🏀 KuBuckets Archive

First off hats off to Perry Ellis for coming back and saying all the right things about what he needs to improve on. I don't doubt he will get better this summer.

2nd: Self announced Brannen Greene will be out up to 5 months with Hip Surgery. They said it was getting worse and after should be pain free. Significant injury because before that announcement was made, he said Selden & Greene would be much better next year.

= you don't get better if your going to miss your entire summer of developing, practice, and games. I expect to see the same Greene because he's going to miss a lot of time, just like Cliff did last summer which impacted him from getting better.

Light-bulb said we are going to put on full court press for Brown or Ingram or somebody.

3rd: The impact of his injury to the summer games is significant. We are now down to 3 guards- Mason, Graham & Selden. That's it, no Svi for the games and he said NO former players in the league are allowed. Do we have any idea what kind of competition it is we will be playing against? What level of national teams and what not.

4th: 3 scholarships to give and Self mentioned getting the anchor in the post (Diallo). Problem is, Diallo wouldn't be eligible for the World Games either. If Diallo signs, there's no way Self will head out with a 12 man roster, heck he might not even have 10 at this point. He also mentioned an impact guard, he specifically said not a OAD but someone who can help immediately. Self do you know someone out there available other than the 3 OAD's on the board?? Coach Share your wisdom, you waited so long to actually start recruiting the pickings are slim... You either get the chucking Newman, or the impact G/SF Ingram & Brown.

5th: Ellis said he would be working on his dribbling and shooting among things. Looks like we will see Perry plenty at the 3, unless we can convince the ole' OAD train to hop aboard.

Thoughts???

To add what you have already posted:

Summer exhibitions: Self revealed that KU’s World University Games team would play a pair of exhibition contests against the Canadian National Team this summer in Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. It would be the week before the Jayhawks head to South Korea for the Games, which run July 3-14.

“Just because Allen Fieldhouse is not air-conditioned,” Self said of playing in KC. “It’d be hard to play a summertime game in Allen if you are able to put some people in there. It’d probably be pretty miserable. We plan on doing that the week leading up to the tour. Nothing is finalized.”

KU is allowed 12 players on its World Games roster. Svi Mykhailiuk (Ukraine) cannot play for the KU/U.S. team. If Self needs to fill out the roster, he cannot add any former KU players now in the NBA because their participation is against the NBA collective-bargaining agreement.

“It looks like all our ex-players in a development-league-type situation are too old,” Self said. “A Tyshawn (Taylor), Elijah (Johnson), Travis (Releford), they are all too old. They all turn 25 before Jan. 1. You can’t turn 25 before Jan. 1. I could possibly go try to get a guy from another school, somebody fighting to try to find his way just to fill a spot. We’re going to wait and see how many guys we have, who we sign. If we get another international player, he can’t go. Numbers may be such we may need to get a guy or two.”

This is from KUAthletics website:

Only current university student-athletes or recent graduates, born between Jan. 1, 1990, and Dec. 31, 1997, are eligible for the 2015 Games. For Kansas' participation, only U.S. citizens can compete and incoming freshmen and transfers qualify. The Kansas travel party, consisting of 12 competitors and staff (24 total), will leave Lawrence June 28 and live in the athlete village throughout the Games.

Are they changing the rules?

Google says TT was born April 12, 1990.

EJ is July 7, 1990.

Travis is February 22, 1990.

Something ain't adding up here... Does Bill just say these guys are too old hoping that he can fool the OAD guards to sign with KU since we don't have any other options?? Or is he saying he doesn't want TT, EJ, and Travis?

@BeddieKU23 To me the worst part about all of this is B. Greene's surgery. I am excited about the World Games but this 5 month layoff for Greene seems like a huge loss. That means he may not be back on the court until September which is just 2 months before the season starts. I don't know how he is going to knock that much rust off as a shooter and get in shape. Greene in my mind was going to take that huge sophomore to junior season leap where he became more than a one dimensional player. That may all be jeopardized now. Self says that a red shirt is not going to happen but I wouldn't count it out if we sign a big time guard. If Greene does not improve much or at all over the summer it may be best for him to play two more years at full strength after sitting for a year. Obviously this is all total speculation but I am really bummed by this news.

This is from USA official WUG site.

WUGUSA ↗

Each athlete must meet the following specific criteria in order to be eligible.

United States Citizen and able to obtain a US Passport.

Born between January 1, 1987 and December 31, 1997. For basketball, the athlete must be born after January 1, 1990 and before December 31, 1997.

Have taken at least one 3-credit course towards a degree or diploma within the last year before the GAMES. Incoming freshman and transfers are usually eligible.

Sign the Comprehensive Acceptance of Team USA Agreements form.

Sign the Team USA Honor Code and Code of Conduct form.

Sign the Team USA Authorizations, Waiver and Release Form.

@joeloveshawks You are right, but a kid who is healthy at the start of the season won't red-shirt. The summer practice and games will be huge for development and team cohesion. Too bad Greene and Svi are going to miss out. I wonder if Svi can practice? Diallo and Maker couldn't play either. The games should really help to incorporate Bragg and get him up to speed.

Well, looks from the dates that EJ or Releford could play, & most universities offer 4week mini courses in June...I'd take EJ, TT, or TRob in a g-d--n heartbeat, as that was the heart & soul of a Final4 run... But, that ship may have sailed.

Honestly, with ALL the returning experience, why cant we just let them play??

I think its insulting to guys like Hunter, Landon, Jamari, & Perry to suggest we need a 5th big, and an inexperienced frosh thrown into that accomplishes WHAT exactly? And I'm talking for this WUGames trip only, not Div1 or NCAA tourney play.

Svi will absolutely fill in for Greene this fall, Svi has handles, a 3gun, lateral quickness, and D ability...a very gifted 5star kid, who VERY likely will prove himself to be a 2AD (!!)

Corey Henderson, 6'2 3star guard from Texas, is transferring away from WichitaState after his frosh season...

@dylans Good point about Bragg. That was part of the reason UK looked so good out of the gate with freshman. They had been playing real games against real competition for longer than anyone else when the season started.

Oh ya, Bragg...so he'd be our 5th big on the trip, a McdAA. I asked Self personally about him this weekend, and Self called him a stretch-4. Kid is 6'9, 225. One of those headband-athletes.

Agree with idea to put Perry at the 3, & go win the summer world war!

Can Cliff even play in these WUGames?

Speaking of EJ, TT, and TRob, they all were tweeting stuff during KU's tourney run. TT saying how he'll always dislike uni, vcu. EJ tweeted about "my 'Hawks advancin", and TRob with his usual, laid-back, "f.o.e." stuff. At times he tweets spiritual stuff as well.

I'll always be rooting for these kids!

@ralster

The problem isn't letting them play. The problem is at this point we might not have enough guys to go with that we can expect to win this tournament or even be really competitive. If we don't sign Brown or Ingram, your talking about your starting SF and backup not being able to play. 2 guys who just so happen to be known for shooting, and 2 guys who we are counting on to become much more part of the rotation.

If we want to rely on our walkon's that's great, we can take the 5th place trophy now.

We need a 5th big, Self said it last night they need a "anchor in the middle".
Translation we need Diallo and he could help us with that.
Issue is he can't play in the games because he's from Mali.

If we don't get Diallo, then Thorne is next up and he would be eligible. A 4th year Center with developing game would help us.

Henderson would have to sit a year and wouldn't be eligible to play.

Svi's team is not playing so all he can do is travel and practice.

Below is the Groupings.
!10271300_10153165302016071_6290814289087713145_o.jpg ↗

@ralster

Not if he is drafted. Would be against the collective bargaining agreement.

Why couldn't Cliff play if he's drafted? You can bring in any ex-player born after 1990 and before 1997 if he has taken at least one 3 hour course. I assume a summer course will work.

LeBron never set foot on campus, maybe he wants to take a course and lie about his age?!?

@dylans Draft doesn't take place until June 25th and since he probably won't go first round, that moves him to June 26th or later. Additional problem is they play in South Korea July 3-14 and you would have to factor in travel.. Too late..

So he could play, but it would be a logistical nightmare. And probably detrimental to Cliff. Besides I'd rather have current KU players gelling than have any additions. Even if that means going 0-fer. I want what's best for KU in '15-'16. I really don't care about the outcome of the games as much as the practice and experience for the team.

@BeddieKU23 Brannen is having hip surgery!?!? Omg. Well now we know why his trey gun trailed off after mid season. Wonder if he would be eligible for a medical red shirt if he isnt "better" by the start of the season?

Sounds like we will absolutely need Perry at the 3 during the World Games.
Thorne would be eligible for us. Hope we get both guys and Ingram or Brown.

@Lulufulu Bill blamed his shooting slump on his concussion, but I've got to think the bone spurs in his hip didn't help.

@ralster I agree. Svi is going to be a stud. Sux he cant contribute to the World Games for us.

@ralster How are you able to get that close with the Coach? That is way cool. Excited about Bragg now too!

@dylans Uhhh yeah. Kinda need your hips to jump into a 3 point shot right? lol

@Lulufulu

Yes he's having hip surgery.

He would be eligible for a red-shirt but Self clearly said they wouldn't go down that road as he should be plenty healthy for the season. Up to 5 months, I bet its closer to 4 with the way athletes tend to heal.

What's impactful is that Self seemed very high on him being a big contributor but if's he's unable to do anything basketball related it's going to be 2-3 months afterword's just to get him back up to speed.

Clearly Svi has the inside track to start now, but if Brown or Ingram come knocking now it could be interesting.

Couple of reflections here. Hip spurs go a long way to explain Brannen's moving in concrete boots, as well as late season instinctive hesitation to race downcourt to try to block an opponent's runaway dunk. Newman or Brown could seal a marvelous opportunity to acquire some worldwide attention by signing on with KU prior to these WUGs. Sadly, the WUGs are no advantageous draw for Diallo's recruitment.
Carlton Bragg has placed himself in a prime hoops setting. The 2015-16 door has just opened wider for Svi. Interesting that Self appears not to be considering the offer of a red shirt to Greene. Devaluation of Fool's Gold?

@BeddieKU23 Yeah, very true. Those guys heal up very quick. Rush came back from his ACL after 6 months! Crazy.

Our current roster is Mason, Devonte, Selden, Perry, Bragg, Landen, Jamari, Mickelson plus the walk ons. Am I missing anyone? Those first 8 guys are good to be sure. But to win or place in the top 3 for the World Games, we are gonna need more help than that. Why wouldnt Coach Self do everything he can to bring in ex players? Is he trying to make this like an NBA combine or something?

@dylans

Cliff is going to be drafted, and he will be sent to Summer League play after that. There's no chance he's playing.

I saw somewhere else, EJ, Kevin Young, & Selby maybe eligible. I guess that would be worst case scenario if we really needed fillers.

