reverts KU's scholarship spots to 11 for next year. This is more than last season, but still short of the maximum of 13 players. wanted to enforce the final penalty through an independent liability resolution process, 12.
Returning players include starting lineups KJ Adams, Hunter Dickinson and Dajuan Harris Jr., as well as Zach Clemens, Elmarco Jackson and Jamari McDowell. In addition to the three transfer signees, the Jayhawks will welcome freshmen Florrie Vidunga and LaKeith Passmore.
He is the second player KU has lost this offseason, behind freshman LaVarlon Fillon, who was already signed and would have needed to release his national letter of intent to go to Alabama instead of KU.
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written by henry greenstein
