Shakeel Moore injury update: Bill Self addresses latest on Kansas guard

Shakeel Moore transferred to Kansas this summer as a fifth-year graduate student. However, before the season began, Moore broke his foot and was forced to undergo surgery. On Monday, Kansas head coach Bill Self provided an update on Moore’s condition.

“He’s seen the doctors. He’s not 100%. He might not even be 85%. He may not be that 100% all year long,” Self said. “I mean, he had surgery, so there’s gonna be some discomfort and all that stuff when you have surgery. It’s not at the point now where he feels like he can contribute.

“Which, to me, is disappointing. Not that he’s not out there but the fact after this much time, he doesn’t feel like he can really go on it. But I also think that we’ll get him back out there but it’s gonna take at least a month longer than we anticipated.”

Moore would provide an immediate boost for the Jayhawks. Before transferring to Kansas, Moore spent three seasons at Mississippi State, where he made 99 appearances and 66 starts.

In the 2023-24 season with the Bulldogs, Moore averaged 7.9 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 0.8 steals per game while shooting 46.8% from the field and 36.3% from beyond the arc. Moore was a consistent offensive threat, tallying double figures in 13 games.

While Moore is a talented player on offense, he truly shines on defense. In the 2022-23 season, Moore was one of 15 player on the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List. If healthy, Moore would instantly be one of Kansas’ best on-ball defenders.

Although Self doesn’t have an exact timeline for Moore’s recovery, he doesn’t plan on medically redshirting the veteran guard.

“I can’t say positively because I don’t know how he’s going to respond a month from now. But, we didn’t recruit him here to play next year. We recruited him to play this year,” Self said.

Kansas has excelled this season, even without Shakeel Moore on the floor. The Jayhawks are 7-0 and ranked No. 1 in the AP Top 25. Kansas is already battle-tested this season, boasting wins over North Carolina, Michigan State and Duke.

Kansas will have an opportunity to add even more quality wins to its résumé this season as it prepares to square off against Creighton and Missouri this week. The Jayhawks will square off against the Bluejays at 8:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday. The game will air live on FS1.