Without some key player additions, Kansas in for a thrashing in the WUGs. The Cliff collapse and departure coupled with Kelly's leaving has left a chasm in our current Jayhawk potential (a POTENTIAL that flailed hopelessly vs. WSU). Best thing we might glean from WUGs is extended summer practice time. Maybe Zimmerman will sign on to become an immediate star?

I hope everyone can sense an excuse when they see one here. It's always the same from Self. After the season, guys had these multitudes of injuries that impliedly affected their performance.

It is ridiculous to even give this stuff any credence at all.

I'd bet quite a bit of money that Greene hit bucket loads of threes in practice. If he was injured and his hip or supposed slight concussion caused him to be affected, he wouldn't have played. He just isn't that good otherwise. If he missed a bunch of shots in practice, they would have reacted to that.

Don't get sucked into allowing this disinformation to be molded into an excuse.

Seeing Self's comments from last night really just make me angry. This team began the season as a Final Four team. This team was 21-4.

But that all changed, didn't it? We ended 6-5 and played embarrassingly bad against WSU. As Landen Lucas said, WSU just wanted it more.

I'm not sure there is any supposed injury that affects "want to." Though maybe a media member could ask Self. I'm sure he'd speculate on that.

@Lulufulu

What I just posted above is basically the pool of former players who we could reasonably expect to help.
I left out Tharpe because nobody wants that back, Wesley could be but he's been focused on design.

We clearly need more than 8 scholarship players to go with. The question I now have is do we go all in to get Brown & Ingram and still get Thorne as well as Diallo to ensure we have at least 10 scholarship players to go over with. We all want to win this tournament but I'm very unsure about the quality of teams that will be playing and we have some glaring holes due to injury/eligibility.

It does bring more excitement that Bragg will essentially be ahead of the curve than some freshman. Wouldn't that be a great selling point for the other OAD's still left. Hey come to KU, go oversea's represent team USA and practice and play x amount of games before the fall. If I was a HS Senior I'd be signing up ASAP.

@BeddieKU23 Good I don't want Cliff anywhere near the team. He will in no way shape or form help KU win a national championship next year. I wish him the best in the league.

Why loss games? Go get NBA hawks to fill the roster. I'll tell you why, these games don't matter. No one cares about the outcome. The winner doesn't even care. It's all about experience and getting our guys better for next year. Getting our guys extra practice and playing time is all that matters. They just need to go to the games and play hard. The outcome of the games isn't that important.

So with games that no one will watch or care about (besides us KU fans) why waste time on players who won't be here next season?

@dylans

I think your failing to understand that no NBA players are allowed to play under the bargaining agreement the players have with the league.

Any KU player on a NBA roster is not eligible. They can't go enroll in basketweaving 101 with a NBA contract and go overseas with us. Otherwise Self could pick and choose as he pleased.

@dylans I care. Those are our Jayhawks which were chosen to represent the USA. If we finish 9th, as have a couple of other "USA" teams in recent years, then it goes down as FAILURE!

@HighEliteMajor

The one defense for Self I have is that he's not going to come out and blast the team negatively at the Banquet. He made some jabs but they were all in joke format.

You are right, we shouldn't believe much because it was a PR move to keep everyone thinking positive and closing the season on a good note, recognizing players for hard work over the season.

Every team in the nation had injuries and they were not talked about. Whatever it is that caused the late season collapse is on him, and he knows it. What he does to correct it remains to be seen.

You are correct I though NBA players could play. Just D- League guys like Travis, Tyshawn, or international guys like Kevin Young can play.

@REHawk said:

@dylans I care. Those are our Jayhawks which were chosen to represent the USA. If we finish 9th, as have a couple of other "USA" teams in recent years, then it goes down as FAILURE!

You and I are in the group of KU fans I mentioned who care. The games do not count though is my point. The usuall Bill Self win at all costs is not a good way to go about this tournament. This is PRE-SEASON ball and the games count less than a local pickup game. The practice is important. The team chemistry building is important.

If KU takes 9th place, but learns how to play as a team and plays up to their potiental the following season(regardless of a National Title or not) then the games where a resounding success. If KU takes 9th and makes no improvement then this was a horrible waste of time and money. If KU wins the tournament and doesn't improve (not likely) it is also a waste of time 'cause these guys are going to burn out playing such a long season.

These games are a chance for the team to come together and for the freshman (hopefully freshmen) to catch up. Winning is nice, but not important at this tournament depending on how you win or loose. A bunch of close losses at the buzzer would be bad too. A bunch of blowout losses would be bad for confidence.

This is Bill's chance to tinker with the line-ups and give guys minutes that may not get minutes when the games count. Think about how much better Svi could've been last year if given the same opportunity.

The way I understand this...

In previous years we took players from various schools. This is the first time we are trying to have one school represent America.

However, this year, since we will need to pickup a few extra players, and the pool of quality ex-players from Kansas won't be available, then Self will look to land a few players from other schools.

I could see us landing Frank Kaminsky... for one! If his NBA team will let him go.

@ralster
Thanks for the tweet updates. I'm not surprised about TRob and spirituality given all of his loved ones are gone, only his baby sister. We all need loved ones around for support from daily grinds of life, and perhaps he found solace in God. Hope he has good people around him. He's got it tough compared to most players.

@BeddieKU23 said:

@HighEliteMajor

The one defense for Self I have is that he's not going to come out and blast the team negatively at the Banquet. He made some jabs but they were all in joke format.

You are right, we shouldn't believe much because it was a PR move to keep everyone thinking positive and closing the season on a good note, recognizing players for hard work over the season.

Every team in the nation had injuries and they were not talked about. Whatever it is that caused the late season collapse is on him, and he knows it. What he does to correct it remains to be seen.

This is a perfect way to explain it.

Does Self realize 14 hour difference between Lawrence and Korea? It is Midnight there vs. 10am Central. Europe is a bit easier to adjust, but when the day/night flips, it will take a few days even for healthy boys to adjust. They will be up ready to go at 4am in Korea.

So players with a NBA contract aren't eligible?

It has to be d-league players?

@drgnslayr This is from the Brannen Greene hip article ↗ in KUSports.com today

Summer exhibitions: Self revealed that KU’s World University Games team would play a pair of exhibition contests against the Canadian National Team this summer in Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. It would be the week before the Jayhawks head to South Korea for the Games, which run July 3-14.

“Just because Allen Fieldhouse is not air-conditioned,” Self said of playing in KC. “It’d be hard to play a summertime game in Allen if you are able to put some people in there. It’d probably be pretty miserable. We plan on doing that the week leading up to the tour. Nothing is finalized.”

KU is allowed 12 players on its World Games roster. Svi Mykhailiuk (Ukraine) cannot play for the KU/U.S. team. If Self needs to fill out the roster, he cannot add any former KU players now in the NBA because their participation is against the NBA collective-bargaining agreement.

“It looks like all our ex-players in a development-league-type situation are too old,” Self said. “A Tyshawn (Taylor), Elijah (Johnson), Travis (Releford), they are all too old. They all turn 25 before Jan. 1. You can’t turn 25 before Jan. 1. I could possibly go try to get a guy from another school, somebody fighting to try to find his way just to fill a spot. We’re going to wait and see how many guys we have, who we sign. If we get another international player, he can’t go. Numbers may be such we may need to get a guy or two.”

@REHawk Totally agree, here's the mysterious explanation of Greene's immobility that we were all ready to chalk up to plantar clumsiness. It's a relief to know he can still grow his game speed. Downer to know he'll miss the entire summer.

Now we just need an explanation for Selden's baffling lack of game.

And in the meantime, we need to sign another perimeter stud player.

@dylans

"he cannot add any former KU players now in the NBA because their participation is against the NBA collective-bargaining agreement."

What about players just ready to come into the league? Is there a chance they could play if they haven't dribbled a NBA ball yet?

@drgnslayr said:

What about players just ready to come into the league? Is there a chance they could play if they haven't dribbled a NBA ball yet?

How is that possible? Either they sign a contract or they don't.

• If they do, the collective bargaining agreement rules.

• If they don't, their agent isn't going to let them go to Korea to get injured - plus the team with rights is going to say "I own you".

No chance.

@BeddieKU23 Ahhh! I totally want Kevin Young to come play for us!!!

@HighEliteMajor Man, I can sense your frustration here. I agree that KU fell quite a bit short of their potential this season. But, if Brannen is getting a surgical procedure done, why would he even agree to it unless he needed it? I mean we saw the same relative 3 point % drop off with Tyrel Reed when he had bone spurs in his foot. Its all basic mechanics right? I mean there is a bone spur anywhere, in any major area, hip, foot, knee, whatever, its going to affect performance due to the pain involved. Sure, Brannen probly made tons of threes in practice but thats not the same as game time, getting fouled on shots, hard fouls with no calls. Its different.
One last thing. Every one of our guys returning this year will be mostly upperclassmen now. They are going to be better when November rolls around again. I would bet on them breaking the 30 win mark and making it further into the tourney this time. Absolutely minimal chance they get bounced in the second game again for the third straight time.

I know I am in the minority on this, but I don't care if we win any games in the World Games. I like the early start we get, love the game time minutes of experience we'll rack up. Beyond that, everyone stay healthy.

@KUSTEVE I kinda agree with you. I would like us to be competitive at the games and win some. That would be nice. Is it a must win situation for us? Im not sure. Would it affect recruiting in years to come if they bomb? I dunno. Will it help the team to have extra time to practice and build chemistry before the season starts? Absolutely.

@Lulufulu BG did say his legs weren't right at the end of season.

I want to win. Didn't Cliff and oubre both wear boots from ankle sprains last summer? Injuries happen. They will have late summer off too. I'm really hoping we sign Ingram and diallo. Do you think diallo and Svi can practice w/us? If they are not playing, could they come along as managers? I want to show up well there!

@drgnslayr

I believe that for the last games Northern Iowa was selected to represent the US and they ended up 9th, so this is not the first time a school rather than a all-star/combined team is representing the US.

Also, if I understand correctly, the rules call for "incoming freshman and transfers are usually eligible" so it would seem that Bragg and Diallo*** (if he signs with KU) would be eligible as would Thorne, provided they enroll for the summer which most players do so they can avail themselves of the facilities.

Last, maybe the NBA agreement does not allow players to play in the University games, but until Oubre actually signs with a NBA team he is free to do what he wants and he would be eligible; obviously the team that picks him would not be happy (too much risk) and there is always the chance they have an agreement that as condition to pick him he cannot play in the games; I see this as a real possibility, particularly if he is a lottery pick.

*** Correction- Diallo is not eligible to play for the US.

@JayHawkFanToo

Diallo is from Mali. NBA Summer Leagues will go down same time as WUG

@JayHawkFanToo you have to be born in the usa🎶🎶🎶🎶

@Crimsonorblue22 Do you have to like Springsteen?

