KU Jayhawks basketball guard MJ Rice has entered NCAA transfer portal

Kansas freshman guard MJ Rice has entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal, Kansas Athletics confirmed to The Star on Wednesday afternoon.

Rice, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound Henderson, North Carolina native, averaged 7.5 minutes a game while playing in 23 of KU’s 36 contests in the 2022-23 season. He dealt with multiple ailments in his freshman year, averaging 2.2 points and just over one rebound per game.

Rice shot 20-for-49 (40.8%) from the field including 3-for-15 (20%) from beyond the arc. The former five-star freshman started the season with back issues, then had kidney stones and COVID-19. In the latter half of the season, he had back spasms that kept him out of multiple games.

In his KU debut, on Nov. 10 versus North Dakota State, Rice scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds. He scored a career-high 19 points vs. Texas Southern on Nov. 28.

In his high school days, Rice averaged 20.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game his senior season at Prolific Prep in Napa, California. He started his high school career at Durham (North Carolina) Academy, then moved to Oak Hill Academy in Virginia in 2020-21 before transferring to Prolific Prep.

He was ranked No. 29 by 247Sports.com and No. 30 in the ESPN100. Kansas coach Bill Self raved about Rice early in the season.

“He is physically gifted,” Self said. “He doesn’t look 18 years old. He looks like a guy who has been in the weight room two to three years. He is a pleaser. He wants to do right. Sometimes the effort to do right makes you think all the time. He’s not a reactor yet.

“He’s a terrific young man. He’s going to be good. He wants to be patient. It’s hard for a young man to be patient when what we want is what we want now. He’s close to being in the position having the impact we want him to have.”

Rice is the fifth KU player to enter the portal. He joins guards Bobby Pettiford and Joseph Yesufu, along with forwards Zach Clemence and Cam Martin. The Jayhawks now have three open scholarship spots for next season.

The Star’s Gary Bedore also contributed to this report.