Kansas Basketball: Jayhawks Must Get Freshmen More Involved to Take Next Step

Sometimes you just have to let the kids play.

Kansas earned an impressive come-from-behind win over Florida after being down 15 at halftime, and it was mainly the underclassmen who fueled the rally. If Bill Self learned anything from this, it's that the younger players on the roster have to be allowed to play their game.

Sophomore Wayne Selden was the true star of the day, totaling 21 points while showing the aggressiveness the team needs on the offensive end. However, freshmen Cliff Alexander and Devonte Graham were huge as well, especially in the second half.

Add these two young stars to Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk and Kelly Oubre, and this class can be a game-changer. The key for the Jayhawks this year will be to actually take advantage of the talent in front of them.

To the surprise of many, the freshman averaging the most minutes so far this season is Mykhailiuk, the 17-year-old Ukrainian who wasn't even rated as a recruit on ESPN.com. While he is raw on the court and arguably too passive at times, he generally avoids mistakes, which is likely what allows him to stay in the game.

However, it's important to remember that mistakes in November and December are not as bad as ones in March. Freshmen are going to have their problems both physically and mentally, but this is the time to learn from them.

Player	Minutes/Game	Team Rank
Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk	21.3	4
Cliff Alexander	18.7	6
Devonte Graham	14.3	7
Kelly Oubre	8.3	10

Through the first seven games, the highly touted group of players has had an incredibly short leash, and it is limiting what the Jayhawks can do.

Self even admitted he considered benching Alexander against Florida due to poor play early.

"We were not very pleased with Cliff the first half," the head coach explained after the game. "I thought about...I said, ‘I don’t know if I’ll play him the second half.’ It’s as upset as I was with (his) alertness and focus. The second half, he was great. We try hard, but our focus is not good at all."

The forward finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds for his first career double-double, aggressively going to the rim and earning trips to the free-throw line. 

This same strategy was seen in Graham, who totaled nine points on one field-goal attempt. The guard went 9-of-10 from the charity stripe and also helped out with three assists and three steals.

Bleacher Report's C.J. Moore was impressed by the effort, saying, "KU getting big minutes from Devonte' Graham. Hustling his ass off. Making smart plays."

In past games, this duo has been a bit invisible on the offensive end while also making mental errors on defense. While there were still a few lapses on various possessions, the second half featured players competing with more confidence and intelligence.

They showed that they are capable of great things if given the opportunity.

Sam Vecenie of CBS Sports called for this strategy going into the second half Friday night and turned out to be right:

"

Legitimately think Kansas would be best off letting the frosh play through their mistakes this half. They need them to reach their potential

— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) December 6, 2014"

Even if the Jayhawks weren't able to complete their comeback, a loss at this stage of the season would've been worth getting these types of performances from their young players if it leads to more success in the future.

This brings us to Oubre, who was once again limited with two points in eight minutes against the Gators. ESPN's Jeff Goodman (subscription required) recently examined the wing's lack of production and discovered he has seen the fewest minutes of any top-10 recruit in the past decade.

Although this unfortunately doesn't seem likely to be changing anytime soon, Self recently admitted the freshman has performed well in practice:

If this is the case, he has to be given a chance to really show what he can do in a game, and that doesn't mean two-minute bursts before being benched. He needs the freedom to compete and eventually gain some confidence and learn how to be productive.

Anyone who has ever seen Oubre plays knows he is capable of big things. At 6'7", he can use his size and athleticism to finish at or above the rim while also having the ability to launch threes with a smooth stroke. At his best, he could be an almost unguardable offensive player at this level.

The problem is he won't reach his potential when the only thing he's currently guarding is the water cooler.

Obviously, Kansas has been involved in a number of close games against top competition, and the coaching staff wants to use players it can trust. However, things do not get too much easier for the rest of the year, especially in the ridiculously deep Big 12.

Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

Like the other youngsters, Oubre has to be given a chance to show what he can do on the court in order for the Jayhawks to reach their expectations. Regardless of age, these are some of the most talented players in the nation, and they are the ones capable of carrying the squad to a conference title and beyond.

Graham and Alexander already rank first and second on the team, respectively, in overall offensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com (subscription required). More involvement would likely only be a good thing.

Duke and Kentucky have already embraced the idea of using freshmen as go-to options, just as Kansas did a year ago with Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid. The current class might be less polished, but that comes with time.

The second half against Florida showed how good this team can be when things are going well. In reality, the group is just scratching the surface of its potential.

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