@Kip_McSmithers and @Crimsonorblue22

Slap in the head...I knew that and I was going to delete that part but while adding Thorne I missed it... :(

@nuleafjhawk not much!

@Lulufulu Curious, do you feel the same way about our roster if we don't get Diallo?

I don't disagree that the hip surgery was needed ... he wouldn't get it otherwise. No issue there. Sounds like it's something being done electively, to remove the source of irritation. I do, however, think the hip thing had zero to do with his shooting. This issue is the start to the drop off -- in reality it was like falling off a cliff. That doesn't happen on something progressive. Break your hand? Sure. Self said he's always had the spurs and it's just got progressively worse. He seemed to shoot fine for 80% of the season through the TT game. Sounds like an irritant that has just gotten to the stage where it's wise to remedy it. He didn't develop the spurs just after the TT game. Again, I don't think the two are related at all. I mean like zero.

Self mentioned the supposed "minor" concussion as it related to his shooting. That is just silly. If the kid had any concussion issues, he wouldn't play, or practice. If he had concussion issues that affected his shooting, then he wouldn't be able to shoot in practice/scrimmaging. A concussion isn't going to discriminate between the driveway, a practice or a game. If your head is jacked up -- movement, sensitivity to sound or light -- it's jacked up. And if he had any of those in a game, they would pull him related to (my assumption of) concussion protocol. He obviously had been cleared. It's not something where magically the "minor" concussion would affect him only in the game.

I'm just curious, question for Bill Self, did the rest of the team also have "minor" concussions following the TT game?

Why can't we just be like Duke and send this over to our in-house legal school and let them strong arm the governing body?

@HighEliteMajor Hmmmm. Interesting. No, I dont buy into the concussion thing either. If the med team cleared him for play, he would have been fine. You might be right though, his shooting might not have been affected as precipitously as it was just by his hip issue. Tyrel's was.

To answer your question, No, we absolutely need Diallo and or Thorne to shore up our front court this coming season.

@Crimsonorblue22

Well...not necessarily born in the USA but would need to be eligible to get a US passport. Most children of American citizens born overseas are US citizens and would be eligible. Xavier Henry, if I recall correctly was born in Belgium but he is a US citizen and would be eligible, subject to age and school attendance requirements of course.

@JayHawkFanToo you ruined my song!!

Pools Announced:

When Kansas University’s men’s basketball team begins representing the USA at the 2015 World University Games this summer, the Jayhawks will start things off in Gwangju, Korea, in the same pool as Brazil, Chile, Serbia, Switzerland and Turkey.

The World University Games, which feature four pools of six teams, begin July 3 and finish July 14. KU, playing as the National Team, is in Pool D. Following five games of pool competition, teams will be seeded for bracket play, with the top two teams from each pool competing for the gold medal.

Only current university student-athletes or recent graduates, born between Jan. 1, 1990, and Dec. 31, 1997, are eligible for the 2015 Games. For KU’s participation, only U.S. citizens can compete — meaning Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk won’t play with his fellow Jayhawks in the competition — and incoming freshmen and transfers qualify.

Historically, the USA has won 13 World University Games gold medals, three silvers and three bronze since the inception of the games in 1965. The USA’s last WUG gold medal came in 2005. The USA is 1-0 in the World University Games against Serbia with a 68-66 victory in 2009. Serbia later won the 2009 WUG gold medal and USA the bronze. The USA is 8-0 against Brazil with the last meeting in 2001, at USA 99-67 victory. The USA squad is 1-0 versus Turkey with the lone meeting in 2001, a 113-90 decision. The USA has yet to face Chile or Switzerland in World University Games competition.

This is the second time a college team will compete in the World University Games. In 2007, the University of Northern Iowa participated and finished ninth in Bangkok, Thailand.

The Kansas travel party, consisting of 12 competitors and staff (24 total), will leave Lawrence June 28 and live in the athlete village throughout the Games.
The International University Sports Federation (FISU) which governs the World University Games established the criteria for selecting each pool based on previous WUG results, previous participation in the Games, continental representation and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) rankings. Following the five games in pool competition, the teams will be seeded for bracket play with the top two teams from each pool battling for a medal.

2015 World University Games Pools

Pool A – Korea, Estonia, Germany, China, Angola, Mozambique

Pool B – Russia, Canada, Mexico, Mongolia, Sweden, Montenegro

Pool C – Australia, Lithuania, Finland, Japan, France, Chinese Taipei

Pool D – Serbia, Brazil, USA, Turkey, Chile, Switzerland

@RockChalkinTexas an awesome opportunity!

BG needs hip surgery that will take 5 months to recover from after a season in which he turned startlingly lighter shades for some weeks without explanation, and had a slight concussion. And he was suspended a game for not taking care of business? Why in hell was he playing?

@jaybate-1.0 it was a joke! BG and his 3 sign to his head thing. He did have one earlier, not making light of it.

@Lulufulu I went to the billselfexperience, & the Capt's Club level has 15 guys at YachtClub partying w/Self & u can ask him anything you dare. Then the next am there is a film study scouting breakdown (IowaState this year), for this same subgroup. Self was extremely candid during these small group interactions:

on IowaSt: he knows everything Hoiberg is doing down to a scary level of detail. Our guys executing reliably has been a recurring issue the last 2 yrs, in general...

on Naadir Tharpe: a really good player but literally leading the team in the wrong direction..." He had to go...HAD to go."

on Kaleb Tarczewski's recruitment: "He was telling us for over a year he's coming, then his AAU coach"...(did something late & Kaleb goes to AZ, Self extremely displeased with that ending). He went on to say if we'd gotten Kaleb, we wouldnt have gotten Jojo...

on Joel Embiid: "Better than Okafor, unbelievable footwork & much better passer. Thought we'd have Jojo x2 yrs". (Also said Embiid very immature, even now, Self recently referred him to a financial advisor.

on Okafor: he wanted KU, but Tyus Jones was set on Duke, & they had to play together...

@ralster I bet that was interesting and fun!

Bill Self says that he really hopes to bring in a "pro" type guard, not necessarily a OAD but a recruit who is destined for professional level play.
Brown or Newman?

@ralster Thanks for sharing, ralster. Partially answers lots of questions re Self's recent recruiting.

I guess I'm confused why Coach Selfs words could mess up Brannen's head to the point he couldn't shoot, but a concussion doesn't affect his head?!?

Free-throws are all muscle memory, but you must adjust on field goal attempts. BG was still golden on the FT stripe. His three ball went down the crapper though. I can't decide if it was mental (coaches doing - not likely or concussion) or physical (bone spurs). No jumping on free throws so that could factor in also.

By all accounts BG is thick headed and stubborn so a "fools gold comment" is unlikely to stick in his craw. Did this de-rail him?

A progressively worsening bone spur would most likely cause a tapper off and not the precipitous drop off we saw. That is unless the pain hit a threshold he couldn't handle any more. It didn't appear that he was in that much pain, so more likely the pain was causing him to change his motion more subtly.

A concussion affects people differently depending on severity and a multitude of factors we don't fully understand. It is possible that a concussion messing with his head and bone spurs messing with his form added up to a huge drop off in shooting percentage.

@dylans I thought he appeared to be in pain while trying to play defense!😄

@Crimsonorblue22 Hahaha. Poor guy. I just thought he was slow with poor footwork. Turns out he was hurting too.

Seriously, I thought his D picked up quite a bit this season. When he was making shots he was hustling more on D. too. I just hope he can keep improving his handle and defense so he can stay on the court longer.

@dylans I've never seen a D1 athlete move like BG!

@ralster

I'm electing you our new inside source! Great job!

I had one very brief conversation with Bill before the season and all he did was basically apologize for not landing a 5. He was totally worried how we were going to win without a real 5.

For that reason alone, I still can't imagine we won't end up without someone who can be a strong presence in the paint. I would be quite happy with Diallo, even though he isn't a tree.

The somewhat "white elephant in the room" regarding 3pt shooting, Self actually addressed while we were talking about it. There have been games this season and past seasons (with even different KU rosters) where KU shot almost 50% from 3, with 14-15 3att's...and other times in this (&other) season(s), where KU shot horribly from 3 (like 3-for-21, etc...).

Sometimes teams "just cant make shots/bad shooting nights". How else can you explain a Free-the-3-Poster-Team like IowaState also having dismal 3-shooting outings??

Note to @HighEliteMajor: Man, I wish you were at this event--I would have liked to see what questions you would have crafted for Self directly! Actually thought about ya prior to attending the sessions with Self. Some of the more obvious questions, such as outside-in vs inside-out, we all know the stats behind why Self believes what he does. In an abstract sense, but it plays out in almost every facet of his system: Self always plays the odds.

While every single Jayhawk man, woman, and child has every right to ask Self about early Tourney exits, the same questions should be directed to Roy, Coach K, Calipari, etc...by their respective fanbases--> and they were...I read many Dukie and KY and UNC comment boards after their 1st round exits and NIT "experiences"... It wasn't pretty from about 40-50% of the comments immediately following their losses either.

At this point, having had this pastime of commenting on public forums since about 2007?, to me its same-old, same-old after a loss: Posters for each segment speak up, and it partly reflects the poster's personal philosophy/optimist/pessimist...and partly their level of analytical understanding of KU's playstyle, its execution, and their take on what the gamefilm is revealing. An identical pattern to what I saw on KY, UNC, and Duke boards...

I personally was NOT crushed after the Stanford or WSU losses, as those were really not surprising losses, as KU fielded flawed teams both seasons, and had significant late season issues (injuries) both seasons. The UNI, VCU, Michigan losses were crushing, as the expectations for a 'veteran' KU team are much higher, and it was very painful to see the kids blow a promising tourney run as they did...

@ralster on your comment about executing reliably, is it a bb IQ problem?

@ralster

What cool experience and thanks for sharing it with us. If I were 25 years younger I would really make it a point to try to attend the camp.

@HighEliteMajor & @BeddieKU23 No guys--you just don't understand--we had SO many injuries! SO many more than any other D1 team. It's a miracle we didn't have to play our student managers! And we were SO young! SO, SO young! Probably younger than any other team out there...except maybe Kentucky and Duke...

@ralster Any dish on the rash of injuries this season and how to prevent them going further?

@KUinLA

Duke & KU were 2 of the top 10 youngest teams in the country. Young isn't an excuse. One wins the Championship, one goes home early.

@ralster

Great info. Did everyone imbibe in alcoholic beverages during the informal with Self? Could you imagine the info he might let out of the "vault" if he got a little snockered?

Also, was admission to the event pricey? Maybe we should set up a Go Fund Me page every year to raise money for one of us nosey parkers to rub elbows with Bill and hound him with difficult and dangerous questions. It would be excellent fodder for conversation to be sure.

