🏀 KuBuckets Archive

@DCHawker

You make some fine points. It doesn't have to be Newman or Brown, but they are current targets that have that skill. If there was a lower ranked player with that skill, I would list them, but I haven't seen another KU target that has that ability.

As for the ability to distribute, that is on both the driver and the pass recipients. As a driver, you have vision "windows" that you can pass to when you drive. The responsibility of your other guys is to get into a window when the defense collapses. Too often, our guys stand when players drive rather than either moving into a window for an open jumpshot (for shooters like Greene, Svi, Graham, Oubre, Perry, Hunter, etc.) , or cutting into an open space for a drop off pass for a dunk (for big guys like Cliff, Landen, Jamari, etc.).

Too often, we didn't get that man movement on the drive, so we end up with the defense collapsing, but the kick out not going to a wide open shooter, or there not being a cutter filling in where the defense shifted.

The positives are that Devonte and Frank seem to have developed a nice chemistry on drives and are able to find each other. They understand what the other is seeing on the drive and have done a good job finding those windows for each other. We need more guys to do that.

March is about being able to get your own shot, and get shots for others.

By the time March rolls around, there are too many good coaches left in the field with too much time to scout out all of your weaknesses, know every single one of your plays and gum up all of your standard sets.

Simply put, you cannot run your plays the same way you have all year come March because everybody has seen that stuff too many times.

I agree with @jaybate-1.0 that we need elite 5's and 1's. But more than that, we need guys that can create their own shot off the bounce, and that will be allowed to create their own shot off the bounce.

This is where Malik Newman and Jaylen Brown become suddenly more important to Kansas than they are to any other program. Both guys can get their own (or get something for someone else) when necessary. That doesn't matter as much in December, but that matters in March when you're facing the best remaining teams in the country, and they know what you run.

Selden cannot get his own shot consistently. Kelly could sometimes, but again, not consistently. Frank could, but once the defense started clamping down, his size made that difficult. BG can't get his own shot. He needs a creator.

As an NBA coach once said, plays don't score points - players score points. We have been too reliant on plays to score us points instead of letting players do that for us. The most famous play in Bill Self's playbook (the "Chop" play) is famous mostly because Sherron Collins tripped and almost turned the ball over. That single trip led to Derrick Rose sliding about six inches out of position, which was just enough to let a big time player - Mario Chalmers - hit a big time shot. The play itself really didn't work, but the players saved it by being better than the play. And the play became famous because the players made it work.

If we had tried to run that play this year, could we have made it work? Would a handoff between Mason and Oubre have made that play work? Would Selden have been able to hold his man on the other side of the floor, or would that guy have cheated to the middle because he didn't respect Selden's shooting like Memphis respected Brandon Rush? Would Perry have been able to keep his man inside like Darrell Arthur did, or would that guy have left Perry and cheated up? Would Landen have set a solid enough screen like Darnell, or would he have been a step too slow on the screen?

Beyond all of that, would we have had someone like Mario that not only could make that shot, but wanted the ball to make that shot. Was there someone with the speed and power of Sherron that could take the bump and still execute, and command attention because, hey, he could have canned a corner three just as easily?

That's players - not plays. We need guys that can (and want to) create off the dribble.

@JayhawkRock78

I agree that making your muscles stronger taps into that potential, but it won't necessarily make you faster.

As @drgnslayr mentioned, there is a lot more concentration not just on building muscle, but on what type of muscle you build. Every person has a mix of fast twitch and slow twitch muscle fibers. Fast twitch are for the explosive moves. Slow twitch are built for endurance and raw power. If you have a higher percentage of slow twitch muscles, you may be a very powerful person, but you won't get faster or more explosive. Chances are, you will build the bulk that is typically associated with weight lifting and look strong. Think of the Mr. Olympia contestants. Lots of slow twitch development. On the other hand, if you have a higher percentage of fast twitch fibers, you will develop a much more explosive build and tone. Look at world class sprinters. They are muscular, but most never develop bulk.

You could put two kids on the exact same weight training plan and, depending on their muscle distribution between fast and slow twitch, one may get faster while the other stays at the same speed. Conversely, one may increase their power by 10%-15% while the other may not increase their power at all simply because they don't have the capacity due to muscle fiber distribution.

That's also why some guys seem to wear out much quicker on the court. Most fast twitch muscles, while great for being explosive, also tire very quickly, so a guy with lots of fast twitch muscles may have great cardio endurance, but their muscles wear out because they have too many fast twitch fibers that are more prone to exertion.

I too weight trained in high school and I can tell you that I did not gain any weight. Weight trained like crazy and didn't add any muscle. Finally, I talked to a guy that was a track and field coach, and he encouraged me to do explosive training. I ended up jumping higher (added about 2 inches to my vertical) and getting faster, but didn't add hardly any power (maybe 10 pounds to my bench max).

On the other hand, I had a teammate that, over the same time period, added over 40 lbs to their bench and about 60 to their squat doing the same program that we both started out with. However, their vertical actually declined slightly.

We didn't understand at that time why there were those different outcomes, but now it's pretty clear that my fast twitch muscles weren't ever going to respond to a program based around pure power, while my teammates slow twitch muscles were perfectly suited to respond to that program. But that's probably also why he was a power forward and I was a point guard. My game was speed and explosion, and I got more speed and explosiveness. His was power and strength, and that's where he gained.

He likely wouldn't have benefited from the track style exercises that ultimately benefited me, just like I didn't gain much from the power exercises that saw him make huge strides.

I have been reading some studies and things lately. Every indicator is that weight training will make you stronger and more powerful, but will not necessarily make you more explosive or faster/ quicker. In fact, some studies suggest that too much weight training may make you slower instead!

This is something that I am curious about because it seems like guys have been less explosive as their KU careers have gone on. I'm sure Hudy and her team have been keeping an eye on this, but it is something that bears watching.

