Riley Kugel Won’t Commit to Kansas In 2024 CBB Transfer Portal, Bill Self Says

Doric SamMay 8, 2024

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After committing to transfer to Kansas last month, it turns out that former Florida guard Riley Kugel won’t be suiting up for the Jayhawks after all.

Per Matt Norlander of CBS Sports, Kugel is no longer expected to play at Kansas. The news comes just a couple of days after Bill Self told NCAA basketball analyst Andy Katz that Kugel’s future with the Jayhawks was “up in the air.”

Kugel was expected to be a part of a talented transfer class for Kansas that included guard Zeke Mayo of South Dakota State and wings AJ Storr of Wisconsin and Rylan Griffen of Alabama. However, Self indicated during his talk with Katz that something had changed.

“I don’t know that we’ve addressed every one of them, but for the most part I think we’ve done a pretty good job, with Zeke Mayo and Rylan Griffen, obviously, and AJ Storr,” Self said before adding, “We also got a commitment from a young man from Florida, Kugel, Riley Kugel, that it’s up in the air whether or not Riley will come, but certainly those other three we feel really good about.”

As a sophomore at Florida, Kugel averaged 9.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists while making 11 starts in 33 appearances. His efficiency left much to be desired, as he shot just 39.4 percent from the field and 31.2 percent from beyond the arc. He earned a selection to the SEC All-Freshman team in 2022-23 after averaging 9.9 points for the Gators while shooting 45.6 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from three-point range.

Norlander noted that Kugel is “being recruited again by high-majors,” so it seems like there are multiple teams interested in adding him following his de-commitment from Kansas.