@BeddieKU23 Agree--I was being sarcastic. Guess I should have added one more 'SO' lol. But hey, we were still Top 32!

@ralster

"While every single Jayhawk man, woman, and child has every right to ask Self about early Tourney exits, the same questions should be directed to Roy, Coach K, Calipari, etc...by their respective fanbases--> and they were...I read many Dukie and KY and UNC comment boards after their 1st round exits and NIT "experiences"... It wasn't pretty from about 40-50% of the comments immediately following their losses either."

We fans expect a lot. Most of us are far past the age of our players so we don't even recall how we executed at their age. How much of the March performance is a total crap shoot because the players are so young? How can a coach predict if his guys will come out and execute? Even if they do execute, anything can happen and a team can get rattled.

I think back to myself at that age. I can't imagine having to execute with all the pressure these kids face today. I marvel at the level of execution they actually accomplish. I remember being the biggest oaf on first dates in college. Tripping over cracks in the sidewalk and stuttering my words. Yet... I expect these kids to step into an arena with 40ooo screaming fans and TV cameras with big lights and think they should execute perfectly. I know, I know... they've been building up to this since junior high. So was my conversations with girls....

@Crimsonorblue22 On executing reliably: Best example is the 08 team, must have a TON of reps to do things at high speed to catch foes off guard. So much of our set offense relies on timing! When we say a player is "thinking too much", we are essentially saying they have uncertainty about what to do, & in that moment of hesitancy, they've given up part/most of the natural advantage an offensive player possesses. SO, regardless if you are a McDAA or not, you will do better with experience & toughness on your side.

So, the biggest takeaway lesson for this system is to have a team that knows what its doing, from an experience standpoint. Talent plays a big part in how soon a kid can reliably contribute, as well as pure bball ability.

Consider the '12RunnerUp hawks. Not a McD on the roster, but look what experience did for TRob, EJ, TT, Withey, Releford, KYo. Part of their talent quotient, though, was that they were spotty shooters...had a habit of falling behind, and that caught up with them in their final game.

I also see that some guys get off on blasting Self for his recruiting "misses", and then there's the inevitable sarcasm when commenting on the chances that Lucas or Jamari or Tharpe could lead us to a Final4. My general response (which hasnt changed since Day 1), is that I wish it were that easy to go recruit exactly what you need every single year, no such thing as NBAfree agency in college.

Frankly, the square peg/round hole thing can never be as simplistic as it sounds. Its just basketball...played by still-developing-kids. Some my come w/certain skills, but invariably add more. They get bigger & more physical, and often look better in yr 2 or 3 than yr 1.

How can anyone explain NON-McDAA Mason playing so well, especially in Yr2? Self's comment on Mason to me: Frank should have been this good last year, as a frosh, but that is some of the poor leadership by Tharpe...

How can you explain NON-McDAA Devonte simply able to outplay frosh EJ, Tharpe, Selby, TT, Chalmers, RussRob, Releford, Reed, Brady, & even frosh Mason? Kid isnt even top50.

My point is its highly variable when a kid will "get it", and when you have a whole team of kids trying to figure it out & get tough & consistent, that entire team's development & reliability simply cannot be rushed. Fans drive themselves crazy with angst, grief, and then of course show up in public forums armed to the max with sarcasm, rhetoric, or even stats (which we alrdy know are poor) and commence blasting on whatever kid or whatever coach. Man...Why put yourself thru such angst, frustration, and downright fury aimed at (any) college bball team? I guess it IS therapeutic for some to have to vent.

Actually, I even care less about bragging rights (another reason fans get pissed after a loss). I live in Wichita. Whenever I get a comment from a Shox fan, I always reply with the analytical-tape line about mistakes, turnovers, defense, and veteran team poise vs losing poise. Interestingly, BOTH Self and Marshall used the "poise" word about that game, but from different perspectives. I knew KU was done even by the start of the 4th period, and that wry half-smile from Self told me he knew it as well. Ask yourselves why we didnt see red-faced-Self storming the sidelines? Because he knew his team didnt have it. Cant beat a dead horse. But how many comments we read that are couch-potato-level understanding, suggesting he got "outcoached"? That is almost funny to me. Thats like saying Krzyzewski got "outcoached" by the Mercer coach last year....stew on that for a minute. Does anyone really believe that? How would one accurately describe that loss by Duke? Did Hoiberg-darling get out-coached (”he's got nuthin" ) by the UAB coach? Would anyone analytically really want to leave their analytical-cred "card" in that basket & call it good? And then magnify that error by developing theories and suggestions-for-fix based off such a conclusion?

Every single player on '14-15Jayhawks has 2 or 3 things he could be doing better, and when you throw together a whole team of such guys, what will the final product be, at this stage? Answer: Simply maddening, if you allow it to get to you. Must understand all the 15-20 reasons (recall I said ea player has 2-3 things he absolutely must improve upon) why this was one of Self's "worst" teams. So, lets leave our analytical brains with 1 more opportunity to understand: Why was it one of Self's worst?

My only advice to fellow jhawks is to NOT shy away from the complexity of the correct answer--fight thru the screen that human nature makes us want to boil it all down to something simple... But the answer here is absolutely not simple. Multifactorial, and tightly interwoven & interdependent amongst those multiple factors. (And it doesnt matter what brand of shoe a team is wearing...)

Peace.

@ralster well-said! I agree 100%! You need to post more often.

@ralster Thank you so much for sitting down and writing that. There are some on this site with very different views. I am a Bill Self fan, not a worshiper, but he did better than any other coach could with the hand he was dealt. How he handled BG with the many suspensions that brought praise from BG's father when both talked about his return this year - how he won the league for an 11th time with no real big man to speak of - how he has created two of the best guards not only in the Big12, but in the nation. I for one appreciate his blunt honesty. There are many in the media that are trying to slow down the KU perpetual show and get the spotlight back to the East Coast where the gazillion TV $'s are. Sarcasm is a weak form of argument when a National Championship is required every year. I am personally proud to be despised by all other college fans that hate our dynasty. When those who think that Self is past his prime and chase him out of town because he deserves his demise, I'll quit this site and leave it to the haters.

@JayHawkFanToo Have to be 35-50 to play in the camp games, although there were a couple of 34yr olds, as well as 5-7 guys over 60 (that also played).

By FAR, the most enjoyable part was seeing Self's candor, warmth, reactions, and charisma. (I know KUinLA wont like this, but Bill Self is an absolute Midwesterner...in most of the ways you can imagine). He is about 2-3yrs older than myself, and I've always had an understanding for guys like him. When around him, it is very easy to forget his accomplishments over the last 20yrs as a HC, and equally easy to see why he is a top-tier recruiter. Not everyone can have such a persona.

The camp games were so-so. Not a lot of chemistry on the teams, as nobody knew what each other could do as players. Our team of mostly east coast biz guys seemed to think 2-3 zone-D was the way to go. How do you tell such guys that we "don't play zone at Kansas" (other than as a junk D)? So, for me, gone were the opportunities to jump passing lanes for steals, help-side-D steals/blocks/strips, and just flat out harassing/blanketing my man. Offensively, since the 3 biz guys knew each other (from same company), the plays they drew up were designed for their 'looks'. The teams were supposed to be random 8 guys by rule.

So all in all, a cool KU+Self experience. Hudy was incredible with what she does and showed us. The "playing ball" portion of the camp was forgettable. Other than Billy Gillispie walking by me and telling me he wanted to draft me, "but they got you first". I now think he was just being polite...haha! I saw gamefilm video of myself during a video film session, and I looked slow and old.

KU facilities: first rate!

KU players: Wayne Selden is a cool dude! Saw a lot of Devonte and Hunter. Greene is skinny. Frank was busy in the gym shooting dozens of 3s by himself. Perry came and went, didn't get to pass along the "hi" to him from his h.s. PG that I play ball with in Wichita... Lucas, Selden, Jamari, Evan, Tyler, Devonte, all showed up for their Hudy session early in the AM.

This glimpse behind-the-scenes softened the rough ending to the season, as I saw our guys just need to keep working and try to get better, as we also prepare to replace the holes left by Cliff and Oubre.
I'm looking fwd to next season, and the Korea outing should be a great team jelling & coaching boost heading into the season.

RCJH.

@tis4tim Yes, Self and everyone put back a few drinks at YachtClub. Especially with the waitresses they picked to work that night!

This was when Self talked about Tarczewski's recruitment, that got utterly shafted by Kaleb's AAU coach. I will leave out the (choice word) that Self used to describe it...

I also asked Self how Shaka "thinks his style will work against the BigXII" (I was trying to be diplomatic), and Self said something along the lines of (Shaka pretty much calling out KU with that comment). I don't think Self needs any motivation to go totally dismantle Shaka Smart. As I put in another post, watching him break down every nuance of what Hoiberg is doing with IowaState was simply incredible. He knows what is "bullsh--" offense, and where the real threat is coming from in Hoiberg's offensive sets...For me, the key is if Self's kids can execute things as well as his past teams proved they could?

@ralster

Gosh man... you are getting us all jacked up for ball when we need to be tending our gardens! ha..

Awesome in depth posts on the MAN, Bill Self. Enjoyed it thoroughly.

@ralster Ahhhh.....perspective. Gee, what a concept!!!!! LOL. Thank you. Great stuff, guy.

@ralster

This is some of the best inside information we have had on Coach Self in a long time and I have no doubt that he has an extreme knowledge of the game and an incredible memory; I have heard hims describe plays in games several years old in minute detail before.

It always amazes me when individuals with a fraction of the knowledge Coach Self has and ZERO knowledge of what goes on behind close doors are constantly second guessing what he does.

Again, thanks for sharing your experience, it really puts things in perspective and gives us a better insight into the man himself.

@ralster watching him break down every nuance of what Hoiberg is doing with IowaState was simply incredible.

But wait, didn't Fred beat Bill twice this year? Well, I guess Bill talks a good game. Or maybe he actually watched the tapes of those games to get some insight on what Fred was doing...

@KUinLA Or maybe the players didn't execute. I thought the offense was terrible all year because guys were out of position. Once a second competent post player is added the team will look much better.

It seemed to me Mason played poorly in 2-3 games at the end of the season all losses. When that happened the wheels really came off. That tells me the team was on a razors edge. They could've easily had 15-16 losses if it weren't for good coaching. I also think these extra wins Bill coaches them to gets the Jayhawks a seed higher than they probably deserve and that's why you see "underperformance" in the dance.

@dylans

"That tells me the team was on a razors edge."

I think ALL college teams live on a razor's edge. They are kids and kids freak out. A senior-laden team might keep better composure, but we've even seen those teams choke.

