All that we have read so far is just speculation and may or may not be true. and the people in the know are not talking.

If you attend the run of the mill state high school chances are you will be cleared with no problem and they cost a lot less than the private schools to boot. If you attend one of the "basketball factory" schools then you better be able to document your academic work. It is really that simple. Given how often students from these school run inot problems, one has to wonder why top prospects continue to go there...coaching?...or maybe concentration in sports and very lax academics?

@HighEliteMajor

Calipari beat Self with a much more talented team; the Uni-brow alone would have made any decent team a top 5 team and last season, not only UK had more talent but also had played a number of games against top competition before meeting a green KU team...lets see how it turns out this season when Calipari still has more talent but the KU team is not nearly as green as last season's team. BTW, Self beat Williams with an equally or lesser talented team than UNC.

@wissoxfan83

No offense intended but that particular subject has been discussed ad nauseam in this forum.

@konkeyDong

You’ve self-identified as a conservative in the past and, in my experience, conservatives tend to be very PC just like liberals tend to be very PC, especially when you get to the extremes of the spectrum.

Liberal are very much the PC crowd, but with all due respect, you are the only person I have heard says that conservatives are very PC, actually it is quite the opposite.

I think my comments explain my way of thinking and at this time, there is not much more I can add to clarify them. Perhaps it is best if we get back to talking KU basketball...this horse has been beaten to death. :)

@wissoxfan83

Once again...Labissiere attended a regular school and took regular classes and the basketball "fake" school was just to play basketball and not to take classes; there were no issues with his academic work, the issue was with is handler's potential violations. Clearance by the NCAA is based on academics and not athletics; he did not even have to play HS sports at all to apply and get clearance by the NCAA. The "fake" school was set up so he could showcase his talent for college recruiters and not to get cleared by the NCAA.

Perry is a very good college player and certainly serviceable at the 4; however, his best chance in the NBA is playing SF since at PF he would be facing 6'-10, 250 lb. players and he would get killed.

HC Self values loyalty highly and probably feels he owes Perry to get it him at least partially prepared for the next level and this is the reason why he will see time at the 3. He is a good defender, quick enough...even more so now that is leaner and stronger and a decent outside shooter, and at the 3 he would be facing smaller players which can only help

@HighEliteMajor

Got me...

At this point everything is speculation and we really don't know what the facts are. In past cases, "multiple sources" end up being several poster on a twitter thread, so unless there is a reputable name attached to the information, I would have to take it with a grain of salt.

Frankly, looking into middle school documents is well beyond where the NCAA should be looking at...unless they are looking at other issues such as age. If you recall, there have been numerous issues with this in the Little League World Series where older players forged documents to be eligible; maybe Diallo is 3 or 4 years older but this is really a way, way out stretch...but as much speculation as any of the other rumors out there.

It certainly looks like clearance was denied for multiple reasons and the process is in the appeals portion...maybe someday we will know what actually went on but I seriously doubt we will ever get the entire story.

@konkeyDong

You really missed my point by a country mile...

For starters, aren’t you the one making the argument for political correctness? You’re saying, ‘I find a word offensive, therefore so must everyone else, and they should modify their behavior to comport to my sensibilities!’ That right there is the Webster’s definition of PC policing. Not every black person has to agree to the terms of its usage in order for it to be okay that a lot of them do. And for those that choose to, I think they’d argue to you that the whole point is to trivialize the word and rob it of it’s power.

My point was that it is "politically incorrect" to criticize any one that is black lest you be labeled racist.. Whether I find the word offensive or not is not the point, we keep getting hammered with the message that using the "N: word is a serious offense yet the same people that tell us that keep using the word with the caveat that... it is OK if we call ourselves that but don't you dare call us that name and if you do we will call you racist...that is the political correctness I was referring to,

Secondly, why do you care about the double standard? Do you want to be able to say the N word? What is it that you think is lost or gained by one group having exclusive rights to a word that is about them? You might as well be complaining that you can’t hit a woman.

