@bskeet What HCBS will get with another national championship is the second statue in front of the Field House! (And, by the way, that is what Roy missed out on by leaving.)

@JayhawkRock78 Since 1960, only the rising costs of healthcare have exceeded the rising costs of higher education. Notice the severe decline in completion /free market system in healthcare.

Having worked in academia (years I’m not proud of), I can tell you that 1) Many, many expenditures are made that have nothing to do with educating students, and 2) It is a closed system (a finite number of institutions) that feels NO reason to contain costs and compete on the basis of “economical,” quality education. Leading schools increase tuition, all the others follow.

If you get a chance, watch an SMU game. That’s fun. Coach Brown’s team “pushes the pace.” They are running and always in motion in their half court offense. It is how I have expected KU to play this year (with talent and a deep bench). Coach Brown is doing it with lesser talent and no bench!

The Gawd-awful NCAA commercial patting itself on the back for “looking out for student athletes” is insulting, disingenuous and down-right dishonest.

@bskeet Yep! Connor has been the solution . . . just waiting for Bill to ease his junior to the bench! Connor does NOT turn the ball over! He had some fine assists to Andrew, as well. He will be a great 3-point shooter with more playing time. Green didn’t play 'cause he’s long and prone to turnovers.

Excellent post. Bill has proven himself to be a “stubborn ol’ ball coach.”

1. He continued to play Tharpe when it was obvious in the EKU game that Connor could protect the ball, create assists successfully and (when open) can really shoot the 3-ball. Just like Elijah’s poor, poor performance in the tourney last year, Bill seemed unable to recognize it (or was just too stubborn to take out the “senior” member of his squad).

2. I question whether Bill values the 3-point shot. We’ve played many teams that make a point to run offense to get an open shot. Conner was, by far, the most prolific 3-point shooter in his hs class. We never developed him. Yet, at crunch time, they ran the Chop play twice and twice Connor hit threes. He had talent that was not utilized this season.

3. Will Bill move Perry to his natural position – the 3? Every time we faced a “Long” team this year, Perry tried, but was ineffective. He is NOT a power forward at 6’ 8".

4. Lastly, under Self, we have been notoriously ineffective against zones. I believe that is because we don’t play zone ourselves. I don’t believe we played zone one time this year. Here’s the deal. If you don’t play zone, the only time you EVER practice against the zone is the day before your play a zone team. That is not enough. If Bill practiced and played at least a little zone himself, his teams would be better prepared to play against it!

5. Oops. One more! Notice how slowly Stanford played. We let them dictate tempo. Bill was stubborn again. Late in the game, he finally pressed. It worked. The game sped up. We got turnovers . . . . but it was too late. It’s a shame because Stanford basically played six while we have a deep bench.

PS I would never advocate replacing HCBS. 10 conference championships in a row and every year we have a good chance at a good tourney showing.

Rock Chalk!

@JayhawkRock78 Zona! Roy started Jared Hasse, and played him the whole first half . . . when he had a BROKEN wrist! These guys make millions of dollars, and they are the most stubborn people on the court. Against Cuse, Roy couldn’t shut down their three-point shooter. He had seven in the game! Either game could have been a banner!

@icthawkfan316 Cedric Hunter. 6’ 0" with a 37" sleeve length!

As to the title, the balls didn’t drop. Did any of you see them? This is simply a huge farce. I can’t believe that the sporting world continues to buy this. Oops. Then I remember my own mantra: Never overestimate the intelligence of the American public.

I also think Bill Self is lying when he says that no NBA teams have called him…I’m laughing so hard, I can’t stand it.bolded text

They call his agent . . . per protocol. Ya got ta know how it works, True. With it, Bill gets plausible denial.

@drgnslayr How times have changed! Mom bought me the coolest pair of pants for my first day of seventh grade. (1957) They were RED! Just khakis, dyed red, with a buckle in the back. Remember those? I was sent home because “They are disruptive.”

@JayhawkRock78 Since 1960, only the rising costs of healthcare have exceeded the rising costs of higher education. Notice the severe decline in completion /free market system in healthcare.

Having worked in academia (years I’m not proud of), I can tell you that 1) Many, many expenditures are made that have nothing to do with educating students, and 2) It is a closed system (a finite number of institutions) that feels NO reason to contain costs and compete on the basis of “economical,” quality education. Leading schools increase tuition, all the others follow.

@ralster I hope you are right!

Actually . . . it’s been a longer time since we saw quality athletes on the track than on the field! The KU Relays, between Penn and Drake, was something special. That was a long time ago.

I’ve been an active advocate for lowering the field since 1985. Now my concern is that the Athletic Department is finding out that it cannot raise the funds necessary to give us a first class football facility. I can see this becoming permanent, and we’ll never see the field lowered.

Worse than a back injury for a basketball player. Walton, for example, never was able to play at full strength because of recurring foot injuries. So many bones. So much stress.

@REHawk Forgive Wilt, Please. He came to Kansas, but because of some idiotic state legislators, he was not allowed to play for the coach who recruited him from Philly . . . a long way in those days. Wilt knew that had Phog been on the bench, we would have won a national championship. (Phog would not have been out-coached by Maguire as Dick Harp was.) The next year, the opposition learned from the championship game. Wilt was being triple teamed, and Harp couldn’t figure a way to help him out. Total frustration. The most dominant player ever to play the college game, and (our fault) we were unable to maximize his potential! PS In hindsight, this is where all that Tar Heel crap started!

I also think Bill Self is lying when he says that no NBA teams have called him…I’m laughing so hard, I can’t stand it.bolded text

They call his agent . . . per protocol. Ya got ta know how it works, True. With it, Bill gets plausible denial.

From my perspective, I was disappointed in Bill’s lack of effort in the Stanford game. Possibilities: 1) He was tired and dozed off. 2) He knew the season was over. I say that because he made NO changes offensively or defensively until it was way too late. The commentators ALL made suggestions on how to free-up Wiggins, for example. Bill waited to press until it was way too late. We all have “off” days. However, when you’re only on the bench 30-some days out of 365 and making 3+ mil, we fans have a right to expect your best effort every time.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a big supporter of Bill. I just think in 10+ years KU Basketball has missed out on some opportunities to be even better.

As to the title, the balls didn’t drop. Did any of you see them? This is simply a huge farce. I can’t believe that the sporting world continues to buy this. Oops. Then I remember my own mantra: Never overestimate the intelligence of the American public.

@nuleafjhawk Blame the state legislature who forced Allen to retire at 65. (Hard to believe.) Phog would not have lost to UNC!