Posts made by drgnslayr

@kuballin10

The conversation about Self and his quick hook has been around for years. Your posts on this makes me think more about specifics and impact. I’ve always questioned PT with various players. I think this year’s issues over the last couple weeks has taken an optimistic fan base to an angry, pessimistic group quickly. The real season has just started and few fans feel any sort of optimism, including myself. I feel like this is probably the least-prepared team I’ve experienced under Self while we are touted as the most-experienced team in America.

How do we have so many seasoned players unable to play basic offense or defense? Why does our 5-yr PG look lost? What exactly is KJ doing out there for 30+ mpg and hardly even gain a single stat on the stat sheet? Why isn’t HD setting up in the low post and averaging 20 ppg?

I am quickly confused. I see some of your points then I wonder how we won in 2022? I coached kids for probably 20 years and I played for 20. If I taught a kid to do something then asked him to do it in a game… he did it. This isn’t rocket science. My son is 11 and I guarantee you his team plays better set offense than this team.

Something stinks in Denmark. I don’t know what it is yet but I feel very negative news is coming our way soon.

Zeke plays with poise… he assesses the situation and finds ways to help his team. This is not just because he knows spacing. AJ/Rylan are thinking too much, hence they play slow until they commit on a move. Zeke is completely untethered from thought. It is a joy watching him play, and a pity other guys can’t pick up on his poise and apply it, too.

Self should ask Hunter and Flory the same question… “Are you willing to stay in the low block and fight it out for positioning, rebounds, and shot selection?” Hunter is more gifted at low post scoring, but if he doesn’t apply himself it doesn’t translate to the stat sheet. Flory brings energy. It’s the energy many people thought KJ used to have. KJ was never much of an energy guy. People thought that because he has monster slams. Energy guys get rebounds, even if they are small guys (Zeke).

Hunter needs to always have a foot in the paint. He offers nothing when he’s not there. Flory… just needs to play from half-court to under the basket… the guy has a motor, speed, and enthusiasm!

I would now bring KJ off the bench. See if we can get him inspired to fight for minutes.

We should run more scoring plays for our guards not named Harris. This will help Harris’ esteem because he’ll go back to doing what he knows… being the assist leader.

This team has bad body language right now. Self has to find a way to get these guys jacked up. He’s never been that type of coach and I’ve been amazed how many wins he has without playing the role of cheerleader.

I wonder if there is some active dissent within the players. This is not a group of guys who seem like best friends, and friends with their coaches. There is ZERO team playing shining through.

My expectations for this team are quite low now. I see a middle-of-the-pack team in B12 standings. If a few things went wrong even worse, we could miss March Madness.

There are so many things wrong… but as Self said… all those things are magnified when you play with no energy. He has to take responsibility for this… it is part of the responsibilities of the coaches. Right now I’d like to trade 20% of Self for 20% of Shaka Smart.

Meanwhile… ISU is looking legit! Coach Ox seems to know how to make the transfer portal work for him.

TEMPO - What’s that? We don’t know because we aren’t aware of it. I was so optimistic for a couple early games when we ran… we literally got our shots up within about 5 seconds. Everyone was in full sprint. We even started games in a press. Use all those bodies!

STRENGTH vs WEAKNESS - Quit trying to force a style of play that clearly isn’t working. All those transfers had good numbers before arriving. Watch their past games and feed to their strengths. Create conditions they already know and make them feel comfortable.

JUAN - his strength is running an offense with structure, spacing, and timing. Handing him the ball and telling him to make magic doesn’t work.

KJ - he needs a male mentor to kick his ass. He doesn’t have a dad in his life… right? Someone has to make him into an alpha or he has ruined any professional ball ambitions he might have.

HUNTER - didn’t think we could find a big with worse feet than McCormick… but we did. He shouldn’t be allowed to step outside the paint on either side of the ball.

ZEKE - make him into a volume scorer. Set picks for him and run clear outs. Give him the ball and let him know none of his shots are bad shots. Get him up around 30 per game. Then start feeding others as he draws double teams.

Excuse me… any new believers?

https://kubuckets.com/topic/13581/christmas-gift-to-kj

Here is his stats for the game:

28 minutes… 2 points on 1 of 5 fg attempts. 1 rebound (def rebound). 1 TO. 3 PF.