Really, that is the comparison you make? I have no desire to call anyone of any race a derogatory term since it goes against my own moral principles in the same way that hitting a woman does. My point is that you cannot "demand" respect from others when you don't respect yourself. A better comparison would be a woman saying...you cannot hit me because I am a woman but I am free to hit any woman I want. Both arguments are nonsensical, wouldn't you agree?

There has been a long standing social convention that members of a group, especially a group considered a minority, are allowed to use certain words and phrases or express ideas or tell jokes about the group that might be considered derogatory when uttered by outsiders. This extends to white people as well, or at least it used to when whites weren’t considered homogeneous.

...and that makes it right? Minorities have fought for a long time to overcome the prejudice and stereotypes and I don't know or any other minority where certain members thrive by demeaning their own race, and by the way, treat women of their own race even worse...and yet they are considered stars and idolized.

Anyway, I’m not trying to single you out here or silence. But I genuinely don’t understand your perspective on the matter. Again, you seem to want to rail against being PC, but what you’re demanding is political correctness. There’s no two ways about that. I’m guessing it has something to do with the fact that the term racist itself has become something akin to the N word to us.

If you don't understand my perspective then there is not much I can say. I am the least PC person you will meet unless you equate not having a double standard with political correctness.

Minorities want to talk about racial issues and their experiences vis a vis race with white people, but white people are so concerned with that extremely toxic label that, even knowing in their hearts that they harbor no hate for others, they don’t want to engage and chance that word sticking. If we’re ever going to get past it, I think it’s incumbent on both sides to change their behavior.

...and that is political correctness and the polar opposite of what my point was. By the way, you seem to assume that I am white...have you considered that maybe I am indeed a member of a minority?

I believe a healthy discussion is always good and hopefully we all learn something in the process...as long as we do it as Ron Burgundy would do and keep it classy...

@sfbahawk @justanotherfan

I am sorry but the use of that word is offensive whether on lyrics or as a pejorative term. Many prominent African American have spoken against the use of the word in rap music (along with other offensive terms) as it helps trivialize it; even "cool" people such as Jason Withlock have written and condemned the use of the word. It seems to me a double standard that has been tolerated because of political correctness.

Rap music is popular with young people of all races but apparently only black people (oops, am I allowed to say black anymore?) can say the words and not people of others races? That is BS. This would be the equivalents of saying only Hispanic people can call each other one of the many disparaging terms such as wetback, but people of other races could not? I don't think so. If African Americans want to stop the use of the "N" word, they should start by doing it themselves..."do as I say and not as I do" has never been and never will be a good way to set an example.

I find it interesting that while protesting against the use fo the "N" word, they were probably listening to rap music on their iPods/cell phones and the "N" word being repeated time and time and time again...this are the lyrics to rap song by JZ, ↗ a pretty main stream rapper and the lyrics are pretty typical... you can draw your own conclusions.

Apparently posting hateful massages, some racist, on the statue of Thoma Jefferson is not the same thing...

All racism is bad and contrarily to what there Reverend Jackson says. minorities can be racists as well.

We need to take Coach Self's comments in context and listen to the entire thread and not juts parts of it. Here is what Gary Bedore wrote... ↗

Bill Self wasn’t alarmed at Kansas University’s 4-of-19 three-point shooting in Wednesday’s basketball exhibition opener against Pittsburg State.

“That’s one thing I’m not worried about,” Self, KU’s 13th-year coach, said Sunday of his Jayhawks, who hit 21.1 percent from three and 58.5 percent of their two-point tries in an 89-66 victory over the Gorillas.

“Even though we shot it miserably from the three-point line, I’m not worried about the shooting at all. I think one of the strengths of our team is going to be our perimeter shooting,” Self added.

The Jayhawks practiced once Friday and twice Saturday before taking Sunday off. Next exhibition is Tuesday versus Fort Hays State, set for a 7 p.m. tipoff in Allen.

“The other day we were 27-of-44 in our scrimmage from three (for 61.4 percent),” Self said after Wednesday’s game. “It’s fools gold because you don’t play as hard defensively because everything is going in. This was great for us to learn to be exposed what our weaknesses are, because if you make shots, you’re not exposed. The biggest thing is we have to play with more energy and athleticism.”

Self said effort has been intense at practice since the Pitt State game.

