Copied here for your convenience, a Recent Landen Lucas letter to KU fans

Kinda sums it up doesn’t it ?

“Dear Jayhawk Nation,

It might be strange to say, but I never truly understood what being a Kansas Jayhawk meant until my days in a KU uniform were over. It’s something I have learned in the two years since I played my final game in the Crimson and Blue. This week, when I have seen so many former players, coaches and fans, I believe I can now express what it means to be a member of this incredible community and how important that is to me.

Don’t get me wrong, I valued my time in Lawrence and as a member of this program. The wins we fought together for, the trophies we lifted and the memories we made are still surreal for me to this day. The epic triple-overtime win over Oklahoma, and coming back from 14 down in the final three minutes to beat West Virginia my senior year are just a snapshot of my favorite memories that we made.

But when you’re at the ground level, so invested in practice, in class, in games and everything else that 18-22 year olds face on a daily basis, it’s easy to forget to stop and take a look around to get a true appreciation of all the great things Kansas is.

Eventually it has all sunk in for me and I have realized what I was and am still a part of. I gained perspective and I now have a greater appreciation for what it means to be a part of this program, this school and this community. Playing in the games I played in and playing in front of the greatest fans in the country was truly the honor of a lifetime.

The fans – you are the backbone of this program. If you take one thing from this message, it’s this: Everything you do, it is noticed. From packing the Fieldhouse hours before tip-off, traveling in the thousands to road arenas, even writing letters and giving us words of encouragement. It all mean so much to this team. We might not always be able to show how much all these gestures mean to us, but everyone I know who has been a part of the program really does notice all of it and appreciates it.

My professional career has taken me all over the world and everywhere I go, there are Kansas fans somewhere. It’s hard to go through a day where I don’t run into at least one Jayhawk. You’re always so proud of the school and so appreciative of my small contribution to Kansas basketball and I’ll be forever grateful for that.

Being a Jayhawk is truly being a part of this family forever. Even once you leave, the feelings of belonging and legacy are still there. The continued support is like no other, whether it’s from the fans, donors or alumni, everyone comes together to form this incredible support structure that I feel very privileged to be a part of.

As a part of this KU family, you are a part of something that’s so much bigger than yourself. Every time we stepped on the court and wore the “Kansas” across our chest, we were representing something way bigger than the team. Being a part of something like that makes you want to strive to be your best and that is what being a Jayhawk is all about.

Thank you for all you have done for me, Kansas basketball and the University. It will forever be an honor to be able to call myself a Jayhawk.

Rock Chalk!

Landen Lucas ('17)”

You can say all you want about Landen’s skills as a player, but he gets it to the core. And that core is why l LOVE KU basketball.

Gee I wonder what kind of note a guy like Quentin Grimes is going to write someday?

History my friends History … let’s hope we all live long fruitful lives and never see this record streak broken - ever

If the ncaa tourney format were a 2 of 3 game series, or 3 of 5, Virginia would bounce back and win. But now they will go down in history as the first 1 seed to lose to a 16. Hard to shake that moniker. Virginia will live with it forever.

sooooo Glad it wasn’t us - glad penn didn’t shoot the lights out while we went dead cold.

This is a great example of why college age kids winning 6 games in a row is so damn hard. Luck plays a huge part as with everything else. I love the tourney, but it is NERVE-RACKING, and the older I get, the more nerve-racking it gets for me. Because KU is perennially a top tier team, not making the final weekend is always seen (and feels Like) a big downer way to end what had been a fun, often glorious season (14 conference championships in a row etc, great KU players, the fun, the magic… the whole wonderful experience of being a fan of arguably the greatest college bball program in history.) wish I could find a way to just enjoy it more rather that be full of nerves… part of it is also the impending knowledge that come what may, November 2018 when our boys start playing again is a LONG way away - although being Nat. Champs would make that wait SO much more fun lol.

One game at a time I suppose, and take it for what it is… the big ups, and the big downs. Find a way to win and play hard, and hope a few bounces and shots go your way. Completely abandon any thinking like “…wait we should be beating these guys by 30!! …”

I am going to be super pumped and positive today and on to the final four!

!!! I thought this may happen… Kensucky losing!!! Makes this year less disappointing…

Since I have neither the basketball acumen nor the attention span to write a weighty analysis on KU’s play in the tournament or tonite’ game, I am left with random musings…

1. Frank , Devonte and Josh are never afraid to shoot no matter the situation - ever. Players like them with brass cahones are pure money in the tourney when the stakes get so high

2. swarming pestering help on D by our quick guards and josh neutralized purdues twin towers, even when it looked like they were going to take over. I am now not as afraid of whatever big men we now will face, because we seem to find a way.

3. josh does sooooo many things even when he is not shooting well and turning over the ball on offense. He is everywhere - I honestly don’t remember Wiggins throwing himself around like this- he finds a way to be a net positive. He has one speed - 11

4. one minute Purdue was hanging tough, keeping the score close, playing confidently and stoutly, and then in the seeming blink of an eye they were down by 15 and the wind knocked completely out of them. Commentators used the word "avalanche " to describe it - the Kansas Avalanche- I like it .

5. I’m a the-tournament-does-not-define-our-season guy. (I’m guessing I’m in the minority somewhat about this issue of how important the big dance is in defining success) 13 B12 titles in a row is a monumental Achievement, so I am already a happy camperino (Flanders ) But of course this team is certainly good enough to win a championship, (if only skill alone were the defining factor in winning the dance) so I stand by my statement a month ago that I of course would be disappointed by a first weekend loss, pretty disappointed by a 16 loss, and mildly disappointed by an 8 loss, and be happy for a final four. Anything past that is gravy for me, so let’s keep the gravy flowing !

