Kansas basketball incoming freshman Chris Johnson asks for release from letter of intent

Kansas basketball lost a member of its heralded 2023 recruiting class.

Chris Johnson, a 6-foot-5 guard from Fort Bend, Texas, has asked for a release from his national letter of intent, Eric Bossi of 247Sports reported Saturday afternoon. KU coach Bill Self later confirmed the report to the Kansas City Star. Johnston confirmed the decision on his Twitter account Monday.

Johnson, a four-star combo guard who most recently played for Monteverde Academy in Florida, was ranked No. 40 nationally by Rivals and No. 51 in the On3 composite ratings among high school prospects. He chose Kansas over Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi and Connecticut, among others.

With Johnson's decision to reopen his recruitment, Kansas now has 10 scholarship players on its roster with two more spots available. The Jayhawks return starters Kevin McCullar, Dajuan Harris and KJ Adams from last year's team.

KU also is bringing in freshmen Marcus Adams, Elmarko Jackson and Jamari McDowell, along with Hunter Dickinson (Michigan), Arterio Morris (Texas), Nick Timberlake (Towson) and Parker Braun (Santa Clara) through the transfer portal.

Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on Twitter at @arnegreen.