“We’ve gotten better since our last game,” Self said. “I thought we played very poorly in a lot of areas in that game (including staying in front of perimeter players). Hopefully we’ll be improved this week.

“I’m not overly pleased,” he added of workouts. “I think some key players, especially some returning guys, can step it up another level.”

@Crimsonorblue22

Defense is what has kept most of the KU payers in the NBA.

@HighEliteMajor

Perfect;y stated; your entire post is right on the money. I have been wandering what exactly speaking 4 languages has to do with the core requirements; Bilas argument is silly.

@Kip_McSmithers

The Cam Newtons situation can be likened to the Labissiere case but they are not at all the same as the Diallo case. The Diallo case involves well defined rules and regulations that are well publicized and apply to every player wanting to play NCAA sponsored sports in college, The Newton/Labissiere cases involve a handful of cases where the rules are not nearly as well defined (since they are so few cases), are difficult to prove one way or another and there is a lot of room left for subjective interpretation. Textbook definition of apples and oranges wouldn't you agree?

@BeddieKU23

The NBA has moved away from the Center and Power Forward differentiation and both positions are used interchangeably. Last time I checked there are only 5 true starting Center in the NBA and most of the players we think of as centers are now called Power Forwards; there is bigger difference between the traditional Power Forwards and the new. "stretch" Power forwards that can step outside and hit the 3.

The trend is now moving to college and It would not be a surprise to see 2 PF and no center playing together. No player on the official KU current roster is listed as Center.

Way too many conclusions being drawn from the first (and pretty much meaningless) exhibition game of the season where the coaching staff was likely trying new combinations to see how they worked during actual game conditions. If we use this game as a predictor, then might as well ship Svi back to the Ukraine for starters since he showed pretty much nothing at the game. I personally think this will not be the norm.

Let's watch a few more games before drawing any conclusions and start second guessing Coach Self this early...he might actually surprise us.

@Kip_McSmithers

Apologist? For what? My comment about UK was because we seem to complain about the NCAA when it affects us (as fans) negatively but we would cheer if it affected UK...or Duke negatively.

Coach Self has said it himself that the NCAA is just doing its job and has no problems with it. The NCAA is not a government institution so saying that it had no "legal" authority is stating the obvious right? Schools and or Conferences do not have to join the NCAA but when schools, such as KU join the NCAA they agree to abide by the regulations created by the various committees comprised of official of the member schools. The problem is not with NCAA or KU, the problem is with Diallo and the school he attended.

If you don't like the NCAA rules, do something to change them, but as long as these rules are in effect, they should be followed. Call SZ and tell him to get his butt in gear and do something about it, after all, the ADs run the NCAA...while you are at it, tell him that his TV contract sucks...or blows...or both.

Why should we pin the blame on the NCAA when all it is doing is the job they were tasked to do? Again, if Coach Self, one of the individual more heavily affected by the process. does not have a problem with NCAA...why should I? I don't. I guess I believe in the concept of taking personal responsibility and not blaming someone else for my mistakes and whining about it....I guess I am old school that way. Just my opinion and I guess we just agree to disagree; please know that it is nothing personal, just a difference of opinions.

@Hawk8086

I don't know. It would depend on how the NBA scouts rank him. Since he would not be showing his game on national or any TV for that matter, the evaluation would be solely based solely on what they see during practice and coaches really don't allow much of that.

McLemore apparently did great during his RS year but did not go up on the draft boards and we know he kicked butt in his one year playing. Perhaps he could have gone after his one RS year but teams will take only so much risk.

By his own admission, Diallo is very, very raw and has much to learn about the game, i.e develop basketball IQ and practice alone will not do that. Even if he plays this year, he might not develop enough to warrant a lottery pick or even a 1st round pick....very few players are the savant that Embiid is/was; most take much longer to develop.

@drgnslayr

I saw the article and wondered the same thing. #34 is the highest I have sen Herard ranked; most ranking I have seen have him below #50, although in all likelihood, , the ranking will change by the end of the season.

In answer to your question, 2 likely, 3 possibly and we will know about 1 in the near future.