I like how you mentioned that our guys were out of position. Couple that with timing and motion issues. After our brief love affair with the long ball, we went back to Self's bread and butter, playing through the post. With just a little tweaking couldn't that have run every bit as well as ISU's offense on a good day? Seriously? We were pounding the ball into Perry around the FT line, and the entire world knows he is dangerous in that area so defenses collapsed... but where was the outlet 3? Once we established our game was working through the post we didn't follow it up properly by springing guys for open 3s. Our guys either were miss-spaced or they weren't in motion, creating their own scoring space through motion and timing. If anyone doesn't know what I mean, please reference back to NDs offense last year. Those guys really knew how to run offense. Timely cuts. When a player exposed a weakness and attacked, the other guys weren't just standing there watching, they knew that was the time for them to work their own scoring space because there would be a good chance they would receive an assist feed.

Our offense never ran like that... but it had every bit the potential to do so. We had solid scoring capabilities at everything but the 5.

@ralster

Great stuff, man. Very enjoyable read. Thanks so much for sharing!

@ralster Thanks so much for sharing this. Next time, video camera in your headband, OK?

@ralster Ah man!! I would have liked to been there for that. Picking Coach's brain, hearing him loosen up and speak like that. Way cool. KU is gonna have some T-bone steaks for dinner two times next season! Oh yah!!

@KUinLA

Do you have any idea how frustrating must be for coaches when they practice all week for a team and at game time the players seem to have forgotten what they did in practice? I understand that the opposing team has a say in the matter but it happens to all teams not just KU. here is a GIF of Calipari physically stepping into the court and shoving his player into position...

!COACH-CAL-SHOVE4.gif ↗

@JayHawkFanToo & @dylans Yeah, but isn't 'getting your players to execute' what you did in practice all week part of coaching? Even if it means physically pushing them into position?

And isn't 15-16 losses for a team heavy with NBA draft picks a coaching fail? It sure is on this board if your name is Calipari. But then, he and coach K did bounce back from their down years and early exits with Final Four appearances. As I've already posted, I'd trade a down year here or there for another win or two in the tournament the next year.

@KUinLA I hope you don't use the same logic w/teaching!

@Crimsonorblue22 lol--basketball coaches are hired on their ability to win, not teach.

@KUinLA same as teachers teach, they are also hired!

@Lulufulu - Thought you would be interested in this. New info. The injury was apparently not a progressive one, but a traumatic one. This from kusports.com:

Jeffrey explained the injury: “He had a torn labrum he did in early February that he didn’t tell anybody about. He couldn’t push off his right leg and jump off his right leg. It got worse. The inflammation was the pain he was feeling. It continued to swell and swell. “Genetically when you are 7-years-old you start to form that ball socket. The ball socket was a tiny bit bigger than they felt it should be, so they shaved it down a bit. He had no bone spurs. It went well. He is in recovery in a good amount of pain. Give it a day and the pain should subside.”

Jeff Greene said Brannen wanted to keep playing thus didn’t inform anybody about a possible hip problem this past season. “I noticed he wasn’t getting any lift on his shot. It was flatter than normal at times. It wasn’t the same repeating motion,” Jeff said. “After a few games I was saying to him, ‘Why is your shot different? It’s a different shot than the one that got us here.’ He was trying to keep his condition from everybody, me, the staff, the trainers. He was saying, ‘I just need to stretch out a little more.’ I knew he wasn’t getting lift on the shot. He didn’t want us to know he was injured other than, ‘I think I tweaked something.’’’ Greene’s dad noticed his son had trouble getting out of a chair at the team hotel during the Big 12 tournament, but Greene again said he was just sore from the previous game.

“He came home two weeks ago. He yelled getting out of a chair and had trouble walking. I said, ‘What in the heck is wrong?’ He said, ‘I hurt it. I got hit in a game, hit in practice, my hip has not been the same.’ I said, ‘This happened right before the (shooting) slump didn’t it?’ He said he hurt it but it wasn’t as painful but keeps getting worse,” Jeffrey said. So it was checked out and surgery was deemed the solution. The surgery was performed by Dr. J.W. Thomas Byrd at Nashville Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center. The Tennessee Titans team physician has authored several textbooks on hip arthroscopy.

@HighEliteMajor Very helpful and insightful. Thanks for posting.

@KUinLA

"basketball coaches are hired on their ability to win, not teach."

I'd like to believe that.. but from what I see, winning is just a part of college coaching. Teaching is a big part of college coaching and was at the root of college basketball history. Most early coaches were already teaching at the university. I believe that is why there is a big difference in strategies applied by NBA coaches versus college coaches. If you have a volume scorer who is effective in the NBA the coach will run most of his offense through that one player. College it is all about team, team, team. They teach basketball philosophy, not about all-out winning.

@KUinLA

College coaches are not only that but also teachers and mentors. For many kids, they are the first father figure and positive role model in their lives and I would trade a few wins if the result is kids graduating with a better chance of success in life, particularly as is the case for most kids, outside of basketball. What is it that made you so jaded?

Teachers are hired to teach, so if all kids don't get a's, they fail too?

@Crimsonorblue22

As a parent of (former) teenagers I know all too well that they never do what you want them to do and seldom do what they need to do... :(

@JayHawkFanToo
I guess I sailed under a lucky star. Mine certainly aren't perfect, but they are responsible, respectful, and have managed to keep their noses clean.

I would venture our players want to do the right things and pretty much do just that. But sometimes a teen just makes a bad decision-because something sounds fun. When I think back to the stupid things I did in my 20's I am surprised I'm still walking around.

@JayhawkRock78 said:

When I think back to the stupid things I did in my 20's I am surprised I'm still walking around.

Lol. Is there anyone (over 30) here, that can't say that?

@nuleafjhawk
You are probably right. Perhaps we were a bunch of young Jayhawks going Mach 5 with hair on on fire who somehow survived it all.

@JayhawkRock78

I have two real good and grown kids, but in their teen years they did have a rebellious side to them...

@JayHawkFanToo
Well it's where you finish that matters. Sounds like ya'll did good.

I hope I can say the same in 5 to 10 years-so far so good.

@JayhawkRock78 I always figure the Good Lord is keeping us around so we can enjoy another 4 or 5 National Championships.

And hopefully some other stuff that actually means something.....

@nuleafjhawk
Now that's an encouraging thought. (I am trying to quote Gandolf-not sure I got it right though.)

@KUinLA I wish I had had a teacher as good as Bill Self is a coach. I never had a top 10 teacher. Apparently they were all terrible as a few kids even flunked out. Man talk about not winning.

A good coach and a good teacher are the same. You don't turn Forrest Gump into Einstein with good or even perfect teaching. You don't turn Landon Lucas into an all star with a good coach, but you can make him a servicable back up. You help each kid to reach their potiental as a great teacher. You help the team reach its potential as a coach even if that means reigning in a player. A students education doesn't occur in one year. A team doesn't reach it's potiental in one season of playing in a system.

I'm not sure KU didn't reach it's one year potiental the last two seasons with the healthy and eligible players that were left at the end of the season. I feel like the long term potiental was far greater than the one year potiental. Next season the players that have been around will be better. Hopefully only limited minutes are to be given to freshman.

I'm sure Bill is a great guy and it sounds like a great experience to hang out with him in that loosened up atmosphere. And he is a great coach and I'm sure a great teacher. But you can't ignore the elephant in the room named Tournament Upsets and that's why I'm jaded.

And I never had a teacher who taught as well as Bill coaches, but I never had a teacher who made $5 million/year. Because they don't pay teachers $5 mil/year. They pay coaches $5mil/year. To win and generate revenue for the school. And yeah, if a teacher inherited a group of National Merit Scholars and nobody got an A in his class, I'll bet the administration would have a sit-down with that teacher.

I'm sure coaching candidates at Kansas say all the right things about teaching and graduating and father figure and I'm sure the AD listens and smiles and nods, but at the University of Kansas, they're looking for someone that they believe can win. I doubt if they've hired anyone to 'teach' the game since Phog, lol.

But the bottom line is, I wouldn't be such a sourpuss if we didn't have all these tournament upsets.

@KUinLA I could say 99.9% sure, if you had nat. Merit scholars, they would have straight A's!

I'm taking back my comments about BG's defense. I've talked bad about how he moves. Hearing what his dad said, I think it would have been really impossible to maintain a defensive stance. How did trained team drs not notice this? I remember when he limped off one game. Get well soon BG and sorry!!!

@KUinLA

Every team that makes to the tournament except one end the season with a loss. You think KU gets upset in the tournament? Ask the fans or most every other school and with very few exceptions they would all trade their programs for a KU-like program. You are so busy thinking about what you don't have that fail to see what you do have. Be happy...you could be a MU fan.

@JayHawkFanToo nice!

@Crimsonorblue22 So if your National Merit Scholars didn't get A's, would you think maybe the teacher is suspect? And if your team with 4 or 5 future NBA draft picks get upset by teams with no NBA talent, would you think maybe the coach is suspect?

@JayHawkFanToo You totally miss my point.

@KUinLA they would! Seen that. And if all 9 or so 5 star players would be coached by Self, we'd win it all! No doubt! You won't change my mind.

@KUinLA

...and you miss mine; nothing new.

@KUinLA If all Bill had was 5 star recruits then yes he better be in the final four every year. You forget he doesn't get to choose who comes to KU he has to woo 18 year old boys to come to KU. I personally made an excellent decision to attend KU as an 18 year old. Not all the kids Bill wants will make that decision.

For instance, do you think KU would've gone further in the dance with a center? We've all read about Bill chasing all the top center prospects for the last several years. KU being second choice for Okafor, and Tarc hurt has hurt. I know Bill wants a footer with skills, but one isn't on the roster.

As to your point about Bill making $5 million per year, so is Billy Donavon and Florida didn't even make the dance. Billy Donavon is an excellent coach too. What teacher generates $23 million per year at their job so they can be paid $5million per?

Teachers don't get their due respect always, but if you aren't generating revenue it's difficult to come up with the money in the budget. Esp. with a 660 miliion budget shortfall in KS.

@dylans Wouldn't you agree that Kansas, under coach Self, has had better talent than all other Big 12 contenders every season during his tenure, save two or three (maybe)?

Whose job is it to ensure we have the "center" on the roster?

Whose job is it to adjust Kansas' attack when we are missing a piece or two that are preferred pieces?

@JayHawkFanToo & @Crimsonorblue22 & @dylans I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree then.

@HighEliteMajor

Wouldn't you also agree that Coach Self has done a better job than any other coach in the League...with no exemptions...as shown by 11 Conference Titles in a row?

What you want and what you get is not always the same thing, regardless of how hard you work at it. I would say that he has used the available personnel as well as anyone...but I am sure you honestly believe you could have done a better job, and on this we just agree to disagree.

How many times were we picked to win conference? I would guess Texas should have been the best team last year according to talent.

@Crimsonorblue22

Texas and Baylor have had plenty of talent over the years and could not do it. This last season, Texas, ISU and OU were all expected to be better than KU but in the end same story...KU wins Conference Title.