“I’m expecting a low scoring drag-out fight to the finish. Seems like we always look bad after no games and heavy practice. It’s like a complete start over to the season. I have a feeling it will come down to Hunt and Zeke scoring half or more of our points. I always jinx us on predictions so I’ll predict a loss.”

This was too easy to predict.

I know playing bad happens to the best of teams. But this showed way more than playing bad. This loss clearly goes to our coaching.

I only caught the last 10 minutes of the game. That told me everything I needed to know. In just that period we must have been beat 5 times on the high ball screen with Hunter stepping out and their big on a pick and roll destroying us every time. You all saw the whole game. How many times did they crush us with that? We all know Hunter is slow… why would we have him step out on a high ball screen? What happened to teaching our guards how to fight through screens?

When the same thing beats us over and over in a game and we don’t adjust, who takes the fault for the loss?

Beyond that… it looks like some of our old team habits from many years… not showing up ready to play a game. I was so hopeful this year in our early games where we came out with enthusiasm and ran.

This is way beyond ridiculous. It feels like someone should call it in to the feds for intentionally blowing a game for gambling reasons.

I’m expecting a low scoring drag-out fight to the finish. Seems like we always look bad after no games and heavy practice. It’s like a complete start over to the season. I have a feeling it will come down to Hunt and Zeke scoring half or more of our points. I always jinx us on predictions so I’ll predict a loss.

@nuleafjhawk

I’ve never fully understood the term “animal husbandry” and that doesn’t bother me.

It appears the purple kitties have a severe case of blue balls. They are both impotent and have been kicked in the balls. Tang’s approach of bringing spirituality to a farm school may not have panned out. They need more than prayer now… more like an exorcism. Looking like they may remain a revolving door school for coaches.

How many years away are we from another game?

I’ve done twiddled my thumbs down to stubbs.

I’m sick of watching trivial bowl games and Formula 1 is on break…

@mayjay

One man doesn’t make a champ in the NBA… not even Jordan. But I am surprised he didn’t get one in Philly.

@SlimShaddy54

I get that he’ll never be a Barkley, especially with Barkley’s offensive capabilities. He doesn’t need to be Barkley. I’d take half-Barkley.

We need him to become “Barkley Lite!” lol

@SlimShaddy54

I wasn’t sure on overall game averages on rebounds… I just remember several games where Zeke doubled him up. We have to remember that Zeke is often on the outside of the trey line on offense while KJ, if not setting a pick, is much closer to the basket. There is no good excuse for his rebounding… none… Barkley treats the ball like it is a baby tossed out of the window of a burning building. That is the difference between him and KJ.

No way KJ is as gifted at scoring as Barkley… but he would increase his point totals if he rebounded 10+ boards a game… either on offensive putbacks, or trips to the charity stripe.

@DanR

My thoughts exactly… but this is a criticism that should be leveled at all our coaching staff. None of our guys know how to box out on a consistent basis. I think Dan Hurley is about the only D1 coach that still teaches fundamentals. Pathetic.

@rockchalkjayhawk

I will miss KJ when he’s gone. Not because I enjoy criticizing him. He is a crowd favorite for a reason. I’m going to miss his super slam dunks and his huge smile and enthusiasm after a big play. I’m just not going to miss having a 4 averaging only 4 rpg. Especially one built like Adonis who gets pushed around by skinny, small guys.

@BeddieKU23

A+!

@everyone

I know this is a broken record. I apologize. I just hate to see this team not reach anywhere near their potential and in my book, KJ is the key piece that could not only add huge stats (and victories) but also ignite this team! An alpha KJ would put this team in the drivers seat for another April trophy!

I love KJ. But it’s hard love. He brings so much to the game, but he doesn’t bring enough.

I’m hard on KJ, the nice guy, because I feel sure he is the player that will determine what we do in March this year. Why is that? Because he is a guy who leaves most of what he could do in every game in the locker room.

I know I’ll probably get hit with some negative reactions… but tell me why he’s being outrebounded by Zeke? I’m not sure but I bet Zeke has twice his rebound average.