6. West Virginia shot like 26% against 40-plus % shooting of Gonzaga and the game still came down to one possession. Gonzagas coach said it was the toughest most physical opponent his team has has in SEVERAL YEARS. Yes, folks the B12 is tough, and the west coast conference is not. I am not afraid of gonzaga at this point.

7. is it me, or is our defense waaaaay better in the past 3 games?

8 keep shooting the three ball boys… no time to stop fools gold avalanche now :

Speaking of re-watching the game, Garrett put on an absolute CLINIC defensively, and his boxing out should be shown to any team or player on how it’s done… spectacular.

Actually I think I may have discovered where he went…

a guy who writes just like him, apparently called BDevilbate, is on a Duke site writing voluminously long and zen-like meandering but crazy-brilliant posts… lovingly extolling the genius of krzyzewski and the glowing magnificent heritage of Duke basketball… and how he catfished us here for years simply to amuse himself.

It appears his “love” of KU was just nothing but a put-on… an abject sham. Hideous.

(Ok…Trying to piss him off enough to resurface just to rip me a new one in say 7 alliterative paragraphs…

Well, my wife does agree about better from behind… that way we can both watch the game …

(I’ll go away now)

@wrwlumpy awesome pic of Barbara ! Wow. Really brings me back … Many memories Of my 13 yr old self coming home from school, grabbing a big bowl of captain crunch, and watching the afternoon lineup of gilligans island, mchales navy, and i dream of jeannie, and screaming at larry hagman …" Jeannie just asked you yet AGAIN ‘if theres ANYTHING i can do for you master’ … !!! What in the %#+*#% HELL is WRONG with you!!! " Ginger, maryanne and jeannie were a potent mix for my young hormones…

I’m worried about all the self-can’t-get-past-elite-8 posts coming if we do lose. Should be a tough tough game. And yep if we hit our shots, we should be

But So far, This has been a great season, let’s face it! Win or lose, been a great ride for me at least.

North Carolina not so hot either… it’s nice to see both Kentucky and NC not dominating and out of the rankings… now if only #20 Dook can sink out of the top 25! I shouldn’t gloat too much because it’s early and there’s time for one or all of them to get good when it counts in March. Meanwhile Gonzaga will try hard to stay motivated as they go thru the motions mugging the weak teams in their division.

This guy Bill Self … year after year We get to see what he builds with the guys he manages to recruit… methinks he pretty damn good coach

Speaking of my favorite player- espn article ranking the top 25 players this season…

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/insider/story/_/id/30361224/ranking-top-25-players-men-college-basketball-2020-21-season

Excellent post mr. WissoxBate- thanks

Yeah that all makes sense. I know his coming back would be extremely unlikely, I’m Just gonna miss Garrett- one of my all time fav J-hawks. In my 25 years of closely following the team, his is the only jersey I currently own.

Yes he can bank some money overseas for a while. From his high basketball IQ, He may have the makings of a coach someday. Self absolutely loves the guy - loves him, and will help him if he wants to coach.

Under this rule, Can Garrett come back ?

I must say – it’s nice to have one of these no stress games where you get to watch everybody play… I’m sure we’re gonna have more than our fair share of stress games coming up

Was it Thompson who hit those pull up jumpers?? God I wish more KU players would work on that shot… it’s a totally worthwhile shot attempt. Instead they just want to either shoot a three or drive to the bucket and get blocked or lose the handle so many times.

Good to see Mitch do some good things out there. I will NEVER say anything willfully bad about a kid who absolutely is a Jayhawk for life guy. He is what he is and I love his effort.

Weird team this year. Wilson is apparently our Lawson-type go-to-scorer. I suppose we need a guy with brass balls to take the offense when needed into his own hands. Biggus Davus is… well, he seems to be lacking in fine motor skills? Or he can’t seem to fine tune that big body of his. He can’t seem to figure out how time a shot block attempt. I don’t think he has good hops for his height. One announcer said he plays constantly like his hair is on fire. Agree totally. My god, someone teach him how to shot fake. Get the ball in his usual spot, back in with a dribble or two if he’s not double teamed, then shot fake to get his defender up in the air then just go up into his arms and draw the foul. He can shoot free throws well which is great- weird that he can control his free throw motion so well when in game play he flails around. He is late on switches constantly. Late in last nites game, He watched a creighton guy off a switch drain an uncontested three when all he had to do was move up on him. The creighton guy couldn’t believe it either. The announcer even got mad at Dave. So frustrating to see a guy try sooooo hard, and yet not seem to get some basic things. He should be a MUCH better rebounder. Sigh. But clearly Self is gonna keep giving him many minutes, at least until it’s obvious another lineup is working much better.

Watched the Villanova-Texas game recently… the announcer said a very interesting thing about villanova… he remarked that in the past several years their big men probably have led the nation on shot fakes and FOULS DRAWN on shot fakes. So… this can’t just be Villanova recruiting guys who can shot fake, clearly this has to be an emphasis with jay wright and taught by the coaches at villanova. So if it is teachable, why can’t we teach our big men??? Biggus Davus in particular. He is a good foul shooter. He is not all that great at anything else. I suppose Maybe learning how to effectively shot fake is quite difficult, and not worth the time of self and co to spend with BD?

Pull up jumpers … need more attempts of that shot Rather than constant drives

Harris a four year player I’m assuming…, Thank god for us. Self and staff found another gem guard