@joeloveshawks

I think Izzo has adapted. Early in his tenure, he did not let his perimeter players freelance. The last couple of years, you've seen him let both Trice this year and Harris last year take shots that, five or six years ago, would have gotten someone benched. Heck, he didn't let Jason Richardson freelance this much, and Richardson was a star in the making from day one.

Izzo went through a period from 2004-2008 where he finished second, second, sixth, seventh and fourth in the Big 10, had one Final Four appearance and otherwise never made it past the Sweet 16. In the years since then, he has failed to make the Sweet 16 only once, has a pair of Final Fours and might make another run this year.

What changed?

Well, during that period of struggle, Izzo started experimenting with more explosive scorers on the perimeter. Maurice Ager averaged almost 20 a game. Shannon Brown put up big numbers. He started getting more athletic on the perimeter. Rather than having one super athlete, he started getting athletic depth.

He kept the basics, yes. Hard nosed defense, ball security, physical play. But a lot of that is just good basketball. But he also looked at his teams and said, hey, my best player this year is a guard. Let me let him do his thing. Gary Harris rewarded him last year with 17 ppg, including some clutch play in last year's tournament. Trice is doing the same this year.

Self hasn't really done that. Tyshawn was probably the last KU guard that really had carte blanche to just do his thing. Is it any real surprise that the last two teams Tyshawn was on went to the Elite Eight and the title game.

McLemore could score, but there was never a "Ben, go take over". Last year, only in the West Virginia game did I see Self just let Wiggins go off. Self needs to take the reins off and let his explosive perimeter guys, well, for lack of a better term, explode.

That's why they are explosive.

As I've said before, this is Weber's normal process. He has some success with his predecessor's recruits, then he brings in some of his own guys. He clashes with a talented young player, kicks said player off the team, then his team goes into the toilet.

That happened at Illinois, now it's happening at K-State. Start your Fire Bruce Weber clocks, folks. He's running out of time. He gets to scapegoat Foster and Co. this year, but now that he's cleaned house, he won't have any talent next season, or anyone to blame. K-State will be looking for a basketball coach in spring 2017.

I figured this would happen. Kstate better hope that's all they lose, or they may finish dead last in the conference next season

OAD era - this is not going anywhere until at least 2017. The current NBA CBA is not up for negotiation until then, so until the end of the 2017 season, we have to presume that OAD is the way things are going to go. No rule change is coming over the horizon, and even if there is a rule change, we won't know how many players will stay (and how long) until that new agreement is in place. So we can't depend on a structural change to save us.

Adidas - Nike is the 800 lb gorilla. Adidas is a different type of company. The key for KU is to look for "cool" products. Right now, flashy is in. I don't know how many kids I see wearing bright neon shoes. As adults we hate them, but kids seem to like them. Maybe it's time to have our guys rocking some bright blue kicks for hoops, or some slick red cleats for football. Change something up. Nike is cool because of just do it and Jordan and all of that. Adidas can be cool, too, but KU has to open up the brand, much like Oregon has opened up its brand and basically let Nike do whatever they want with it.

Over-recruiting. It's a fact of life. KU is at the top of the food chain. Every year, KU is going to be in the running for whatever top recruits are out there, whether it's OAD talent, or the next group. If a guy doesn't develop, KU is going to be in the running the very next year for a guy that could potentially replace him. Whether we have OADs or not, we will always recruit over guys that we currently have because we will always be in the mix for whatever the top guys are.

So it all comes down to strategy. Self has to accept that he won't have three and four year players every season, and he needs to adapt to that by playing to the strengths of the personnel he has. How many times on this site did we talk about needing to become more perimeter based this year? How many games did it take before Self really did that?

The stubbornness in making adjustments is what is hurting us right now. It won't keep us from winning 25 games a year because this is Kansas, that's what we do. We win 25 games every year. But you can't expect to win the exact same way every year for all eternity.

Bo Ryan's teams used to be all defense and couldn't score. The last two years, the Badgers have had one of the most efficient offenses in the country.

Coach K once blew up on a parent when their son (William Avery) declared for the draft after his sophomore year. Now he's willing to recruit OADs.

You have to be willing to adapt to stay on top. Coach Self has all summer to figure out how he will adapt.

@Kip_McSmithers

Man, I would love to have Jaylen Brown and Malik Newman on this team. Those are guys that can really break a defense down. However, I agree with you that if we don't utilize their great ball skills, there really isn't much point in having them around. Doesn't make sense to have a Ferrari just to go to the grocery store.

But that's where we will be hurt in future recruiting battles. The top talent will see that maybe Kansas isn't a destination program because we don't utilize and showcase the unique individual skills of our players. Bill Self is putting himself in a situation where he almost has to land not just top recruits, but top interior players, because having top perimeter recruits doesn't help him because he doesn't maximize their talent.

I've always wondered if Self's approach is affected by the fact that he was a PG, but he wasn't a break you down off the dribble type of guard. Self wasn't blowing by anybody, so he envisions the role of a PG as a distributor and wants his perimeter guys to pound the ball inside like he was taught. Even with great players like Wiggins, Oubre, Rush, McLemore, etc., Self wants them working the ball into the post rather than creating. Just a thought.

@JayHawkFanToo

Adidas makes money on all NBA jersey sales. It doesn't matter that they are the brand. They get paid a small percentage for NBA jersey sales worldwide. Sales of college apparel are big in the US, but not so much on foreign soil. The NBA gets sales around the world, especially with the more global appeal from having foreign stars like Nowitzki, Gasol brothers, Ginobili, Yao Ming (who was the most popular jersey in the world for a couple years when he was active), etc. That's a much more lucrative market than the apparel for some U.S. colleges.

@globaljaybird

We were slower with our original lineup of Lucas-Ellis-Oubre-Selden-Mason vs. Carter-Wessel-Cotton-Baker-Van Vleet because Carter, Wessel and Cotton all had the speed advantage.