@Kip_McSmithers

Why do you think the NCAA is inept. You do understand that it is only enforcing the rules the member schools, including KU, tasked it to enforce, right? Coach Self himself indicated that the NCAA was just doing its job...

I don't mean to single you out but but I am at a loss to understand why the NCAA is demonized for doing its job. If Diallo would have been cleared and Labissiere was still in limbo, we would probably be lauding the NCAA for being thorough and doing its job. Just my 2 cents...which are not worth much nowadays. :(

Makes you wonder if he was protecting his left ACL and putting additional stress on the right...

I would like to post something that although not directly related to sports, it does address the issue of being offended by the comments made by others. I thought it was very interesting...

As published;

Professor Mike Adams in North Carolina is not your typical college professor. He made it clear the first day of class that hyper-sensitive liberals and Obama voters who can’t stand politically incorrect topics have no place in the classroom.

While most students are busy taking selfies and reading about celebrity gossip, Professor Adams is interested in real education. Here us his brutal message to his students at University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Awesome!

!adamsletter.jpg ↗

@Crimsonorblue22

After 1 year in college the academic issues pretty much go away, provide the do well in college. At least that is what happened to McLemore; Traylor was also a partial qualifier and had to sit out his freshman year. He would definitely play in his second year.

@jaybate-1.0

KU has 5 players ranked in the top ESPN 100 college players... ↗

• 23 Ellis

• 33 Mason

• 39 Selden

• 47 Diallo

• 98 Bragg

FWIW, Kentucky has 6 players, Duke 4, Wisconsin 2, Maryland 4, Michigan State 2, LSU 2 and Wichita State 2 (both rated higher than Perry).

A few things to keep in mind.

It was the first games of he season for this team and a meaningless exhibition game at that, so nothing much can be inferred from the minutes given to the different players.

Bragg played very well but the best KU player was undoubtedly Perry Ellis; even the Pitt. State coach and several players commented that he is leaner and more athletic this year and likely will have a great season.

I am sure that by now Coach Self knows what Michelson can do but he is trying to evaluate the other players and this is why they played more minutes than he disd nothing to worry there.

Biggest disappointment was Svi. The build up in the off -season pointed to a much improved player but from the comments I read, that new and improved Svi did not show up. Hopefully we will see improvement in the next few games.

Selden had a blah game and we can guess that it is due to his ongoing injury. A lot of season ahead to evaluate his game. From the WUG we know that a healthy Selden can dominate.

Greene is a one trick pony that would win each and every 3-point contest but has trouble scoring when covered and his defense, no doubt hampered as a result of his surgery and long inactive period, has regressed...if that is possible. I am sure he could be useful in specific situations but he is big liability in defense, something that Coach Self loathes.

Last, does any one remember any KU team playing well the first game of the season, whether exhibition or not? I don't. I seem to remember that the first game is always a helter-skelter type of affair. I am not worried at this time and would like to think that the team will continue to improve,

Rustin Dodd of the KC Star posted:

"The case, Self has said, centers on Diallo’s time at Our Savior New American, a private school in Centereach, New York."

Apparently Coach Self was still hopeful that Diallo would be cleared and waited until 4:00 PM yesterday to tell the big guy he would not be playing. Interesting that other players that attended the same school (although not as long) were cleared. Maybe the issue is about course that he took back then and the newer players that took those classes elsewhere had them accepted while Diallo so far has not. I would guess that KU is probably saying that he is doing well in College so obviously those courses were not a problem.

While Coach Self appears to be optimistic about it having Diallo practice as if he is going to be elegible, I would guess the odds of being cleared are 50-50...and the end result could go either way.

Any chance that a potential second year at KU by Diallo is giving the remaining unsigned bigs second thoughts?

0.211 from 3...here we go again...

@Crimsonorblue22

Defense is what Coach Self does best; I am not too worried about it and I am sure he will have it much improved by the time the exhibition games are done.

Hard to figure out who played well without watching the game. From looking at the stats looks like Perry is still the gold standard. Bright spots, Bragg, Mickelson and at times Traylor. Not so bright spots, Selden, Greene and Svi. Graham with 8 rebounds and 7 assists had a Mason-like game.

@Crimsonorblue22

I am sure it is due to SZ incompetence...