KJ is our athletic freak on this team. There are few athletes in college basketball with his physique and tone. Who shouldn’t he own in college basketball? He showed potential when he battled Cooper head-to-head.

He should be a double-double machine, every friggin’ game.

I’m not going to let him off the hook for being such a nice guy and he has a great spirit, shown by him catching up to his team after losing his mother. KJ is a great soul and teammate. But I’m talking about something else.

So I’m sending KJ a Christmas gift. Just for him. A clip he needs to watch every morning, right when he wakes up, before every game, and the last thing he looks at before bedtime so he can dream about his conversion to become the next Charles Barkley.

Pay attention to the Shaq interview. Barkley was only 6’4" and size didn’t mean anything.

Merry Christmas to everyone… and especially to you, KJ, because I’m sick of you leaving your game in your head instead of on the court.

I’ve been enjoying this year of college basketball… even with all the weird changes in the game. It seemed like the transfer portal would destroy the competitiveness of the game but there are plenty of upsets. I know a lot of people are still miffed over Jayhawk basketball dropping a couple against unranked opponents. Then I look at our sister school, UNC… 6-5 and still hasn’t beat a ranked team.

Sounds awesome! Maybe he’s trying to maximize his KU experience and wants to make more of a contribution right out of the blocks!

I’ll do that later today

@SlimShaddy54 said in Guys in casae you hadn't heard ,- -we got us a absolute STUD coming:

@kuballin10 Watch , I’d be willing to bet that come next year your going to see Coach Self have tendencies to just turn Darry n loose more times then not.

Which makes me think… maybe the most-positive angle on recruiting OADs is that it forces Self to change his ways. He does seem to bend his own rules when it comes to OADs.

On the other hand… I always think I know how Self must change to be more successful. Ghezus… I’m such a ridiculous couch potato! lol

It’s evil to keep shoving us in at preseason #1 every year. First, we don’t deserve it and just builds the hate against us because we get judged as privileged. I’ve heard us mentioned in the same foul wind as Puke! Second, I believe it thwarts our development.

I’m as excited as I can be for landing an OAD again… a one-year disruption from building a more complete team concept from multiple-year players. But now with the portal, guess I might as well throw my hat in the ring because most of college basketball is now a revolving door.

One thing I noticed in our current two-game skid… from Self’s own words. We do not have an identity yet. I get where he is coming from, but what about the overwhelming identity of being a Jayhawk? Playing at Kansas is an identity by itself… I know when we go into another school they are always jacked up to play the Jayhawks, regardless of the quality of our team that year.

@approxinfinity Hurley is more likely to fire himself.

SLOW DOWN… people! Is it the end of our season already?

I stayed up last night and watched the game on tape. It was bad… no question. Is it the end? Hell no?

Is it possible we were too optimistic about our incoming transfers’ play in the fall? Hell yes! I’m not going to flip out yet. I know we all have some PTSD from last year, but this is not that team and give it time.

It is normal for players to come in and start cold on a new team. They are unsettled. Doesn’t matter that they are experienced D1 players. I am definitely willing to take some bad losses now instead of later. I keep flashing back to 2022 and how bad Kentucky smoked us in AFH. We played like p*sses in that game… just like now.

The KUSports article calls it right in that this team has no identity yet. But also, individual players have no identity, too.

All I care about is how we are trending later in the year. Sure worked in 2022!

Right now we need only ONE PLAYER to step up and fight like it’s Meso ball! I still say the #1 underachiever on this team is the guy who is also famous on this team for hustling… KJ! With a body like his and athleticism to go with it, to see him averaging 3 or 4 rebounds a game is pathetic. And it gives the entire team an excuse to slack off on some duties. If he would just focus on what it takes to own the boards… he should be averaging near double-digit numbers in rebounds, even playing beside a guy like Hunter.

I think the trey shooting will come around. I’m really not worried about it. The guys will go work their butts off over Christmas to develop some flow and watch those numbers climb.

Our confidence has been punched in the gut. But we will come off the canvas and fight back. These guys will find they have enough pride to get up and fight. Even Hunter will take on the challenge once the team trends in the right direction. He’s a unique guy, not really a leader, yet he will fight when the team fights.

