Kansas state Basketball: Rudi Williams Into the Portal

The Kansas State basketball program announced today that Rudi Williams will be in search of a new basketball home this offseason.

Williams was a junior college transfer addition to the 2020/2021 roster. He played in 27 games, made 4 starts, and averaged 18.2 minutes per contest, primarily as the back up point guard.

I’m disappointed that he’s leaving, because he always brought great energy when he hit the court, but once again, it was hard for him to mesh with the second unit, because of a lack of shooting. When all 4 out of the 5 players on the court struggle from deep, teams are going to pack their defense inside the arc and request that you beat them from deep. Williams shot 29% from behind the arc, hitting 15 of 51 attempts.

Impact on Program

Rudi is a solid back up point guard with the right team, but as I mentioned above, his drive reliant style of play didn’t mesh with the rest of the Kansas State roster. After losing Sloan last year and Williams this year, it will be interesting to see if Bruce goes the JuCo route to find another ball handler, or if he looks to bring in a D1 transfer.

This opening is interesting, because it could be filled with either a point guard or a shooting guard, mainly because Pack can play both, and may be a bigger threat playing off the ball. If you’re looking for a transfer willing to play 15 minutes a game behind one of the rising stars in college basketball, it’s going to be a tough sell. Finding a bigger point guard who can play next to Pack on offense and guard the 2 on defense isn’t out of the question. I watched Purdue do that for a few seasons with Carsen Edwards and Nojel Eastern and it worked out well.

Bruce needs to focus on building a more coherent starting 5. Assuming Pack, Miguel, and Bradford start, he needs shooting from either the 4 or from another guard, and preferably from both spots. He now has 3 scholarships available to find 2 starters (potentially 1 if Murphy comes back full strength) for next season. There are plenty of options available, and I’m all about fit over talent at this point. I think the Pack, Miguel, Bradford trio has enough talent, but are in desperate need of role players capable of spacing the floor and letting them thrive.

Now, if K-State can chill with the transfers for a moment, I’d like to watch some March Madness.