2023-24 Men's Basketball Roster
KJ Simpson
- Position:
- Guard
- Height:
- 6-2
- Weight:
- 189
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- West Hills, Calif.
- High School:
- Chaminade
- Major:
- Communication
Career: Finished his three-year Colorado career ranking ninth in assists (378), 11th in 3-pointers made (133), 13th in steals (129) and 15th in points (1,424) in program history.
2023-24 (Junior): Had a season for the ages at Colorado as an NABC All-District and All-Pac-12 Conference First Team pick while earning honorable mention to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team. Led the Buffaloes at 19.7 points, 4.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game while ranking third in rebounding (5.8 rpg). He was Colorado’s leader in all shooting made and attempted categories as well as total defensive rebounds with 187. One of 20 late season watch-list members for the 2023-24 John R. Wooden Award, one of 30 on the Naismith Trophy Men's Basketball Player of the Year Midseason Team and one of 40 on the watch list for the USBWA All-America team and Oscar Robertson Trophy for that organization's Player of the Year honor. On the Pac-12 charts, ranked second in scoring, free throw percentage (.876) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.2), third in 3-point shooting (.434), assists and steals, fourth in minutes (35.1 mpg), ninth in defensive boards (5.1 drpg) and 14th in overall rebounds. He set CU single-season records for minutes played (1,224), free throw percentage (.876) and double-figure scoring games (35) while ranking 3rd in scoring and assists, 4th in 3-point percentage, 5th in field goal attempts, sixth in 3-pointers and overall field goals, ninth in 3-point attempts and 12th in steals on CU’s single-season charts. Had an impressive opening beginning to the Pac-12 season averaging 27.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.0 steals against the Washington schools. He had a career-high 34 points, hitting 10 of 18 from the field and 13 of 14 from the line, against Washington State (12/31). It was his fourth career 30-point game and second this season (30 vs CSU). Scored the most points by a Buffalo since Derrick White had 35 at Arizona State on Jan. 5, 2017 and most by a CU player in the CU Events Center since Alec Burks had 36 vs. Missouri on Jan. 8, 2011. Against Washington, he had a game-high 21 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists - with just one turnover - and three steals. It was his second career double-double and matched his personal-best in rebounds (both figures vs. Tennessee last season). He became the 40th member of the 1,000 point-club after scoring 23 at Arizona State (1/6). Earned Pac-12 Player of the Week honors on Feb. 26 after recording 28 points, four rebounds, three assists and a steal in the win over Utah (2/24). He hit 10-of-15 shots from the floor, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range, while going a perfect 3-of-3 from the free throw line. Averaged 19.8 points and a team-best 7.3 rebounds in six postseason games. He had back-to-back 20-point efforts against Florida (23) and Marquette (20), becoming just the third Buffalo to score at least 20 points in two NCAA games (Cliff Meely, Burdette Haldorson the others). His 21 20-point games in 2023-24 are the most by a Buffalo in one season since Alec Burks had 24 20-point games in 2010-11. Earned Pac-12 All-Tournament Team honors leading the Buffaloes at 19.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists over the three games. He was the only major conference player in 2023-24 that averaged 19.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game and was one of five in all of NCAA Division I with those numbers. Was second among all major conference players in rebounding for those listed at 6’ 2” and under. He led the Pac-12 in rebounding for all players listed at 6’ 5” and under during conference play (second in overall games). Received the Chauncey Billups Award as the team MVP along with the Best Defender Award and the McKinley Wright IV Assist Award for the third time. Selected by the Charlotte Hornets in the second round, the 42nd overall pick, of the 2024 NBA Draft.