The scoreboard at the KU Athletic Department shows KU playing a WUG Exhibition game at the Sprint Center. :D

!Scoreboard.JPG ↗

@Crimsonorblue22

You can try this vodka... ↗

The bottle in the picture ↗ is a standard Crown Royal Extra Rare bottle with a custom embroidered bag that George Brett gave to the players...

@justanotherfan

I am not sure that comparing Mangino going un-hired and Gill getting that "plum" job at Liberty are the same. I am sure Mangino could have gotten a job similar to the Liberty position, but...why? He was still getting paid handsomely by KU and a position like the Liberty HC position is not exactly a resume builder, in fact, I seriously doubt Gill will ever get consideration from any Power Conference or even mid-major conference after his stint at Liberty.

@Texas-Hawk-10

Gill was a marginal coach even at Buffalo. Read Jason Whitlock's article on the way Gill got his only decent season at Buffalo...pretty much smoke and mirrors; it did get him the job at KU and a hefty windfall. I met Gill a couple of times and he seemed like a real nice man and fist class individual, but IMHO, not major program coaching material. He interviewed with many programs prior to KU, and you can speculate why, but even his Alma Mater Nebraska passed on him. Obviously I am not a fan of Gill the coach but very much respect Gill the person.

@HighEliteMajor

Never cared for that place or wings for that matter. My Dad has Comcast at at his Retirement Home but he goes to bed at 8:00 PM. :( I might be meeting friends at the Power and Light District this evening and I would think one of the many sports bars would have the game on. Thanks for the suggestion though...:)

@HighEliteMajor

Unfortunately, thanks to Zenger, I cannot watch the game so the radio will have to do...or an Eastern European Internet feed... :(

@drgnslayr

I have heard several coaches say the same thing so Coach Self is not the only one of that opinion. The average possession time is currently right around 18 second and for the NBA, with its 24 second shot clock, it is 14,4 seconds (60%) If the possession time stays the same it would be 18/30 or 60% or the same as the NBA. In short, no, I personally don't really think it will make a big difference in general although it could on specific instances.

@HighEliteMajor

You made a mountain out of molehill. My post simply illustrated that often enough statistics alone do not tell the entire story. Case in point, the stats I cited are numbers that are commonly used in baseball to illustrate performance and yet...looking at them by themselves paint quite a different picture than what the actual end result was.

I know you cite Traylor numbers often enough that we all probably know them by heart, but there have been many occasion where his defense and contagious enthusiasm have changed games. For example, the Baylor game last year when he hit 6-7 from the field and had 5 rebounds and 2 blocks and KU eked out a 56-55 win...without Traylor KU does not win that game, or the Easter Kentucky game in the NCAA where he scored 7-8 from the field and had 14...that is correct, 14 rebounds and he was the main reason KU was able to win that game.
I am not saying that Traylor is a super star or that he should start, but when you post that Traylor is not even Division I material (yes, you stated that), then you lose credibility because he has not only played for a Division I team but he has started for an Elite Division I program in the top Conference in college basketball, so obviously he is plenty capable playing Division I...according to Coach Self, who I believe is more qualified than you to judge his performance (this is my personal opinion, of course) although you probably don't agree with this assessment either, so we just agree to disagree. That's all.

@SoftballDad2011

I am not sure pulling Harvey would have won the game. Harvey was pitching great and had a chance to pitch a complete game in the World Series. Perhaps not the best decision but certainly a defensible one.

@ralster

As I have mentioned before, I really enjoy your posts and you show more unbiased insight than most of us do.

I always say that sometimes is not what you do but how you do it and by extension, it is not what you say (or post) but how you say it (or post it). As @JRyman mentioned, it is not that some posters criticize Coach Self and/or players but how they go about that turns a lot of people , including me, off. When I disagree with posters or a coach and/or players, I do criticize but I try to do it politely and I always qualify it as my opinion, since I do not have any factual inside information and like everybody else...I am just guessing, and I prefer to give the benefit of the doubt to Coach Self since he has the actual facts.

