The jersey numbers are official for KU’s 2019 newcomers

Kansas freshman Issac McBride puts a three over fellow freshman Tristan Enaruna during a scrimmage on Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at Allen Fieldhouse.

The jersey numbers are out for the five newcomers who have joined the Kansas basketball roster this offseason.

And while there’s no telling exactly what their futures hold, this group, at least as of today, appears to be a group that Kansas fans should expect to see around for a while.

Of the group of newcomers, only Isaiah Moss, the senior grad transfer from Iowa, is expected to be gone a year from now. And many of the players on that list are likely to be three-, four- or even five-year Jayhawks.

So gobble up those jerseys at your discretion.

And then, of course, you have the recent news about sophomore point guard Devon Dotson switching from No. 11 to No. 1, a move that brings him back to the jersey number that served him so well during his basketball-playing days that predated Kansas.

Walk-on Elijah Elliott, who redshirted and wore No. 10 last season, has taken over the No. 5 jersey, which became available when Quentin Grimes decided to transfer.

Before we go any further, here’s a quick look at who will wear what in 2019-20.

Christian Braun — No. 2

Isaiah Moss — No. 4

Jalen Wilson — No. 10

Tristan Enaruna — No. 13

Michael Jankovich — No. 20

Issac McBride — No. 55

I made a comparison about two of them on Twitter the other day that threw a few people for a loop. So I figured I might as well get into it a little here.

Although they both have a long way to go in terms of matching their talent, McBride and Braun could very well become the next Devonte’ and Svi at Kansas.

Both are tough competitors who love to play the game and love Kansas (already). Both are likely four-year players who fans will get to watch grow up, both as players and as men. And both figure to become fan favorites at some point during their careers, with each playing with a fearless style and sense of pride that so many Jayhawks before them have brought to the table.

So, no. I’m not saying that either player is a sure-fire All-American, Big 12 player of the year or future NBA draft pick. But I think both will be loved by Jayhawks everywhere and I think both will play huge roles on a whole bunch of future Kansas teams.

In that way, at least to me, they very much have the makings of Graham and Svi Part Deux.

And now that you know what numbers they’ll be wearing, you can start getting used to seeing a lot of good things from the No. 2 and No. 55 jerseys in the days ahead.

I’m looking forward to asking McBride why he chose 55. There has to be a good story there.

Only six Jayhawks all-time have worn No. 55, with the most recent being walk-on football player James Sosinski in 2017-18.

Before that, you have to go back to Moulaye Niang in 2005 before you see another KU player sporting 55. The others: Roger Brown (1969-71), Fred Chana (1964-66), Wayne Hightower (1960-61) and Jay Roberts (1962-63), according to the KU basketball’s media guide.

Those other newcomer numbers are pretty common and have been seen around Lawrence a lot over the past few decades.

Cliff Alexander and Conner Teahan wore No. 2.

Sherron Collins, Devonte’ Graham, Nick Collison and Ryan Robertson all wore No. 4, which was also Moss’ number at Iowa.

Svi Mykhailiuk, Tyshawn Taylor and Kirk Hinrich, among others, wore No. 10.

Wilt Chamberlain and Jeff Boschee were the best-known Hawks who rocked No. 13.

Kenny Gregory, Steve Woodberry, and, most recently, Tyler Self, were three of the most popular players who wore No. 20.

And Wayne Selden Jr. and Dedric Lawson were the most recent Jayhawks to wear No. 1.

But 55 is unique.

A quick search of his YouTube highlight clips showed that McBride wore both No. 4 and No. 5 throughout his prep and AAU playings days. So, again, there has to be a story there about why he went with the double-digit, big man number.

Stay tuned…