However, if we switch to a lineup of Ellis-Oubre-Selden-Graham-Mason, suddenly we maintain a size advantage at 3 of 5 spots, but we also have a speed advantage at every spot except the Cotton-Selden matchup. Trying to play 2 big guys burned us because we sacrificed speed but didn't capitalize on our size advantage by destroying the smaller players inside.

Instead, they hurt us because they forced our bigs into awkward situations either guarding on the perimeter or pick and rolls that forced our bigs to make decisions on whether to hedge on the ballhandler or open up to let the defender through. On at least three different plays yesterday, a KU big (either Traylor or Lucas) ended up in no man's land on a screen play that allowed Van Vleet to turn the corner, or hit a wide open three. Baker also got a couple open looks on that type of action. Going small would have prevented that because you could just switch that action instead of trying to decide whether to hedge or open up.

Those are the types of adjustments I would like to see Self make. In a one game playoff, you can't wait to see if guys figure it out. Once they have hit a couple shots on that action, you have to make a change, either strategic or personnel, to combat that. Self waited too long to switch personnel. It wasn't apparent whether they made a strategic switch and just couldn't execute it, or if they stuck with the same principles throughout, but ultimately it should have been a personnel change (going small) to improve the defense.

The issues we saw yesterday are the same ones that ended last season early. We let an inferior team beat us because they were able to dictate the pace and play of the game. That should never happen to a team with the talent of KU.

This is Kansas. We have been one of the 10-15 most talented teams in the country basically every single year since 2007. We will never lack for talent. But when we run into certain styles, we fail to adjust and, as a result, we get beat.

The NCAA tournament is all about being able to adapt quickly and play a number of styles at a high level. Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith made a great point on Saturday about being able to win in a variety of ways, and how that makes all the difference in March when you have to beat different teams with different officials and different styles on a short preparation schedule.

Coach Self wants to win a certain way, so he tries to play that way every night. You hear it in his comments - "play our way", "play our game", "run our stuff", etc. Yesterday, WSU was ready for all of our stuff. I think WSU knew our sets as well as we did. We couldn't beat WSU with X's and O's yesterday, because they knew our X's and O's.

Thankfully, we had talent, so we should have been alright. Mason started off the game by killing Van Vleet off the dribble. It was pretty obvious that Mason felt like he could get to any spot he wanted against Van Vleet. Unfortunately, foul trouble sent Mason to the bench, but KU started the game by just exploiting matchups, which is where they had the huge advantage.

We have seen Perry dominate undersized guys his whole career. Heck, most of his really big games have been against undersized front lines. But Marshall Jedi mind tricked Perry by covering him with his high school buddy and teammate. Perry should have had a huge game, at least commanding double teams on every possession as he punished Wessel inside. Instead, Perry was pretty pedestrian.

The key is to find and recruit guys with an edge. The team won in 08 because Mario and Sherron had a nasty edge to them. Tyshawn and TRob had that edge. The Morris twins had that edge. Ben McLemore was a really gifted athlete, but nobody would say that he had a nasty edge to him. He's a really nice guy. Same with Wiggins, although NBA life is giving him a bit of an edge because he can't succeed at that level without it. Same with Oubre. Definitely with Ellis. It isn't talent or effort. It's saying I will dominate the guy across from me because I am simply better. It's Frank Mason looking at Fred Van Vleet and saying "this guy can't guard me, and the fact they put him on me is openly disrespectful."

If Perry had looked at Wessel yesterday and said, "I'm an all conference post player and you're putting a guy four inches shorter than me on me one on one?" Perry should have been offended at the audacity of Gregg Marshall to even pretend that Wessel could handle him in the post. But Wessel was counting on Perry not going after Wessel time after time until he crushed his spirit.

You will see the difference if WSU faces UK. Whoever Wessel guards will attack him, much like they did last year when Wessel posted a line of 0 points, o rebounds, o steals, o blocks, o assists, 2 missed free throws, 2 personal fouls and giving up 8 points in just 3 minutes. UK destroyed Wessel last year and by doing so wrecked his confidence. They did the same to Kadeem Coleby, WSU's starting center last year, who played just 7 minutes and posted only a missed shot and a personal foul. That's two of WSU's role players that contributed absolutely nothing in a close game because they were attacked until they were taken out of the game.

Compare that to yesterday, when Wessel hit four huge threes and Zach Brown had 7 points in 13 very productive minutes. KU let WSU's role players get confidence by not attacking them, and paid a huge price because those guys were productive.

Bill Self must embrace matchup advantages, or he will always be vulnerable to early round upsets.

Calipari supports a TAD rule because he knows that as a top recruiter he would still get elite talent, particularly because he's done a very good job of preparing his early departures for the NBA.

Look at the freshmen that have left UK. Wall, Bledsoe and Cousins are all stars in the NBA. Anthony Davis is one of the best 10 players in the world. Noel is very good.

There isn't another coach that can match that track record as far as successful transition to the NBA.

To do what you suggest, a team has to have a guard that can dominate the ball and score more or less on demand without turning it over or tiring.

If that is the case, the only team that I can see beating UK is maybe Duke because Jones can do that. Nobody else has the right combination in the backcourt to do that. Utah also has a chance because of Delon Wright, but those teams are in the same bracket and are opposite UK (and would need to get by everyone else, first).

Simply put, bad ball may bring UK down, but its going to be tough because the best candidates are not immediately in UK's path. Maybe Cincy uglies a game up with them. Maybe Maryland has their three big scorers all go crazy at once. Maybe Huggins' press frustrates them again. But there's not a lot of teams with the personnel and coaching to take down UK without being absolutely perfect.

I wish the Big XII wasn't falling apart. Nationally, everyone thinks it's KU and a bunch of stiffs. This isn't helping.

@JayHawkFanToo

Let's look at this as if these are students first.