2022-23 (Sophomore): A Second Team All-Pac-12 selection, led Colorado in assists (111) and steals average (1.5 spg) and was second in scoring at 15.9 points per game - just a fraction of a point behind Tristan da Silva - and in 3-point field goals (37). Topped the Buffaloes in free throws made and attempted hitting 81.7 percent from the line (107-131). On the Pac-12 charts ranked fifth in free throw percentage, sixth in steals, seventh in scoring and assists and 13th in minutes played (31.8 mpg) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5). A two-time Pac-12 Player of the Week, earning honors on Nov. 14 and Jan. 2. The first honor came in the opening week of the season where he averaged 17.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 41 percent from the field (17-42) and 72 percent from the free throw line (13-18). He recorded his first career double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds in the win over No. 11 Tennessee (11/13). Coming off the bench, he had 15 points, seven rebounds and hit 7 of 9 free throws in the second half alone. Led the Buffaloes in the Grambling State game (11/11) with 16 points and four assists. He scored 14 points on 50 percent shooting (5-10), with three assists and two steals in the opener against UC Riverside (11/7). Later that next week he would produce Colorado's first 30-point game in five seasons with 30 points against No. 24 Texas A&M (11/18). Recorded a Myrtle Beach Invitational single game record six steals against the Aggies, a number that also served as a career and team season-high. His second Pac-12 Player of the Week honor he averaged 28.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.5 steals during the Bay Area road split. He shot 48.8 percent from the field (21-43) and 83.3 percent from the free throw line (10-12). Had a monster game at Stanford (12/29), scoring a career-high 31 points, hitting 11 of 23 from the field and 8 of 9 from the free throw line. He’s the first Buffalo to have multiple 30-point games in a single season since Derrick White had four in 2016-17. His 31 points were the most by a Buffalo since White had 31 against Arizona in the quarterfinals of the 2017 Pac-12 Tournament. Against Cal (12/31) he had 25 points on 10 of 20 shooting along with five assists and a pair of steals. He scored 16 of his points in the final 2:06 of the game, as the Buffaloes nearly erased a 21-point second half deficit. He led or shared the team lead in assists 24 times during the season, highlighted by a career and team season-high seven at Arizona (2/18). Had a team season-best string of 22 straight free throws made between Jan. 28 (at Oregon State) to Feb. 18 (at Arizona). Made all 11 attempts against Stanford (2/5), the second-best mark in the Pac-12 on the season. MIssed the final five games of the season (illness). Won the McKinley Wright IV Assist Award for the second time. Earned honorable mention to the media's Preseason All-Pac-12 Team.
2021-22 (Freshman): Earned All-Pac-12 Conference Freshman Team honors after averaging 7.4 points per game and leading the Buffaloes in assists (86) and steals (26). Shot 76.5 percent from the free throw line overall and increased that to 78.8 percent during conference games, the latter ranking 11th on the league charts during that span. At one point made 17 free throws in a row. The McKinley Wright IV Assist Award recipient, his 86 assists tied for the eighth most in a season by a CU freshman. Dished out a career and team-season high six assists against Oregon (3/10) in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. A two-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week, earning those honors on Nov. 29 and Feb. 21. His first honor came after averaging 9.5 points and 3.0 assists while shooting 55 percent off the bench in Colorado’s two wins over Brown (11/22) and Stanford (11/28). He scored a career-high 12 points, hitting 5 of 8 from the field in the Buffaloes’ conference opener against Stanford. He had seven points, including a perfect 5 of 5 from the free throw line, and four assists against Brown, in the Paradise Jam finale in the U.S. Virgin Islands. His second honor came after averaging 13.0 points and 3.0 rebounds during Colorado’s three-game road sweep of Oregon State (2/15), California (2/17) and Stanford (2/19). He shot 44 percent from the field and 79 percent from the foul line, hitting 14 of 18 attempts. Scored in double-figures all three games including a career-high 19 points at California where he recorded personal-bests at the free throw line knocking down 8 of 10 attempts. He had 10 points, five rebounds and two assists at Oregon State and finished the week with 10 points, two rebounds and two steals at Stanford. Led or shared the team lead in assists 15 times and in steals 12 times. Had nine double-figure scoring games, twice leading the Buffaloes in scoring both representing his highest-scoring games: 19 at California and 17 at Arizona (1/13).
High School: A 2021 Graduate of Chaminade College Preparatory High School, averaged 24 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five steals, and four blocks while shooting 68 percent over his career. Guided the Eagles to the 2020-21 CIF Southern Section Championship. He is the all-time leading scorer at Chaminade with 2,345 points and tied the record for most steals in a game with 11. Named the Mission League MVP, as well as CIF Division I Player of the Year. He is a three-time First Team All-State selection. Overall the 88th ranked player in the Class of 2021 in 247Sports' composite national rankings along with being the seventh-best combo guard in the nation and the sixth overall prospect from the state of California. Rated as the 85th best player in the nation by Rivals. Played club basketball with the West Coast Elite out of Anaheim, Calif.
Academics: Majoring in Communication with a Leadership minor at Colorado. Also interested in film editing, drawing and marketing. Graduated high school with a 4.0 GPA.
Personal: Born August 8, 2002, in California. He is the son of Patricia Cornejo and Kenneth Simpson Sr. His father played basketball and is in the hall of fames of both his high school and college. Favorite NBA team is the Los Angeles Lakers and his favorite all-time player is Kobe Bryant. Fluent in Spanish, he can also draw and edit videos. Chose Colorado as "too many signs pointed in that direction; amazing staff and head coach, amazing culture, teammates, campus." Full name is Kenneth Simpson, Jr.
