Kansas basketball: Updated starting lineup predictions for the Jayhawks

Projected Kansas basketball lineup: David McCormack, C

Filling the shoes of Azubuike, a double-double machine at Kansas, won’t be easy. The departure of Silvio De Sousa also took a hammer to the depth on the Jayhawks’ front line but David McCormack is more than capable of filling the void.

A 6-foot-10 junior, McCormack didn’t play much as a freshman but saw his role expand towards the end of his sophomore year. The Jayhawks have to like the fact that McCormack is willing to grind down low and do the dirty work to help facilitate the offense.

Fans hoping that McCormack will duplicate Azubuike’s production will likely be disappointed since they aren’t at all the same type of player. McCormack is efficient around the basket, knocking down 52.9 percent of his field-goal attempts as a sophomore, but he isn’t likely to emerge as a go-to-guy like Azubuike was.

That is totally fine since McCormack is a willing defender who should still average a double-double with starting minutes. There aren’t many quality options for big minutes behind McCormack so he should have a lot of room to develop this season.

This starting five isn’t quite as loaded as last season was but it has big potential if newcomers like Thompson and Grant-Foster start right away. This Jayhawks’ lineup should be a top-10 team for most of the year with a shot at a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

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