I know a (now former) student that is very gifted in science. They had this innate ability all through high school scientifically and excelled in science. Unfortunately, they came from a lower middle class family. Not poor, but definitely from a background of limited resources.

Fortunately for this family, people took notice of their child's scientific prowess, particularly in the business community and helped pitch in to get this kid into a private high school. They also helped get this kid into a top science school and, once they graduated, helped them through grad school. Now they are working for a company that was involved in that process. And nothing is wrong with that. They were identified because of their (academic) talent and rewarded for that (academic) talent.

We don't allow that here in the U.S. for athletes. In Europe, the top soccer teams identify talent and send those players to academies as early as 10 or 12 years old. These are pro teams! Of course, this is only for the most elite players, as the rest remain with their local school or club teams.

My issue with the "amateur status" is that the only part of the NCAA that is amateur is the way that the athletes are treated. The coaches are not amateurs, particularly at the major college level. The university presidents, AD's, etc. are certainly not amateurs. They are professionals in every sense of the word, and are paid like it.

Once upon a time, the NCAA was about amateur athletics. Drop down to the D2 and D3 levels, and you still see that today. Even at the low major level, you see that.

But this is Kansas. This is not low major. This is (apologies to @HighEliteMajor) High Elite Major basketball. Bill Self isn't getting paid a few million dollars a year to coach "amateur" basketball. He's being paid a few million dollars a year to coach elite competitive basketball. That is the expectation of Kansas.

We say that the NCAA must maintain amateur status, but that status is a joke. The money is too large at this point. It's worth too much. We are investigating a player because his mother got a $50k loan while his head coach makes millions of dollars each year, the athletic department budget is over $90m a year. That doesn't sound like an amateur organization. That sounds like the pros to me.

This is why a separation is coming. The elite schools (and athletes) are on a different level than everyone else. The "tens of thousands of other student athletes" you refer to are student athletes that have as much chance of going pro as you or I. I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about the elite players.

If the playing field was level, Cliff could just as easily have stayed home and gone to UIC or Chicago State. After all, he could get an education there, be close to home, play a little basketball, etc. Everything he can do at KU is available at CSU or UIC. But he came to Kansas for basketball reasons. That fact has to be accepted. The playing field isn't level because there are certain High Elite Majors with coaches like Self, Calipari, Donovan, Krzyzewski, Williams, Izzo, Pitino, etc. If the playing field was level, Perry Ellis maybe would have been a Wichita State Shocker. But that's not Kansas.

The NCAA doesn't exist to level the playing field. The NCAA exists to maintain a certain order of things - to make sure the power schools stay at the top, and that the non-power schools can't just buy their way to the top. That's what the NCAA does. There is no leveling of the playing field because the NCAA can't make money if Sacramento State is on the same level of Cal, or if Wichita State is on the same level as Kansas. The NCAA needs Texas to be Texas and UT- San Antonio to be a couple notches below.

That's what I look at when I see this. I am not looking at Cliff. I am looking at the entire picture, which is why my judgment is on the NCAA, not Cliff and his family.

@JayHawkFanToo said:

@justanotherfan

The players, on the other hand are an integral part of the NCAA activities and are there for extended periods of time; in fact, they are the reason for the existence of the NCAA.

Ah, and this is where the slope gets very slick.

The players are only there temporarily - 4 or 5 years max, and they are not considered partners in the financial benefits of the NCAA. That's left to the universities, coaches, AD's, presidents, sponsors and others. The players are treated as guests, but questioned like owners.

More than anything else, that's the problem the NCAA runs into. They are constantly investigating the "guests". KU is the one that owns the house. Bill Self and his staff live there. The players are guests.

Taking this back to your example, the players are expected to follow the rules for parking and public behavior. If they don't, that doesn't give the NCAA the right to invade their privacy any more than it gives your HOA the right to demand to see your guest's car title, insurance card, etc. They can ask them to move the car. That's it. They can ask them to turn down the stereo, but they can't confiscate it.

But that's what the NCAA does. They want the car title and insurance. They confiscate stereos. Kansas is a part of the NCAA. Cliff Alexander is a student at Kansas, not an NCAA member institution.

As far as the rules they agreed to follow, if the new rumor is true, Cliff has to prove that he didn't know his mom got a loan and that he didn't take any of the proceeds from that loan. So it comes down to him showing that his mom didn't send him money that can be traced back to a loan. Cliff Alexander's mom is not a part of the NCAA. She's not even a basketball player for an NCAA member school. But the NCAA is wanting her personal banking and phone records, as well as his father's, and Cliff's. To me, that's where the reach is getting too long. At what point does the athlete get to say "no more"? Is this really a choice between playing ball and keeping some degree of personal privacy?

I think we are all pretty reasonable people here, but when I look at this, I see the human side of it, and my human side says that this is too far.

You notice that most of the heavy cost group is from states that do not produce a lot of in-state talent.

There is only 1 player ranked in the top 100 (ESPN) this year from Kentucky. There are no Kansans, one West Virginian, one player from Arkansas, one from Oklahoma, two from Alabama and none from Iowa. Those are the home states of 9 of the top 10 spenders.

To see any top 100 talent, Bill Self has to go out of state this year. In no year have there been more than two Kansans ranked in the ESPN top 100, so Self is getting on a plane to recruit just about anybody that he wants.

Same for most of the rest of that top 10. They have to spend because they can't find talent nearby. The exception is Florida, but their budget is inflated by the fact that if they do go out of state, they are going to spend because chances are its going to be a long trip.

I tend to stay away from teams that are banged up going into the tournament. You need the ability to go to another level once March rolls around, and that requires your main guys being healthy.

That's my concern with KU. They just aren't healthy enough for my taste. Perry is 80%. Selden is maybe 85% on that ankle. Frank is somewhere between 80% and 90% depending on the day.

