Kansas signs four-star Overtime Elite forward Samis Calderon

By ADAM ZAGORIA

Samis Calderon, a native of Brazil and a four-star small forward from Overtime Elite, signed with Kansas on Wednesday.

The 6-foot-8 Calderon chose the No. 1-ranked Jayhawks over Tennessee, Auburn and Michigan.

“I’m going to Kansas,” he announced at OTE.

Samis Calderon chooses Kansas! pic.twitter.com/nVhZ85azUf

— Sam Lance (@slancehoops) November 13, 2024

Ranked the No. 12 small forward in the Class of 2025 by 247Sports.com, he visited Kansas Nov. 4.

The news comes one day after Kansas beat Michigan State in the Champions Classic in Atlanta.

“Kansas was good too,” he told 247Sports.com. “A lot of people, everybody cares about basketball. I went to a game and everybody was really high energy. It was nice. Coach [Bill] Self said that he wants me to play the same way that I’ve been playing and I have to improve a lot which I agree with him. I agree with him on every topic that he says I have to improve.:

Samis Calderon on his Kansas visit 👀 @calderonsamis06 pic.twitter.com/JYy8hONFrZ

— Overtime Elite (@OvertimeElite) November 5, 2024

A 6-foot-8, 200-pound forward with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, Calderon is from Espirito Santo, Brazil, and is a graduate of the NBA Academy Latin America located in Mexico City. Calderon is currently playing in his second season for Overtime Elite (OTE) in Atlanta.

“Samis is a guy we have been very excited about the last several months,” Self said. “He has great size at 6-foot-8 and he can play multiple positions on the perimeter. Samis has a really nice shooting touch that can stretch the defense.

“Samis has been trained well at OTE that should make the transition into major college basketball somewhat seamless,” Self continued. “Coach (Kurtis) Townsend has done a terrific job on recruiting Samis. We feel his best ball is ahead of him.”

Calderon has international experience while representing his home country of Brazil. He played for Brazil the 2023 FIBA U19 World Championships in Debrecen, Hungary, where he averaged 9.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game during the event. Calderon also has competed for Brazil in the 2022 Under 18 Americas Championship and 2022 Under 18 South America Championship.

He joins five-star guard Darryn Peterson in Kansas’s 2025 class.

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