Alabama transfer Griffen commits to Jayhawks

Alabama transfer Rylan Griffen, one of the best shooters in the portal, has committed to Kansas, he told ESPN.

The Jayhawks quickly emerged as the favorite to land Griffen, conducting an in-home visit and then welcoming him on campus last week.

“I chose Kansas because coach [Bill] Self and the coaching staff are going to push me to be the best player I can be,” Griffen said. “I think I fit in because they said they needed shooting. I think I can help them in that area. I think I can help them with perimeter defense and help get stops and help carry on the same winning culture they’ve always had.”

A 6-foot-6 shooting guard, Griffen made significant strides during his sophomore season in Tuscaloosa. He went from averaging 5.9 points as a freshman to 11.2 points as a sophomore, starting 33 games and shooting 39.2% from behind the arc.

Griffen was at his best during the middle part of the season, averaging nearly 14 points per game during a 17-game stretch from late December to the end of February. After an inconsistent finish to the regular season, he regained his shooting stroke in the NCAA tournament, making better than 48% of his 3-point attempts.

He went for 19 points and five 3-pointers in Alabama’s Sweet 16 win over top-seeded North Carolina and then had 13 points and eight assists in the regional final against Clemson to help lead the Crimson Tide to the program’s first Final Four.

Griffen is the fourth impact transfer Kansas has added this offseason, following Zeke Mayo (South Dakota State), Riley Kugel (Florida) and AJ Storr (Wisconsin). The Jayhawks had issues on the perimeter last season, ranking 11th in the Big 12 in 3-point percentage and last in 3-point attempt rate. All four transfers made at least one 3 per game this past season and shot at least 34% from 3-point range for their college careers.

Kansas also returns starters Dajuan Harris Jr. and KJ Adams, while All-American center Hunter Dickinson has yet to decide whether he’s returning to college for his final season of eligibility. If Dickinson goes back to Lawrence, the Jayhawks are the favorite to open the 2024-25 season ranked No. 1.

Jonathan Givony is an NBA Draft expert and the founder and co-owner of DraftExpress.com, a private scouting and analytics service utilized by NBA, NCAA and International teams.