While the season came to an unfortunate end for Bill Self and the Kansas Jayhawks, things look worse for senior forward KJ Adams.
Adams’ college career came to an end with the loss to Arkansas, a game that he was unable to finish due to a serious injury in the game’s final minutes.
The injury occurred with 3:14 left on the clock, with Adams skying for a rebound. Upon snagging the ball, the Texas native landed strangely on his left leg and fell to the ground. Adams was helped off the court by teammates and brought straight to the Kansas locker room for further testing.
According to a report from the Kansas City Star’s Gary Bedore, Adams suffered a torn Achilles, ending his Kansas career in an unfortunate way.
Multiple Jayhawks commented on the loss of Adams after the game, including Hunter Dickinson, Rylan Griffen, and Bill Self.
“I know how much he put into this program, and this team, and it’s super tough for him to not be able to finish out his career,” Dickinson said.
“It was huge,” said Rylan Griffen. “I mean, he’s the backbone of our team. We need him on the court 80% of the game, and he wasn’t even out there for the most crucial part. If we had him, we’re probably feeling a little bit different right now.”
“There wasn’t a message tonight,” Self said after the loss. “We had a kid in there who was really hurting with his family. I think the message was, ‘Guys, proud of your effort. You guys did what we asked you to do. We appreciate everything, but now is not the time to talk about that stuff. Let’s worry about your teammate right now.’”
Self finished his thoughts by saying, “It’s one thing to lose the game, but to see him potentially lose a year on top of the game, you know, that’s a pretty big blow.”
