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Published Nov 13, 2019
Five-star guard Bryce Thompson makes it official
Shay Wildeboor  •  JayhawkSlant
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Combo guard Bryce Thompson has signed a national letter of intent to play men’s basketball at Kansas, KU head coach Bill Self announced Wednesday. Thompson’s father, Rod Thompson, played for Self while at Tulsa in the 1990s and his grandfather, Marshall Rogers, played at Kansas in 1973.

“The signing of Bryce is one of our most important signees in recent memory,” Self said. “Landing at top 20 player is a positive statement for our program on and off the court.”

Ranked No. 19 by rivals.com and 247Sports composite, Thompson (6-foot-5, 175 pounds) is entering his senior season at Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa. Last year Thompson was named the Oklahoma Gatorade Player of the Year where he helped lead Booker T. Washington to the 6A state title. As a junior, Thompson averaged 19.6 points, 5.2 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game.

“We’ve recruited Bryce for probably three or four years and certainly knew he was always going to be a target, but his development has really taken off the last couple years,” Self said. “He’s grown to 6-foot-5. He’s a lead guard and scoring guard. We’ve had some of our best success with these type of combo guards. He’s going to bring energy to our program and he’s going to bring talent. We anticipate him being an impact player for us.”

Thompson, who speaks French fluently as well as English, chose Kansas over Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and North Carolina. He played AAU basketball for Oklahoma Run PWP this past season and has participated in USA Basketball Junior National Team minicamps.

“I’ve known Bryce for a long time. He says the first time we met was when he was in third grade,” Self said. “Norm (Roberts) was the lead recruiter for Bryce, especially since Norm and I both coached his dad, Rod, at Tulsa. Also, Bryce’s mother, Goldie, was a volleyball player at Tulsa. So we’ve known Rod and Goldie going back to 1997. Rod and I have always stayed in close contact with each other.”

Thompson becomes the second signee for Kansas joining junior college standout guard Tyon Grant-Foster.