I understand what @JRyman was pointing out is that some posters present their "opinion" as "fact" and everybody else's "opinions" are dismissed, sometimes in a rude, offensive, condescending and patronizing manner; I should know, as I have been at the receiving end of that criticism often enough. I have posted on this subject before but some posters will never change...so we move on.

You have likely spent more time with Coach Self than the rest of us posters combined and you have sat down with the man and listen to his personal philosophy and you are the closest thing we have to an inside source...and yet you manage to comment in a polite and rational manner. I hope you know that most of us here really appreciate your opinion and the way you present it. Please keep posting.

@VailHawk

Yes, indeed. Let us know how it goes.

@JRyman

From all the coaches comment I have read, it looks like the shot clock will not have much effect in the game; the average possession last less than 20 second anyway. KU played with a shorter clock at the WUG and had no problems.

Will Roger is reputed to have said...there are lies, damn lies and statistics.

Here are some statistics that we just witnessed;

9 royals players played all 16 post season games and here is the order they finished on three key statistics, with 9 being the worst:

Batting %
- No. 9 Player A
- No. 8 Player B
- No. 7 Player C

On Base %
- No. 9 Player A
- No. 8 Player B
- No. 7 Player D

Most strikeouts
- No, 9 Player A
- No. 8 Player C
- No. 7 Player E

Obviously these players had the worse stats in the team...do you care to guess which players are these?

• Player A - Eric Hosmer
• Player B - Mike Mpustakas
• Player C - Alex Gordon
• Player D. Kendris Morales
• Player E- Lorenzo Cain

Now, do you think the Royals win the WS without these players? Even without one of them? So much for statistics.

Apparently Diallo's issues center around his time at Our Savior New American High School ↗and not his work in Mali like many of us, including me, speculated...which goes to show that none of us has inside information and all we do is guess...and guess incorrectly at that. :(

@HighEliteMajor

What I have hear in the past is that Coach Self offers prospects an opportunity to earn playinmg time but does not guarantee it. The two that are rumored to be given assurances were Wiggins, who did not ask, but it was a no brainer that he would get substantial minutes, and Oubre that apparently was promised he would inherit Wiggins minutes like you mentioned and hence my "usually" caveat.

If Herard is demanding minutes, he might as well go elsewhere, since as we both noted, a #67 ranked player is in no position to demand playing time at an elite program such as KU.

@jayballer54

First, Coach Self does not usually promise playing time to any player, they have to earn it. Second, Herard apparently wants guaranteed playing time; however, he is ranked way too low to be demanding playing time, he is currently ranked #67 by ESPN and this is probably fairly representative of his ranking, although I have seen him ranked higher,,,and lower. Players ranked that low do not make demands and will likely not be super stars but more fittingly role players.

@Crimsonorblue22

You are correct. He did not have any while at KU and I have not seen any recent photo of him

@Lulufulu

How reading this site would allow Tait to have better inside knowledge since essentially all the posts in this forum about potential rotation just opinion and speculation and not really facts?

I will guess that Tait has a heck more access and inside knowledge into the KU program than we do. If I were a betting man, I would wager that he in fact knows something we don't. Just my opinion...not a fact.

@RockkChalkk

Aldrich, Kaun, Collison, Withey Hinrich and Wiggins are tattoo-less, all the others I imagine at least $3K-$5K per player, or $40k-$70k?

@sfbahawk

You are right ...and that is why I qualified my post by saying "does not really allow zone defense" and "playing a lot of zone." A very limited and restricted version of the zone is allowed as you mentioned but I just don't see any team team using it consistently and when they do it is more of a novelty than a routine type of play. Playing zone extensively does not prepare you for the NBA like a good ol' man-to-man does. Look at most of the KU players in the NBA, defense is what has kept them there and not necessarily offense.

@jayballer54

BTW, it is "grammar" not "grammer"...sorry, could not resist...I am just being a smart a$$ . :D

@JRyman

I posted something similar a while back as a response to all the "opinions" presented as "facts."

You are absolutely right. We really are pretty much clueless about what goes on behind closed doors and all we can offer is educated guesses and suppositions but not actual hard facts. This is why I have always defer to Coach Self's judgement since he has all the facts we do not...and he has done remarkably well so far.