We are really relying on Kelly being great basically the whole tournament if we can't get contributions from Perry and Frank due to injury. I don't like those odds.

Sweet 16 elimination.

@JayHawkFanToo

Your example is a good one, but doesn't compare.

For example, if you paint your house a different color, that doesn't give your HOA the right to inquire into your finances, or cull through your phone records to see which contractors you contacted.

Let's imagine this - say your HOA has a rule that a guest cannot do something. Let's say the HOA comes up, knocks on your front door and demands entry to inspect your home and question your house guests. My guess is that you would tell the HOA where they could go, and it wouldn't be your living room, because you have a certain expectation of privacy regarding your personal matters, as well you should.

That's my point with Cliff. He and his family have a right to some degree of privacy and playing basketball at Kansas does not eliminate that right.

I'm not blaming the NCAA. I'm saying that if I was in the situation that Cliff and his family were in, I would not be inclined to turn over personal records and information any more than they currently are.

@JayHawkFanToo

It sounds like you are of the opinion that Cliff and his family signed away their right to personal privacy so that Cliff can play basketball at KU. I disagree with that. I think they have a right to privacy and the NCAA doesn't have an automatic right to your phone records, financials, etc.

It's unfortunate that college sports has turned into a situation where some feel that the privilege of college athletics means that you forfeit a right to personal privacy if the NCAA asks any questions. When you reach that point, I think there is more wrong with the rules than there is with the action.

There is no allegation that Cliff or his family did anything illegal. Just that it was against NCAA rules. Whatever loan they did or didn't get, at whatever terms, or whatever phone calls they made or didn't make, isn't really my business. I'm a sports fan. I don't have a right to know what their financial situation is, or who they called, or anything like that.

Too bad for Cliff.

It's a tough situation. The NCAA wants the family to release a lot of very private financial records. If I were in that situation, I don't know if I would want to release that info, especially knowing that the substance would be reported nationally because Cliff is a basketball player at a major university.

Cliff's KU career is probably done. I wish him the best at latching on in the D-League or overseas for a year or two, and hope he can catch on with the NBA after that.

The Big 12 benefits from getting five really strong seeds, so it's expected that the Big 12 should send at least 3 or 4 teams to the Sweet 16. Anything else would have to be a disappointment.

I would say that OU and KU both need to be careful. I think Texas probably loses in the first round to a pretty good Butler team and West Virginia had better be wary of a very solid Buffalo team.

The NCAA tournament is a single elimination tournament.

That means every single game is the Super Bowl for every single team. You win, you keep playing. You lose, you go home.

There is no reason that Wichita State should be more motivated to win an NCAA tournament game than KU is. This is Kansas. We want to go to Final Fours and win titles. There is no reason to not be up for an NCAA tournament game, regardless of what name is on the other jersey.

Remember, a lot of these WSU players have been to the Final Four and are dying to get back. Most of them were on the unbeaten squad from last year. Their motivation isn't to beat Kansas - their motivation is getting to Indianapolis. Maybe for the fans, it means something different, but WSU's players and coaches want to get to the Final Four, whether its beating Kansas or beating Virginia or whoever.

For KU, it's the same thing. We want to get a shot at the Final Four - doesn't matter if that takes us through Wichita State or through Ohio State. We want to get to Indianapolis.

I had a feeling when KU lost the Big XII title game that we would end up bracketed with UK as the lowest #2 seed and Iowa State would move up on the 3 line. That seems pretty fair, honestly. Notre Dame moved up to the top 3 seed by winning the ACC, followed by the Big XII logjam of ISU, Baylor and Oklahoma. I can't say that we were treated unfairly there because I can't make an argument that we were more than the 8th best team in the field. We certainly haven't looked like better than the 8th best team.

All I know is that we better focus on taking care of business against NM State, or we won't have to worry about the Shockers, let alone the Cats.

I don't think Self needed to be a KU alum to motivate his guys. Most of the players that come to KU are not native Kansans. They rarely grow up around the rivalries and stories about KU's history. That's just the facts of being a strong basketball program in a state that doesn't produce a lot of elite basketball talent.

As a result, KU rarely gets any players that are lifelong KU fans. Of the scholarship guys, I would say only Perry is a lifelong fan. But that doesn't keep those guys from working hard.

Think about some of the great KU players of the last 15-20 years. Probably only Wayne Simien was a lifelong KU fan. Brandon Rush wasn't. It's doubtful that Mario Chalmers was. Collison, Hinrich, Miles, Gooden, Robinson, Morris twins... the list goes on - and probably none of them were KU fans like most of us are. We are dependent on transplants because there just isn't enough elite talent within our borders to keep us at the top. In that way, maybe Self doesn't understand the history of being a KU lifer, but maybe he relates better to the players since most of them are not lifers, either.

As for whether the Big XII title game was ISU's Super Bowl, I honestly don't think so. Iowa State has designs on a Final Four. Under Hoiberg they have risen to being one of the better teams in the country, and I think they are looking at things as a way of getting to the Final Four. I think they knew a win could move them up a seed line, or improve their position among the 3's. I think that, more than anything else, was motivation to them - a chance to move up in their quest to get to the Final Four.

Weber is a fairly average in game coach, but a poor recruiter. Because he isn't a strong recruiter, he needs to be an above average X's and O's guy to make up for that, or be surrounded by strong recruiters as assistants. Unfortunately, he has not been able to do that.

As a result, he gets exposed by his players. Marcus Foster is a classic example. He comes in and dominates the ball in his first year. Weber decides that since Foster is such a good scorer, he should move him off the ball and put in a new point guard to run the show and distribute. Unfortunately, he didn't have anyone on the roster or recruited that could do that. Foster is frustrated and pouts. Injuries happen. Wheels fall off.

This is the exact cycle that happened at Illinois. Weber has (at most) two more years in Manhattan.

