During the first two months of this season, Kansas had the most unsettled frontcourt rotation of any elite team. Coach Bill Self couldn’t decide on a primary big man to pair with senior star power forward Perry Ellis. Senior Jamari Traylor was the opening-night starter in that spot, then it was fellow senior Hunter Mickelson, then it was freshman Cheick Diallo, until finally, on Jan. 23 against Texas, Self found an Ellis partner that worked: 6'10" junior Landen Lucas, whose rebounding, rim protection and efficient, low-usage offense have helped the Jayhawks rise to first place in the Big 12 and No. 1 in the Power Rankings.
The Jayhawks are 9–1 with Lucas as the starter, and their lineup efficiency data from that stretch, which I’ve pulled from hooplens.com, is strong evidence of the impact of the Ellis-Lucas frontcourt. KU has been a staggering 0.23 points per possession better while using that combo, compared to all other situations.
PS: The piece was written before Saturday's game, so KU is now 10-1 with Lucas as the starter.