@JayHawkFanToo !!!

@KUinLA Who do you want as KU's coach? Seriously I'm curious who you think would be the ideal canidate to replace Bill Self.

Coach K has been called the best coach ever this year. Hyperbole is all it is, but he's undeniably great. The "best coach ever" lost to Mercer in the first round as a 2 seed.

@HighEliteMajor No. The absolute best talent hasn't always been in Lawerence during that stretch. Durant, Aldridge, Beasley are a few players that come to mind. KU hasn't been picked first in the pre-season in every year which is a pretty good guage of which team the press/coaches feel who is the most talented and Experienced.

Coaches poll (finish)   Big 12 Champ(pre-season pick)

2012-13 Kansas (Tie-1st) Kansas (1st)
Kansas State (5th)
2011-12 Kansas (1st) Kansas (1st)
Texas A&M (9th)

2010-11; Kansas State (Tie-3rd) Kansas (2nd)

2009-10 Kansas (1st) Kansas (1st)

2008-09 Oklahoma (2nd) Kansas (3rd)

2007-08 Kansas (Tie-1st) Texas (2nd)
Kansas (1st)

2006-07 Kansas (1st) Kansas (1st)

2005-06 Texas (Tie-1st) Kansas (3rd)

    Texas (1st)

2004-05 Kansas (Tie-1st) Kansas (Tie-1st)
Oklahoma State (3rd) Oklahoma (4th)

2003-04 Missouri (Tie-5th) Oklahoma State (5th)

2002-03 Kansas (1st) Kansas (1st)

2001-02 Kansas (1st) Kansas (1st)

2000-01 Kansas (Tie-2nd) Iowa State (4th)

1999-2000 Kansas (5th) Iowa State (6th)
1998-99 Oklahoma State (Tie-5th) Texas (5th)

1997-98 Kansas (1st) Kansas (1st)

1996-97 No Coaches Poll Kansas
< Men's Basketball

@dylans "Greatest Coach" with 1000 wins and 5 National Championships is hyperbole???

!63150b6d-0a2e-4728-9775-acca7c39a3dd.jpg ↗

Oh, and btw, what did that hyperbolic "Greatest Coach" do a year after that Mercer upset? Just came back and won the National Championship, is all! Duh!!! What did Bill do the next year after his 2014 tournament upset? Uhhh, the exact same thing again.

@HighEliteMajor - you sir are bitter and delusional.

I enjoy your posts but the tirades against Coach Self seriously take away from your otherwise interesting analysis. Railing against a coach or manager usually involves deep rooted parental issues...

And there is NO WAY the KU team last year was a Final Four talent. Get real.

WSU had a better team than KU the last two years. Period.

Lighten up and enjoy the team and the game. No excuses? Hip surgery is a pretty major operation. Our coach and our guys are fine, competitive and have plenty of 'want to win'.

RCJH!

@jayhawk-007 An excellent post. Bill Self is the Coach of the Kansas Jayhawks and he is doing the best he can. He misses on recruits just like every other coach. His team has injuries just like any other team. No one went undefeated this year. We have been a competitive team in years that we probably shouldn't have. No NITs for this team.

Being a head coach at this level involves three things:

Recruiting - can you get the horses? can you mix and match the OAD, TAD with the three and four year scholarship athletes? Can you get that occasional transfer or Juco stud? Can you transition kids out of the program without a scandal? What kind of reputation do you have during in-house visits? Would you want your kid to be mentored by the coach? Is there a BB/College Life/Academic balance in a good environment? Does he have their backs? etc.

Coach Self's grade: A-

Representing - does the coach represent the kids and the university well? Does he honestly evaluate his team and have a reasonable public-private dialogue with fans and the student-athletes? Is he good in his relations relations with press and alumni? Is he a good fundraiser? Does he add value to the university as an institution of higher learning (academics) and a first class program? Let's not underestimate the very heavy lifting required by our BB coach in light of our FB weakness, etc.

Coach Self's Grade: A+

Coaching - practice, conditioning, weights, schemes, using talent, getting the most from your players, consistent effort (especially on the D side of the ball), adjustments at half time, motivating players to practice and play hard, creating an opportunity for your best guys to make a play at crunch time (put them in position to make winning plays), preparation and scouting, very intense calm and confident to inspire our young men to perform at the highest level of their abilities, etc.

Coach Self's Grade: B+

I used to think HCBS was at the same level as the great ones (straight A')s, but i think he has gone stall on the O side of the ball, and is evolving too slowly to the evolution of the game. I agree with HEM and others who believe we should "free the three" a little more and let the guards and wings dribble-drive instead of feed the post systematically and "run his stuff" rather than take an open three early in the shot clock. Still too much back to the basket, old school philosophy in the way our head coach AND assistant coaches play offense.

We should run more and press more. We should play more guys more minutes and keep legs fresher. We should adjust a little more our schemes to the talent we have, year in and year out. We should play a little more zone (occasionally), mix up our O and D sets within a simplified overall philosophy.

To get great guards, we need to let them create more and not just be post feeders. Our team play is outstanding but sometimes we overpass. We need to penetrate more on O and less move the ball side to side around the perimeter. I really like our D and our E (effort).

Coach Self should certainly learn to be a little less stubborn and pig-headed ... but he is one of the very best and I believe he is adjusting and will continue to evolve, following in the footsteps of Coach K. We are in excellent hands and we would want no one other than our dear head coach Bill Self at the helm. He is an upgrade over Roy and one of the top five as per the criteria above in the nation. Rock ChalKk

RCJH!

@jayhawk-007 I do think that you, and a few others, fail to recognize that with most that offer criticisms of Self, we are granting the positives -- meaning, we understand that Self is a great coach. We get that. 90% is great. We just focus on the critique of the other 10%. I appreciate that you suggest that I have "otherwise interesting analysis." But part of that is critical thinking is challenging what I see from coach Self, and that leads to the analysis -- If I don't do that, I'm not thinking.

If you've read my posts, you know that I'm a big fan of the high/low. I think the post feed is the best way to score the basketball. I think playing inside out is the most effective offensive approach. Now, isn't that pretty much an adoption of Self's philosophy right there on offense? My disconnect with Self is related to 10%.

This season, we had a different team. A different skill set. An inability to score at the rim. Looking at the talent that you have, and adjusting your attack to maximize that talent. Ironically, this season, we had three final four teams that embraced three point shooting, all in a year when Self said we had the best perimeter shooting team he's had at Kansas. All in a year where this team proved regularly that it struggled to score at the rim. Yet Self took a much different path. Thus the critical analysis.

I saw your own review Self above. You just said "Coach Self should certainly learn to be a little less stubborn and pig-headed." Isn't that what most of the discussion this past season has centered on? Really, haven't you captured my entire criticism of Self in a nutshell? Be flexible, adjust, and adapt.

I'm interested in your proclamation -- you said that there was "NO WAY" that this past KU team had "Final Four talent". I'm completely stumped.

Here's our roster: 1) Perry Ellis, ranked 24, 2) Cliff Alexander, ranked 2 3) Kelly Oubre, ranked 10, 4) Brannen Greene, ranked 29, 5) Frank Mason, ranked 76, 6) Devonte Graham, ranked 36, 7) Svi Mykhailuik (foreign so not ranked, but noted as a lottery talent), 8 ) Wayne Selden, ranked 12, 9) Hunter Mickelson ranked 55/100 -- and two unranked guys, Traylor and Lucas.

I'm not understanding how one can say we don't have enough talent. Would it be incorrect to state that anyone who looked at that roster of talent, and felt that it was not of Final Four caliber, might themselves be delusional? I don't know.

I will say that my unequivocal opinion is that if .. "if" .. this team's offensive weapons were maximized, we certainly had a chance to reach the final four. But there is no doubt that we had the talent on the roster.

@KUinLA Following this guy, yes it is hyperbole

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John Wooden

Career Record (major schools): 29 Years, 664-162, .804 W-L%
Schools: Indiana State (44-15) and UCLA (620-147)

Conference Champion: 16 Times

NCAA Tournament: 16 Years (47-10), 12 Final Fours, 10 Championships
NCAA Champion: 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973 and 1975

Mike Krzyzewski

Career Record (major schools): 40 Years, 1018-310, .767 W-L%
Schools: Army (73-59) and Duke (945-251)

Conference Champion: 12 Times (Reg. Seas.), 13 Times (Tourn.)

NCAA Tournament: 31 Years (88-26), 12 Final Fours, 5 Championships
NCAA Champion: 1991, 1992, 2001, 2010 and 2015

No doubt he's great, but better than Wooden? It's not like K hasn't had talent too.

And I'll ask again, who do you want to replace Bill Self with?

@Crimsonorblue22

"I'm taking back my comments about BG's defense. I've talked bad about how he moves. Hearing what his dad said, I think it would have been really impossible to maintain a defensive stance. How did trained team drs not notice this? I remember when he limped off one game. Get well soon BG and sorry!!!"

I guess I missed some comments from BGs dad. I've always commented that BG had a poor stance and he needed to lower his center of gravity. Might he been suffering the entire time he's been a Jayhawk?

It is possible that if they relieve all his pain he might become a much improved player in the near future. Hope so! Go BG!

@HighEliteMajor How does Alexander fit into your Final Four talent analysis? Just curious, because he wasn't playing at the end of the season. He may have been a difference maker, but we will never know.

@KansasComet I make it all pretty simple. Self did a good job getting Cliff to KU. Self did a bad job getting Cliff ready to play in his system. And Cliff did a bad job getting ready to play in Self's system. However, when Cliff played, the statistics show that he was productive.

With or without Cliff, I believed our chances were low to get to the Final Four playing our offensive system, which didn't fit our talent. But 21-4 showed we were in the game. With tweaks offensively, and "freeing the three", we were at least as good as Notre Dame (and probably better).

The discussion was on "talent" -- there is not doubt we had the talent.

@dylans Okay, maybe I'm just arguing with your choice of words. Hyperbole means an exaggeration for the point of emphasis. Phrases like "he weighed a ton," "I've got a million things on my mind,' "he was grinning from ear to ear" are examples of hyperbole. Saying Coach K may be the greatest basketball coach ever is certainly not an exaggeration, as one could make a legitimate argument that he is as good or better than Wooden, given the differences of the state of the game in their respective coaching eras.

As for who I'd like to see coaching, I'm of the opinion that there are a good handful of coaches out there who could do as well as Bill at Kansas. Granted, Bill is a great recruiter, but I think the name Kansas does a good bit of recruiting on its own. Kansas Basketball is bigger than any one coach. And if jaybate's Shoe Company theory holds water, which seems entirely plausible to me, there are plenty of coaches out there who could recruit well to Kansas.