If I were ever subject to an NCAA investigation, I would not cooperate, either.

All you have to know about the NCAA and credibility is this:

The NCAA restored Penn State's record books of wins previously vacated during the time when a football coach on staff was committing criminal acts at the university and taking advantage of young children under the auspices of charity and his role at the university.

The NCAA has deleted all mentions of Michigan basketball and the Final Fours achieved by the "Fab Five" because some of those players may have accepted "impermissible benefits."

So, just for anyone keeping track at home

Criminal Acts by an Assistant Coach = OK, wins restored to program.

Accepting Money by Athletes = Terrible, all wins and accomplishments deleted from the record books.

Seems someone may have their priorities mixed up.

This situation with Cliff is just another example of why the NCAA will not be in control of the Power 5 conferences much longer.

The NCAA is outdated, frankly. These rules worked well when there was a threat of corruption in college sports due to gambling influences (there were several point shaving scandals in the 40's and 50's). They were practical when most pro leagues didn't offer anything in the way of large salaries.

Now, however, the rules can't keep up with where the game has gone.

In 1985 the NBA salary cap was $4m. That's less than the veteran's exception is now. Simply put, the NCAA is trying to cage a bear in a litter box. There's just no way to do it.

The NCAA's rules are really best suited for athletes that do not have a future at the highest professional level. There is a reason that the best baseball, hockey, soccer, tennis and golf athletes generally do not play NCAA sports. The truly elite players in those sports go to the pros straight out of high school. Baseball's rules are such that there is more talent often times at the junior college level (where players can leave before graduating) than there is at the D1 level. Most elite soccer players head to Europe or other elite academies. Same in hockey. In tennis and golf, most elite players hook up with elite coaches as teenagers and turn pro while still in high school.

But basketball and football cling to this old model. That model works for non-elite players. It puts elite players in a position where they will always be under intense scrutiny because there is so much financial benefit available if you locate even a below average pro.

Think about it this way. The average commission for a sports agent is between 4% and 10% of the total contract. If you can sign up a guy that can just stay in the league for a while, you stand to earn hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars, over his career.

Deshawn Stevenson went straight to the pros out of high school and had a pretty meh career overall. Never averaged even 12 points a game as a pro. Never went to an all star game or won any major awards. He was just a pro for 13 years. In that time he made nearly $28m. That means his agent made between $1.1m and 2.75m over 13 years. And that's just one client.

DeShawn Stevenson was worth probably more per year to his agent than most of us make annually. That would not have been the case 60 years ago. That wouldn't even have been the case 40 years ago. Honestly, up until the last 20 years or so, that would not have been the case.

And that's for a lower level, non-star player. A guy like Kevin Garnett has made over $300m in his career. Chris Webber made nearly $180m over his 15 year career. If you were his agent, you made at least $7m over the course of his career, if not more. And people knew Chris Webber was going to be a star when he was a freshman in high school.

The NCAA isn't prepared for this. They can't be. You can't serve the interests of the guy that is just playing sports to pay for school and also make sure that the interests of a guy like Chris Webber are protected.

If you knew you could make $7m over the next 15 years by lending someone that really needed the money $50,000 today, would you do it? I would take out a $50,000 loan today so I could lend the money to somebody else. That's not just return on investment - that's basically printing money.

The NCAA can't do it anymore and that has become clear. Within a few years, the big conferences will break away and structure their own rules, knowing that they can prepare the elite players for pro careers. The death of the NCAA is coming, and when it happens, they will be buried in a pile of rules and red tape.

Tournaments are about matchups.

TCU over K-State. Texas over Tech. K-State would need a huge weekend to get into the NCAA's, but I think TCU knocks them off and uses that as a springboard to becoming a middle of the pack team next season. Texas beats Tech soundly to end Tech's season.

Baylor over West Virginia. Baylor always seems to play well in the Big 12 tourney.

Kansas over TCU. Safe win here, although not impressive.

Iowa State over Texas in OT. Wild game here, but ISU holds on.

Oklahoma State over Oklahoma. Bedlam win for the Pokes, chance to move up a seed line.

Baylor over Kansas. Not having frontcourt depth hurts us here and we falter. Does give us an extra day to prep for the NCAAs. Baylor bumps up a seed line.

Iowa State over Oklahoma State. Up and down game that features about a thousand three point attempts and makes. Final score in the high 80s.

Baylor over Iowa State in ISU's third wild game of the tournament.

The key in March is to put away opponents early and avoid nagging injuries.

Unfortunately for this particular team, we already have the nagging injuries part. Perry isn't 100%. Neither is Wayne. Neither is Frank. That's three guys who we probably need 25 or more quality minutes from every night as we get deep into the tournament to compete, and they aren't healthy.

I think we can handle the first weekend, but that next weekend is a real challenge, not only because the games are tougher, but because our bench is very suspect without Cliff and an unclear contribution from Brannen.

Betting lines are not probabilities. They are set to get people to wager on various events at a (roughly) even distribution).

If the odds on UK were paying at 2-1 or 3-1, there would be far too much action on UK. Even at 4-3 there would be a ton of action on UK because they are clearly the best team in the country. So the oddsmakers set them at even money so they make people that want to win money bet on someone else.

With these odds, you should see action on just about everyone because the chances of a strong payout if anybody other than UK wins is pretty good, but Vegas will still make money because all the money won't be on one team like it would be if the UK odds weren't even money.

You also have to remember that several casinos offered props at the beginning of the season on UK going undefeated, so there is a good chance that if UK wins it all, not only would the casino be paying out for the national title, they would also be paying out for any of the props that had UK going unbeaten.

For me, I'd put $20 each on Wisconsin, Arizona, Villanova, Duke and Kansas. I'd be tempted to put $10 on the 33/1 group as a hedge. I'd win money if any of those 8 teams won, be out $130 if anyone else won. No reason to bet UK unless you already bet the undefeated prop back in November.

