By Michael Swain, 247Sports.com
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas freshman Marcus Adams Jr. has left the program and requested a release from his National Letter of Intent to attend to KU, he announced on Sunday. Adams arrived on campus in mid-June and was working out with the team ahead of KU’s trip to Puerto Rico in a few week’s time. For more on the departure, what it means and what’s next for KU this offseason, click here.
Adams really burst onto the scene in 2023 and saw his recruit unfold rapidly. He picked up nine high-major offers after Jan. 23 and KU offered him on Feb. 9. He had four high major offers in total at the turn of the new year and that list grew as he put together a strong season with Narbonne. He took an official visit to KU for the West Virginia home game during the season and announced his commitment to KU as a member of the 2024 class on March 7. He also took official visits to UCLA and Syracuse. Following the end of KU’s season, he announced he was reclassifying up to the 2023 class.
The four-star prospect released a statement following the news.
“I want to thank Jayhawk National and Coach Self and Townsend for being a great help in my development and time here. Your support showed me a lot. To the fans, thank you for all the help with the media and in person love. I would like to request a release from my National Letter of Intent in order to find out where I truly belong. It was a hard decision. I decided it would be best for me mentally and for my family. I will re-open my recruitment as well. Thank you and please respect my decision.”
With Adams requesting his release, KU has 10 scholarship players on the roster for the 2023-24 season. KU has two open scholarships it can fill.
Adams holds a 94 rating from the 247Sports staff and is ranked No. 48 nationally. Adams is now the No. 8-ranked small forward and the No. 11 ranked recruit out of California in the 2023 class.
Here is what 247Sports’ Eric Bossi wrote about Adams and his game.
“Adams showed that his ability on the offensive end was no fluke. 247Sports was able to evaluate him in person during the season and we came away impressed with his overall size, his ability to play multiple frontline spots and long term upside. To be clear, it is the upside that stands out.
While Adams posted monster numbers during the high school season — he even had a 50 point, 20 rebound game — he wasn’t always playing against the highest level of competition that Southern California has to offer. He’s also not yet played a ton of high-level competition during grassroots ball in the spring and summer. Because of that, he is still a little rough around the edges. He can be a little loose with the ball, can improve his intensity at times and as a guy who wears his emotions on his sleeves, he can learn to not let negative plays impact him for too long.
At the end of the day, though, talent is talent and there is no doubt that Adams is talented. He plays with confidence, has a big personality and is also obsessed with proving that he’s not only deserving of the lofty ranking he earned during the season, but worthy of an even higher ranking. “
