The Kansas Men’s Basketball 2003 Recruiting Class was the best class that year. Where are they all now?

The 2003 recruiting class featured LeBron James, Chris Paul, Loul Deng, and many other NBA stars. The best team recruiting class in 2003 belongs to the Kansas Jayhawks. Kansas had two 5-star, two 4-star, and one 3-star recruit that year. In 2004 the Jayhawks made the Elite Eight, but lost to Georgia Tech. In 2005, they lost as a 3-seed in the first round to Bucknell. In 2006, they lost as a 4-seed in the first round to Bradley. In 2007, they made the Elite Eight, but lost to UCLA. How did the 2003 Kansas Jayhawks recruiting class end up?

5-Star recruits:

David Padgett C Reno, Nevada. 5th ranked national, 1st best center, 1st best in the state of Nevada. Played 1 year for Kansas, and then transferred to Louisville where he played 3 seasons. Padgett was never drafted, and never played in the NBA.

J.R. Giddens SF Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. 21st ranked national, 6th best small forward, 1st best in the state of Oklahoma. Played 2 seasons for Kansas, and then transferred to New Mexico for 2 seasons. Giddens was a 1st round pick (30th overall) in the 2008 NBA draft by the Boston Celtics. He played 2 seasons (only 38 games), and averaged 1.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg, and 0.3 apg. Giddens retired in 2010 as a member of the New York Knicks.

4-Star recruits:

Rodrick Stewart SG Seattle, Washington. 30th ranked national, 6th best shooting guard, 1st best in the state of Washington. Played 1 season for USC and then transferred to Kansas for 3 seasons. Won the NCAA Championship in 2007-2008 for the Kansas Jayhawks. Stewart was never drafted, and never played in the NBA.

Omar Wilkes SG Los Angeles, California. 55th ranked national, 11th best shooting guard, 6th best in the state of California. Played 1 season for Kansas, and then transferred to California for 2 seasons. Wilkes was never drafted, and never played in the NBA.

3-Star recruits:

Jeremy Case SG Mcalester, Oklahoma. 315th ranked national, 72nd best shooting guard, 2nd best in the state of Oklahoma. Played 4 seasons for Kansas. Won the NCAA Championship in 2007-2008 for the Kansas Jayhawks. Case was never drafted, and never played in the NBA.

The 2003 Kansas Jayhawks recruiting class was very disappointing. They only had one NBA player from the class (J.R. Giddens) and he only played for 2 seasons averaging less than 2 points per game. The 2003 Jayhawks recruiting class had two players on the 2007-2008 National Championship team, but they had no NBA stars. This recruiting class proves that recruiting and star rankings do not mean everything, and the number 1 recruiting class of 2003 didn’t amount to much success on the basketball court after college.