As to specific names that I think would do well at Kansas-- Mark Few, Steve Alford, Mark Turgeon, Brad Stevens, Gregg Marshall, Larry Krystkowiak, Mike Brey, Billy Donovan, Sean Miller--and there are probably plenty more. Heck why not throw in Tom Izzo? And Rick Pitino even became available during Bill's tenure also.

I'm not saying fire Bill. I'd rather see him adapt his coaching style and continue to improve. But desperately clutching on to the same old thing simply out of fear of nothing else better being available (like the hi-lo post, lol) is no way to grow.

Heck I remember being upset when they fired Ted Owens, thinking "Well who else are they gonna get?" That turned out okay.

@HighEliteMajor

Thanks for the comments. Could we have reached the final four, sure. We did it in 2012. But should we have reached the final four, certainly not. We were not one of the best teams in the nation this year, and certainly not with Cliff (assuming Cliff would have peaked at just the right time which is a generous assumption).

The Final Four is indeed a crap shoot, depending upon match ups, luck, getting hot at the right time, injuries, eligibility issues, one guy making a miracle play at just the right time, etc.

My point is your postings often seem to criticize the coach b/c he does not make it to every final four, and it is somehow his fault b/c he certainly has the talent, and therefore he is doing a poor job, and (full circle) it is his fault we are under performing in March.

I enjoy your analysis but I think this is not a good conclusion and unfair to players, fans and coach.

Winning is very hard. Winning consistently is even harder. Peaking at the right time, with the right team, getting the right match ups, getting lucky and having guys healthy and elgible, etc. are a lot of variables and most of them are not due to coaching.

KU players, teams and our coach have actually done very well in the Self era, most years meeting or exceeding expectations. The tourney has been disappointing the last two years, and the "Killer Bs" have created a complex within the KU nation. The 2012 team was unbelievable and they way overachieved...and got lucky to make it to the finals. . .

The lack of our big man at the 5 during the last two tourneys has been far more significant and the source of our loses than the coaching. This year, we missed Cliff and last year we really missed Embiid. That's the way it goes in March and with a single elimination tourney.

My conclusion: Watching the elite teams this year, and watching KU this year (and last year), there is simply no way we were among the elite teams, and not final four talent. Maybe last year with Embiid, maybe...but certainly not this year, even with Cliff.

Respectfully, you write your post, concluding:

*Seeing Self's comments from last night really just make me angry. This team began the season as a Final Four team. This team was 21-4.

But that all changed, didn't it? We ended 6-5 and played embarrassingly bad against WSU. As Landen Lucas said, WSU just wanted it more.

I'm not sure there is any supposed injury that affects "want to." Though maybe a media member could ask Self. I'm sure he'd speculate on that. *

Respectively, this is in my opinion a cheap shot at the coach, the program and the players,

Having talent and having an eite team are not at all the same thing. How do they mature over the year as individuals and as a team? Duke's freshman actually came together as a unit and outperformed at just the right time. UK's talent was ridiculous (maybe they had the two best teams in the nation), The Badgers were senior laden with a great group and talented big men and they had been there last year...these were only the elite teams in the nation this year.

KU was just nowhere near that level. We could have got lucky, won another game or two, but probably got what we deserved at our level of performance and year end team talent (ability to perfom in a game, not rankings or potential).

I am of the opinion that WSU has had better teams than KU the last two years, and that our lose in the second round this year had more to do with them, than us. Great - game on! We accept the challenge and it is good for us and our program.

But throwing the coach under the bus for not reaching the final four this year...?

I enjoy the board and your posts and the others as well - next year, with one new elite talent big (and we will certainly get one), we will be better and ready to make a run.

Cheers!

RCJH

@jayhawk-007 I would agree that it's a crapshoot to be NC, but I'm not so sure I agree with your comment that it's a crapshoot to make the FF. I doubt if fans at UK, Duke, UCONN, or UNC feel that way. I would say to make the FF is a matter of having the talent, using it properly, and being prepared to play.

There are favorites every year to make the final four, and those teams do have more talent and preparedness, and have better odds to advance b/c they are better teams. The best programs (like KU) expect to be in the hunt, and rightfully so.

But every year a great team does not make it out of the second round, and another over performs for a while (this year MSU who was no where near the level of the other three teams, or KU in 2012).

IMO, this year we did not have a great team, we got a tough match up second round, and got beat by a better, more motivated team.

RCJH!

@HighEliteMajor

I don't really see us as a contender until outsiders look at us and exchange the description "a lot of talent" for "a lot of scrap." I'd take scrappy over talent any day of the week. That is why we lost to WSU. They sure as heck didn't out-talent us.

I always call it "chip" but call it whatever you want.

The road to the FF is paved in blood from players who scrap it out for loose balls and rebounds. Who wants it more? And who has the toughness to go dive for balls?

I get frustrated because I think most Kansas fans are as delusional as the players... always thinking we just need to increase the talent level. It is the Kentucky way.... 9 McDs AAs with most of them back for year 2 and they still couldn't get it done. All that NBA size and talent. El zippo! The only reason Calipari has won 1 NC is the unibrow. He would have taken the worst team in America and made them a contender, but he was the exception... approaching a Wilt level talent. I said approaching... How many McDs AAs were on Kentucky the next year when they bowed out early in the NIT?

How many of those UCONN players are in the league now compared to Kentucky after last year?

I'm not against talent. It helps immensely... but not when it comes with a price tag of playing soft.

Duke won it all and they had a bunch of talent.. They also had guys like Allen who would dive into a pit of cobras for a loose ball. If I could steal one guy out there for our team, he would be my first choice because maybe it would rub off on us like it did on his team mates who closed it out on the Badgers.

I give up on the idea of coaching a chip. I'm convinced... some guys have it, others don't. If they don't have it, then leave them for Kentucky. Let's find the kids who dive for balls, whether it be in an all-star game or a class-3 rural game.

@jayhawk-007 I understand what you are trying to say but if that's the way I felt, I would just be happy with another conference championship. Apparently, that's not a crapshoot. Or is it?

@Wigs2

Based on what they did throughout the season and where they were projected to finish in the tournament, UConn had no business winning last year any more than MSU had making it to the Final Four this year and in the process providing an easy game to Duke instead of the tough game Wisconsin had against UK...so yes, the road to the final four is a crap shoot and involves a lot of luck.

@Wigs2

No the conference winner is not a crap shoot, especially in the Big 12 where we play each team twice, home and away. There is some luck (Blake Griffin being hurt the day we play OU for the conf title, for example), but overall, year after year, the best team will win.

In a series (like the NBA playoffs) the best team will almost always win. But in one game, with little prep, at college level, playing against the top competition...the best team does not always win.

Our 2008 NC team was one of the best, but not a clear dominant team (like UK this year). Down by 9 with a minute to go and we win in OT? Everything has to fall just right and there are so many good teams, one guy gets hot...voila.

Check out year in and year out performance, in pre-conf play, conf play - we know this one with 11 straight titles - and post-conf (ncaa tourney) and you will see that KU is at the top or near the top in the Self era.

The string of 11 conf titles is actually more impressive than a national title or two but the media and fans do not feel that way.

RCJH!

@jayhawk-007 I don't feel that the 11 is more impressive than a NC either. Or even a FF for that matter.

Fun Facts

Most Final Four teams in history:

18 North Carolina

17 Kentucky, UCLA*

16 Duke

14 Kansas

10 Louisville, Ohio State*

10 Michigan State

Kansas Tourney record through 2014:

138 games, 96 wins, 42 losses = winning percentage = .696

Kentucky:

163 ; 116 ; 47 ; .712

Duke

133 ; 99 ; 34 ; .744

North Carolina

153 ; 110 ; 43 ; .719

Most tourney games by coach:

Mike Krzyzewski Duke 88

Dean Smith North Carolina 65

Roy Williams Kansas, North Carolina 65

Jim Boeheim Syracuse 53

Rick Pitino Providence, Kentucky, Louisville 53

Jim Calhoun Connecticut 49

John Wooden UCLA 47

Lute Olson Iowa, Arizona 46

Tom Izzo Michigan State 46

Bob Knight Indiana, Texas Tech 45

Denny Crum Louisville 42

most final fours by coach

Mike Krzyzewski Duke 12

John Wooden UCLA 12

Dean Smith North Carolina 11

Tom Izzo Michigan State 7

Rick Pitino Providence, Kentucky, Louisville 7

Roy Williams North Carolina, Kansas 7

Denny Crum Louisville 6

Adolph Rupp Kentucky 6

Bob Knight Indiana 5

Guy Lewis Houston 5

Lute Olson Iowa, Arizona 5

Bill Self is only 52. Here is his record at KU:

2003–04 Kansas 24–9 12–4 T–2nd NCAA Elite Eight

2004–05 Kansas 23–7 12–4 T–1st NCAA Round of 64

2005–06 Kansas 25–8 13–3 T–1st NCAA Round of 64

2006–07 Kansas 33–5 14–2 1st NCAA Elite Eight

2007–08 Kansas 37–3 13–3 T–1st NCAA Champions

2008–09 Kansas 27–8 14–2 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen

2009–10 Kansas 33–3 15–1 1st NCAA Round of 32

2010–11 Kansas 35–3 14–2 1st NCAA Elite Eight

2011–12 Kansas 32–7 16–2 1st NCAA Runner-up

2012–13 Kansas 31–6 14–4 T–1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen

2013–14 Kansas 25–10 14–4 1st NCAA Round of 32

2014–15 Kansas 27–9 13–5 1st NCAA Round of 32

@HighEliteMajor I can make it even more simple for you. We lost Alexander towards the end of the year, Perry Ellis got banged up and Brannen Greene wasn't the same for whatever reason. In spite of this Coach Self did not throw in the towel he continued to put his best foot forward with what he had. I am sure the plan at the end of last year was not to have Lucas and Mickelson as our big men. Imagine if he had landed Okafor and Jones? A five star big and a five star clutch shooting point? Coach Self tried his hardest and almost pulled it off. He did not get Okafor and Jones, but somehow he made us competitive again this year and should be praised.

In case you missed it:

http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/02/coach-k-not-best-coach-rick-pitino-bill-self-records-ncaa-tournament-losses-1000 ↗

@Wigs2

I get it you value the results of a 6 game single elimination tournament more than continuous excellence throughout the season. You are not alone, but you are in the minority of people familiar with the sport and that includes just about every sports writer out there.

You can read it here ↗ and here ↗how other people see the conference title winning streak.

If KU goes on to tie or beat UCLA's streak of 13 consecutive titles, it will most likely considered one of the greatest achievement in team sports ever, considering that KU did it in a time of much greater parity and with a heck of a lot more capable teams than during the UCLA run when a handful of teams dominated the sport.

@jayhawk-007 Thanks for the wonderful reminder!!

