University of Kansas basketball recruiting

Point guard Labaron Philon, a four-star prospect from Mobile, Alabama, who committed to Kansas in September and signed in November, has requested a release from his National Letter of Intent and reopened his recruitment, according to multiple reports Tuesday night.

Travis Branham of 247Sports first reported the news, which Philon shared on his Instagram account.

Philon, who earned a No. 30 ranking from ESPN in its final assessment of the 2024 recruiting class Tuesday, was previously committed to Auburn before he made the move to KU, and picked the Jayhawks over schools such as Alabama, Cincinnati and Ole Miss.

He recently played for Link Academy in the Chipotle Nationals and was also on the roster for Sunday’s Jordan Brand Classic.

The move depletes the Jayhawks’ future options at point guard after Dajuan Harris Jr. exhausts his eligibility (2024-25 will be his final collegiate season). Elmarko Jackson, who will be a sophomore, and senior Zeke Mayo will likely have to shoulder more of the ball-handling responsibilities for KU next season.

KU does have some promising prospects in that realm as it targets top 2025 point guard Darius Acuff Jr., who on Monday posted pictures from a recent recruiting visit to Lawrence.

The loss of Philon also gives KU an additional scholarship to work with in the near term as it looks to assemble a formidable roster for the year ahead. With 11 scholarship players now projected for next season as is (assuming Hunter Dickinson comes back and Johnny Furphy does not), the possibility remains open for the Jayhawks to potentially attract a pair of their current transfer targets. That could mean Alabama transfer Rylan Griffen in addition to Dayton transfer Koby Brea or anyone else Bill Self and company might have their eye on.

KU has now had to issue several NLI releases these past couple of offseasons, after Chris Johnson and Marcus Adams Jr. both got released from their commitments to KU last summer.