Kansas guard Shakeel Moore could miss up to eight weeks after breaking his foot in a pickup game. This means the Jayhawks will potentially be without a second guard for the start of the season, following Elmarko Jackson’s knee injury. Moore, a fifth-year senior transfer, is projected to return close to the start of the regular season.
Fifth-year senior guard Shakeel Moore will not participate in Kansas Basketball Boot Camp drills
“He’ll be out for an extended period of time,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “He did require surgery two weeks ago. We don’t know exactly when he’ll be back. He will not be back through the first portion of our regular practice [in late September]. We think we will have him back for the [start of the] season, but probably not until close to that.
“Everything went well. The surgery went perfect. They anticipate a speedy recovery but not one that will get him back until that six-to-eight-week range from now.”
Moore will not participate in KU Basketball Boot Camp drills, which begin Tuesday and run through next week.
Boot Camp: Day 1 ✔️ pic.twitter.com/yI3Dosy628
— Kansas Men’s Basketball (@KUHoops) September 10, 2024
Through 124 career NCAA regular-season games (68 starts) across four seasons (2020-24), Moore has averaged 8.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.4 steals, and 24.5 minutes per contest while shooting 42.4% from the floor, 31.2% from 3-point range, and 70.7% at the free throw line.
Moore began his career at NC State before transferring to Mississippi State, where he averaged 7.9 points last season. In 32 games (15 starts) of the 2021-22 season with the Bulldogs, he averaged career highs of 9.8 points, 2.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per contest.
In the SEC that season, he finished 10th in steals (53), 14th in defensive win shares (1.9), 18th in defensive box plus/minus (2.7), 11th in defensive rating (4.2), 18th in assist percentage (19.3%), and fourth in steal percentage (3.9%).
Mississippi State, NC State were a combined 30-15 when Moore scored at least 10 points
The 6-foot-1 Moore averaged 7.9 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists last season in 33 games (22 starts) with Mississippi State. He scored in double figures 13 times, including a season-high 16 points against Murray State on Dec. 13, 2023.
The Bulldogs and Wolfpack were a combined 30-15 when Moore scored at least 10 points. He also picked up multiple steals in 41 of 99 career games with the Bulldogs.
Meanwhile, 41 of 52 efforts with 2-plus steals were at Mississippi State. Moore committed to the Jayhawks shortly after Jackson tore his patellar tendon, which will cause him to miss the upcoming season.
Furthermore, Kansas coach Bill Self is retaining veteran guard Dajuan Harris Jr. and backup Jamari McDowell from a team that went 23-11 last season. However, he also rebuilt his backcourt in the transfer portal.
Self landed Wisconsin standout AJ Storr, Alabama star Rylan Griffen, South Dakota State guard Zeke Mayo, David Coit from Northern Illinois, and Noah Shelby from Rice. Second-team All-American Hunter Dickinson and veteran KJ Adams Jr. are returning in the post as well.