@JayHawkFanToo If I were a UCONN fan, I would value the fact that they have had 5 national chamnpionships in the past 15 years more than I would if they had won the conference for 11 straight years. Even though they didn't win conference those years, they had to have decent records to get to the tourney in the first place.

I have never said it's not impressive. It's hard to compare it to UCLA's streak because they had to win the conference every year just to get in the tournament. Then after they won their conference, they went undefeated through the NCAA for so many years.

It doesn't appear that top recruits are banging the door down to come make it 12 in a row.

@Wigs2 our coaches have also been working on 2016 players too. Not about to give up on this year!

@Wigs2

yada, yada, yada...and KU was supposed to finish behind Texas, ISU and Oklahoma last season, how did that work out?

A lot more difficult to win consecutive titles in this day and age than when UCLA did it, they had overwhelming talent and little competition back then.

Good lord, I've been air-dropped in Blue Pill territory. You know, where Bill Self is God and the peons run around with their crimson and blue colored glasses doing ritualistic chants. Places where objectivity has died. @Wigs2, you better run. They don't like your kind around here. It doesn't matter what you think. Don't you know that? When a Bill Self circle jerk is occurring, you best head for the hills my friend. Blue Pill territory is a dangerous place for free thinkers.

@JayHawkFanToo is great a citing links where folks revere the conference streak. Yay for @JayHawkFanToo for the ingenuity. And, of course, for the standard "NCAA tourney is luck" stuff. You know, isn't it interesting how since about March 19, no one cares about the conference streak except some of us? It's weird how that "lucky" NCAA tourney gets all the run -- you know, the place where a true champion is crowned? How do these top programs keep winning if it's so darn lucky?

@KansasComet is helpful for telling everyone that somehow, someway, Bill Self "made us competitive this year." Amazing feat. I mean really, without coach Self the most talented roster in the Big 12 would have surely collapsed. He just had to rely on Mickelson and Lucas, didn't he. He had to play conventionally. He had to play his system. He had no other choice.

@jayhawk-007 for citing NCAA tourney achievements for a guy who has made exactly two final fours in his entire career (and of course, is only 52 years old). Why would anyone want more? Why should we expect more. And of course, our roster is littered with highly ranked players that was just not talented enough to get to the final four. Just not enough "talent." What is an elite program to do? I mean, WSU was surely more "talented." Stanford too.

@dylans - last but not least, for helping us all to understand that we were lucky not to lose "15-16 games" this season, but for Bill Self's amazing coaching. How he managed not lose big, we will never know.

There you have it folks. Blue Pill territory. A tight knit group. Loyal, you know, like a dog. Where objectivity, critical thinking, and strategy analysis come to die. Where the occupants wouldn't know X's and O's if they hit them in the side of the head. No time for those complexities and complications. Don't want any of that game planning crap in Blue Pill territory. No sir. Simple thoughts. Keep things simple. Follow Bill Self. Cite the good stuff, ignore the bad. All is well. Makes me happy.

Now, don't get me wrong. The Red Pill folks do like coach Self. It's just that view squarely up his a** that we don't care for.

**Edit - Please note that @jayhawk-007's post is noted as an example. Clearly a critical thinker. Maybe not Red Pill, but certainly leaning that way.

@approxinfinity How about that block button, please. Negative Nancy is ruining this site. I come here for fun not to be told how I'm routing for my team wrong.

@HighEliteMajor Last comment directed to you. How about a little talk about the 90% of Bill you like. Or presenting the 10% in a constructive manner. The team lost you can cry about it or get over it like a man and move on. Support your team however you choose, just please direct your negativeness elsewhere. I will try to not ruin your day with my positve feelings about Bill and KU.

@dylans Try this, don't read what I write. It's the same as it was at the other site. I know my approach is not everyone's cup of tea. I've mentioned that before and I'm fine with that. Or, if you choose to tell me why I'm wrong, do that. But don't expect that I will accept "because Bill Self says so" or "he's won 500 games" as a reasonable argument most of the time.

Remember, the 90% is nice. We like coach Self for it. But it isn't much for conversation or discussion. Because it is the 10% that frames whether we get better, or we get worse.

I still love your avatar.

@HighEliteMajor

Here is a link for you...Link for HEM ↗...

You obviously think you know more than Coach Self and are not shy about it and you also continuously reminds us that know more than all of us forum members as well and that only your opinion counts....might as well apply for Coach Self's job. Please be sure to let us know what they say...once they stop laughing.

You remind me of the nagging wife, that can't even keep the household budget straight,. telling her husband, the CEO of a Fortune 500 company that just finished the year with a billion dollar profit, that he is doing it all wrong.

P.S. Read @ralster's posts about his time with coach Self, you could learn a lot...although I seriously doubt it.

@HighEliteMajor Bill Self is not a god, but he is something you are not nor will ever be and that is the Head Coach of the Kansas Jayhawks.

In order to be the Coach of the Kansas Jayhawks you must be appealing to the student athletes that you recruit. You must get kids to buy in to your Program. You must play to your players strengths while not exposing too many of your teams weakeness. You must be gracious in victory and defeat.

I can appreciate wanting the team to improve. I think we all want that. Self wanted Okafor and Jones last year. He did not get them. He lost to WSU last year, and I am sure no one is more upset about that than he is. Now he is back on the recruiting trail working his butt off trying to improve our Jayhawks. More 3 point shots would not have won us a Championship. It was never a simple as that.

The comedy routine continues.

Did you know that President Obama is right, and is always right? I mean, he is the president. And you'll never be president. So there. You shouldn't question him. He knows more about his job than you do, so your opinion is irrelevant. There is no way that anyone who is not president could be actually right in their criticisms. And there is no way that president Obama could be wrong.

What a joke.

@JayHawkFanToo excellent post.

A hypothetical question, one that skirts the notion of Self modifying or coming up with something different himself: If we only say that Self is among the top10 or 15 Div.1 coaches currently, and leave it at that--> Let's ask: How would Krzyzewski or Calipari or Bo Ryan or Roy Williams or Tom Izzo do with this KU team entering the Madness? Should I stick Hoiberg in that list? I mean he did worse than Self, so, I'm not sure on that one...Should I put Tony Bennett on the list (2 30+win seasons, but bounced, no Final 4 for UVa fans). I talked to a UVa alum at the camp who was frankly still in disbelief and shock. I was careful to be very nice to him, and make several positive comments about UVa, and them winning the ACC, etc...

I'm just wanting to put this mental yearning to somewhat of a test...albeit a mental-only test.

Remember, we would give our 'guest' coach a team that is missing a 6'8, 245 paint presence due to NCAA issues. We would also have one of the best 3shooters in Div1, but one who is hobbled significantly since Feb, and frankly is not "the best 3shooter" since that labrum tear (Greene). On the plus side, they will get an unbelievable tandem guard combination of Mason + Graham, who are the strength of this team. The wing guys are inconsistent with Oubre and Selden (who may or may not pull out his DWade impersonation). Defense is no where near MichState level, and they got bounced out of the Final4 the easiest.

SO, what would board rats think our 'guest' coaches would do with Bill'sBoys, if given the entire Tourney run?

Or, let's "flip" our critique & say to Self: You want a bunch of tough kids with heart, but they went out the door with Tyshawn and Thomas Robinson (overly dramatic on purpose...).

Should we call some of our players "weak-links" directly? Why can't they do what past Self teams were able to do? Hmm, maybe we're on to something here: same Self, same system, the one variable is the different parts (players) that have been plugged in. That, kinda-sorta...is about the biggest variable there is, am I right?

Along this same, somewhat painful, player-critique line of thinking --> what if we got detailed, in-depth critique of this KU team from recently departed KU players like Tyshawn, EJ, Sherron, Chalmers, RussRob, Rush, Aldrich, Withey, TRob, Morris&Morris, Releford...what would they say? I'd be damn curious, as they know the coach, the plays, and what it took inside to execute it much, much better than we've seen the last 2yrs, on both ends of the court. Their's is perhaps the most relevant perspective.

I will simply touch on my own personal ideas about our lackluster play (ncaa stuff and injuries aside), by saying those past KU teams/players, and that's several different ones under Self...had something(s) that the last 2 seasons did NOT have. Just my observation...(but I'm stopping short of calling our guys pussies, because, as usual, that would be an oversimplification, and doesn't do analytical justice to this team's myriad of issues).

@ralster and Perry less than 100%.

Free-the-3: We did. (best 3% in bigXII, not IowaSt). But y'all know the rest, Greene got hurt in Feb, so the 3shooting goes in the tank, and you see Self trying to develop the post game for 2 reasons: cannot have incompetent post presence heading into Tourney (but then Perry gets hurt, never the same)...and maybe he had to, since his very own Ray Allen-pure 3gun (Greene) was never the same.

I did NOT see Mason or Graham stop shooting 3s, both with 40% 3guns...Selden was his usual yo-yo. Oubre didn't stop shooting them. But you cannot expect a no-post-presence team to make it far in the Dance.

Square-pegs/Round-holes is not as powerful a statement as you might at first think: This is basketball, and KU has its share of athletic ballers. It comes down to experience and heart. You could put any coach in the practice gym or in the huddle and have him finger a player in the chest (I know, that'd send ripples thru ku athletic dept...lol!) and say "How about you guard somebody?" or "you gonna let him (opponent) shut you down like that?" To me, square-peg/round-hole is a cop-out that is seeking to let someone off the hook for not performing basic basketball.

Anybody want to tell me how the midmajors with no 5stars or McDs are in the right spots, and defending, and running offense, etc,...with their OBVIOUS lack of talent (hehe...). What would Mark Few and Gregg Marshall say about square-pegs/round-holes? Very likely they'll say the same goddamn thing Self would say: "This is your assignment, now get out there and play the f--king game, or your ass is comin' out!...*

This is high, elite, Div1, major program basketball--> I wish we'd quit pussy-footin' around whichever of our starters/subs aren't getting the job done. Because they'd shortly lose their job...

The logic of square-pegs/round-holes very quickly ends up with: OK, if they're a "bad fit", then they're off the team. Man, these players KNOW the coach and playstyle before they commit. That is known. Greene picked us. Selden picked us. Ellis picked us. They already know they are going to have to bust their ass. We all know Self is up-front in recruiting. Doesn't it seem like a stretch to say we are recruiting the wrong guys for our system? I mean when does that happen? Its a system, watching guys from when they are 14 or 15...

Stop letting guys off the hook. Im not talking about proven guys, Im talking about the young variables...Again, another example: why is frosh Devonte sooo much better than Tharpe ever was? He may even be better than Tyshawn or Elijah Johnson. And why is 5'11 Mason so different than 5'11 Tharpe? Teams depend on their key parts. Look at the difference at just one position when 1 key part is changed. But we're not a complete team, just look at what's missing. So easy if you look for it, instead of trying to make excuses for piss poor play, right there on the hardwood, right there in front of your own eyes.