The allegations here are pretty crazy. I can't see any way this is true. WWW is pretty influential, but I can't see him basically fixing games, especially college games. He would be banned from the NBA forever if he was involved in something like this. The NBA ties are more valuable to WWW than any college could ever be. No way he would risk that on college games.

Conference tourney is all about seedings.

This year, KU can't move up, so it's not really that helpful, but in year's past, it has help KU move up a line with a strong tournament performance.

The tournament this year could get Texas into the field with a couple wins, or move anyone else among the bottom group (K-State, Tech and TCU) in with a title. The rest of the teams could move up a line with a few wins, possibly two if they win the tournament.

The biggest loser here is always the player and their family.

Whose reputation and character get questioned?

Who has to produce proof of how they have afforded basically anything of value that they own?

Whose intelligence and financial situation are questioned and examined?

The university doesn't go through that. The coach doesn't go through that. That's purely on the player and their family.

I am getting really tired of the NCAA doing this. I have seen what it does to people. It's extremely embarrassing.

Think about this for a moment. Imagine that you had a son or daughter that was an elite level recruit. They get a scholarship to go to a D1 school, then the NCAA opens an investigation about "improper benefits." Remember, improper benefits could be something as small as a couple hundred bucks. So they ask your child where they got the money for their PS4 or XBox. They ask your son how they paid for prom as a senior. They ask you how you afford your mortgage, or how you afford your car. They look into your tax records. They look at credit card statements, etc. It's like getting audited, but even worse. All so your child can accept an athletic scholarship. The media leaks information about you and your family - things like "NCAA questioning how top athlete's family acquired vehicle" or "HS transcript of top recruit being examined."

All of that results in people questioning the character of the athlete - they get labeled a cheater - or their parents - looking for a handout, etc.

It really frustrates me.

@BeddieKU23

I think in time he will be a very good perimeter defender. However, as with many big men coming out of HS, he may struggle to deal with some of the better perimeter players because he hasn't had to guard elite ball handling players 20 feet from the basket on a regular basis. He has the physical tools to do so, but whether he will get exposed a bit trying to do that is an open question.

At ISU, he won't have to do that. He can just use his speed/athleticism to be a better version of what McKay is for them right now.

@JhawkAlum

If Diallo has been watching McKay at ISU this year, I can see exactly why he would love that system. You can't double him because you can't leave the shooters. You can't pack it in. You have to respect Niang as an inside out threat.

Basically, Diallo can come in and do only the things he is very good at - rebound, block shots, run the floor - and none of the things he may struggle with - perimeter shooting, ballhandling, perimeter defense.

Let's be honest about the strength of schedule debate.

I recall back on the old site, there was a lot of complaining about KU's relative lack of top flight non-con opponents a lot of years. It hasn't been until the last couple of years that the SOS has really gone up.

I remember many years where KU would have 1 or 2 truly marquee opponents and a lot of really soft games in between. Coach Self deserves credit for turning the corner the last 2-3 years and putting together a very strong slate.

Look back at some of the schedules, particularly from 2004-05 through 2009-10. We would have 2-3 name opponents and then a bunch of really soft opponents. I was actually surprised when I looked back at some of those schedules to see how weak they were outside of the games against a Florida or a Georgia Tech or a Michigan State. Some of those years the criticism is warranted.

I don't think the criticism is valid based on the last couple of years, and I think by taking such a long snapshot, it distorts the reality because our schedule has been remarkably difficult the last couple of seasons. We played weak schedules at times in the past, but the last 2-3 years, the schedule has been very tough.

A win tonight clinches it. We do no worse than a tie no matter what, but a loss tonight and a loss at OU on Saturday is a tie. I want to win it outright because that is important for our seeding purposes. We want a 2 or 3 and we want it to be away from the UK region.

One of the things you notice is that when Perry has success, it often is coming when he drives the ball as opposed to when he starts in a traditional post up. Most of Perry's points came when he caught the ball at either the top of the key faced up, or when he caught on the baseline faced up. He did a lot of damage in the paint, but it wasn't on post plays, but on drives where he could use his quickness to create angles rather than try to get his shot off against the big guys with his back to the basket.

This is the best use for Perry. Unless he is being guarded by some 6-6 guy, Perry should be catching the ball faced up about 60% of the time for his offense. This is, to me, the fifth consecutive exceptional game that Perry has put together. Since the Tech game, Perry is averaging 22.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 35 minutes. He's also shooting 57% during that stretch. This is the best stretch of basketball Perry has ever put together.

That was a tough situation. I think based on the way the game had been called, it was a foul. Watching it live I was actually surprised there was no call. I think we got lucky on that.

It wasn't a blatant missed call, but one that I would not have been surprised if it had gone against us. They had been calling that type of bump for most of the second half. I think Bilas is actually a pretty fair announcer, honestly. He doesn't like how physical the game has gotten, so he tends to argue for more fouls rather than less, so it doesn't surprise me that he would expect that call in that situation.

This team can only right itself if Kelly Oubre or Wayne Selden steps up and becomes an offensive force. If we can only count on 14-17 points from Perry Ellis, and maybe 10-12 from Frank, we aren't going to get very far. We need to be able to know we have big production from either Selden or Oubre, plus consistent contributions from Greene and Alexander off the bench.

I don't listen to Keitzman at all. I think that Townsend was right to be concerned about that guy approaching the KU bench/ players. There was a lot going on at that moment and there were multiple people coming at the KU bench from all angles, with very little in the way of security.

At that moment Self was being pushed up against the scorer's table and was only protected because Bruce Weber and several K-State players - Thomas Gipson being the main one - formed a makeshift shield like security was supposed to do.

I can't tell if Townsend saw Traylor get hit, but he was literally being surrounded by fans jumping around. The rule I have heard circulated among most teams is that as long as celebrating fans don't approach you, you leave them alone. This guy approached, so he had to be dealt with. Townsend didn't punch the guy out. He locked him up and pushed him away from the KU players. In that situation, that's what you have to do because you don't know what is going through people's minds in the heat of the moment.

@JayhawkRock78

That guy would never have run at Jamari head on. Looking at the picture, he's lucky if he's 5-10, 180. If he comes at Jamari head on, Jamari probably puts him on the ground just by bracing himself for the impact, without even putting his hands up, or even pushing him.

This guy needs to (unfortunately for him) have an example made of him. Harsh punishment to make sure nobody ever does this again. I'm talking potential expulsion and having a note placed in his academic record, which could potentially prevent him from being admitted anywhere else if he is a student, plus criminal charges, or, if he is not a student, criminal charges and a 5 year ban from all K-State athletic events. Players are held to a high standard, but they need to be protected from renegade fans, especially considering this guy blindsided Jamari.

K-State and the Big 12 need to be very public with what they do to make sure that everyone gets the message that this is unacceptable.

@JayhawkRock78

There is so much chaos going on in that clip that its hard to really tell what is going on. There's a fan that runs up to a K-State player (I think Justin Edwards) and nearly punches him trying to give him a hug/ pat on the back, whatever before running off and celebrating. Edwards is left standing there a bit confused.

You've correctly pointed out the guy running at Oubre. Someone else bumps Perry Ellis in the bottom corner. In the video with Self and Weber, you can see that the surge of the crowd is so strong Thomas Gipson is knocked about three feet forward and nearly falls over the scorer's table.

There is another video ↗ that shows who appears to be Kurtis Townsend having to physically pull a K-State fan away from the KU players on the bench. Just so much chaos that it's hard to figure out what was actually happening. As crazy as it looked on TV, it was probably even worse on the floor.

The danger is that there is really nowhere for the players to go because the fans are rushing onto the floor in the area that is normally the exit for the players to get back to the tunnel.

Last night's court storming at K-State got a little wild. This isn't to criticize K-State, because this has happened at other venues. But the game last night showed some of the issues with why this can be dangerous.

There were several K-State fans that ran towards the scorer's table where Bill Self and Bruce Weber were preparing to shake hands. It's hard to tell in the video ↗ if they were running at Self or just running towards some of the K-State players that were in the area to celebrate, but kudos to both Bruce Weber and some of the players - looks like Thomas Gipson, Marcus Foster and maybe one other player -that are trying to form a barrier around Self and Weber as the fans rush over.

Some other idiot (and yes, I am calling him an idiot) ran directly towards ↗ Jamari Traylor and shoulder checked him in the back. I hope that whoever that is gets visited by the campus authorities today.

I have no issues with court storming as long as it's celebratory and not trying to taunt or injure the opposing teams. A few years ago people criticized Roy Williams for sending his starters off the court at (I think) Florida State before they stormed the floor. I disagreed with him leaving his walk-ons out on the court alone to weave their way through the chaos to get to the locker room, but I understand why he was trying to protect his guys.

In that video with Jamari, you can see the game officials rushing to the Kansas bench as a couple of people appear to push KU players as they are running onto the floor.

Thankfully nothing serious appeared to happen last night, but that's a situation that could have very easily gotten out of hand. It's a shame K-State security seemed completely unprepared for the court storming, even as it was apparent that KSU was going to win in the last 30 seconds of the game. Hopefully K-State and the Big 12 address this.

The unfortunate reality is that KU is one of a handful of programs in the country, along with Duke, Kentucky, UNC, maybe Arizona, that prompt court stormings when they are beaten on the road, meaning for KU players and coaches, this is much more of a safety issue than it is for many other schools that are not consistently strong enough to prompt a court storming for a regular season win.

This was a case of Perry playing extremely well - probably at the top of his game - and nobody coming alongside him.

Perry isn't the type of guy that's going to toss up a 35/15 game (few will, honestly), so even when he plays great, and make no mistake, Perry was great last night, he's going to need some guys to come alongside him. It looked for a bit in the second half like Kelly was trying to be that guy, but he didn't really get his three ball going last night (just 2 attempts).

I think Frank is bothered by a nagging injury of some sort. He doesn't seem to have the same explosion. If that's the case, all of those minutes in the middle of the season could be coming back to haunt us now.

Weber will keep his job through next year. He will get canned at the end of next season when they finish last in the conference.

Yes, I said last.

I think K-State missed their opportunity by making Frank Martin so disenchanted that he left.

K-State hasn't had a good basketball coach that actually wanted to be there other than Martin since Lon Kruger in the late 80's and early 90's. K-State literally went two decades without landing another good coach that wasn't trying to leave, and they bullied him out the door because he had a different personality than Bill Snyder.

I say they deserve what they got - a mediocre coach that will have them back at the bottom of the Big 12. It sucks for KU because we need a real rival, but K-State did this to themselves.

This sort of thing goes on all the time.

Ultimately, it's all about money. The Big 12's original lineup was influenced by politics. The Texas schools that were originally going to join were Texas, A&M, Tech and either SMU or Houston. However, some Baylor alums were powerful within the state government and basically said they would block funding to the state schools if they left the SWC and didn't take Baylor with them.

Houston would have been in the Big 12 this entire time if not for that move.

When the last round of conference musical chairs was spinning, legislators in North Carolina were discussing ways to make sure that both UNC and NC State were in a power conference.

Kansas legislators were even discussing linking KU and K-State together to make sure KSU wasn't left out in a doomsday realignment scenario. Oklahoma was doing much the same thing with OU and OSU.

Being in a major conference could be worth $25m or more versus being in a minor conference. There are a lot of people that will wield any power they have because the amount of money out there is worth it.

@Kip_McSmithers

NBA rules prevent Portland from resigning him for I believe 30 days after the trade. I would guess that his agent has been in contact with some other teams and knows that there is interest out there for him.