Self will figure this out. He’ll review tape and see how the guys got out of their rhythm then will address it with them to right the ship.

So glad we are no longer #1. That never bodes well for us to be ranked at the top!

I never saw the game today. Had to work.

But let me guess… not enough hustle… played slow and deliberate and predictable. Dug a deep hole we couldn’t quite get out of.

I see TOs were an issue. So if we played slow, we were probably overthinking. Our guys need to just come mentally prepared where they don’t have to think much while playing… just perform at full speed.

Does my comment fit the game, or not?

@Zabudda

The hatred is still there in the fan bases… probably not the players unless there are a few local players on the team. Maybe Zeke feels it. Juan is from mizzery. I’m not sure how he feels about it. But fans like to inject the emotions into the players. Guess we will see. You can bet the crowd will be going nuts.

I’m not feeling optimistic… but I do think Self will sell the importance to the team!

@wissox

I think Juan was very frustrated in this game. I’m certain of that.

He’s used to there being more options. Hunter in the paint? Didn’t happen. KJ pick and roll? Nope. Juan drive and feed? They did a good job of clogging the passing lanes.

So Harris would make the drive, do what he always does (commit in the air to doing something but not sure until the last second), then not having a good option except shoot it. They dared him to shoot it. He did! His cold shooting was because he was outside of his process for getting to that point of hitting a shot.

McDermott is a great coach. I’ve always respected this guy.

Still… there are all kinds of lessons to be learned from this game. I’m glad we lost. Best we face some of these things now on xmas break instead of later, like in Feb/March!

Now that’s over… we better thrash Mizzou! Send those hillbillies back to the woods in shame! lol I don’t even think there are hills in Mizz… lol

@nuleafjhawk

Not completely like that… but did you notice he wasn’t on the sidelines being all animated like he was in past games?

This was a game where the fellas really needed a charge from the sidelines. He seemed absent to me.

I have a lot of faith in Self. If he did this… they needed it. I’ve seen other teams we’ve had that barely lose any games all year then flop in the tournament. I don’t think our guys are so big headed… but maybe they just aren’t progressing as quick as he would like them to. Maybe.

We are coming up to XMas break… lots of extra practice… and the coaches need plenty of things to hammer these guys on!

This is my theory… Ask me what is the best bait to catch alligators. It’s chicken! lol

My backseat coaching is pretty comfortable. Big huge ol’ lazyboy recliner without a single person questioning my ideas while I spew them during games. lol

@nuleafjhawk

lol! Comment of the day!

HERE IS MY GUESS AS TO WHAT WENT DOWN -

I had just recently mentioned how Self looked so good… he was pacing the sidelines and barking out instructions with great energy!

This game… it was that other Self from the past. Just sitting almost the entire game and small talk with assistant coaches.

This game was used as a lesson.

My bet… the boys were getting a little too top heavy in the head. Thought a little too high of themselves. Self needed this moment to educate them… including Hunter. So he basically kicked back and watched the game, leaving them on their own, knowing full well they were going to get their butts handed to them.

And now the criticisms pour in! Not only in fan base groups. Podcasts, and other media… lambasting… mostly Hunter! There are always a few reserved for KJ and Juan.

It’s all fuel for the fire!

Boy, I remember the fuel truck that pulled into the big campfire lit when we got smoked by UK on our own court in 2022. That fire blazed all the way through April and finally ended at our National Championship parade on Mass Street!

KUSPORTS basically bailed out Hunter, saying it was all because they sunk in on him. Funny… because only ONE KU player had a positive +/-… Zach! He was the only player that brought energy!

"So… maybe it’s time we start snorting down Hunter’s neck? lol

I guarantee everyone in here… the dude has another gear he isn’t giving us yet. I bet he doesn’t even know it’s there. If the guy can reach down deep in that huge frame and pull out another 10% of hustle, this team will become a National Champion again!"

I stand corrected… two gears!

@SlimShaddy54

I heard he’s supposed to go limited minutes. Might be a bluff.

This is college basketball… not the old NBA days where every team had a monster in the paint and those gladiators would battle for every square inch of turf.

Hunter has 20+ ppg every single game if he’s willing to armor up and bash bodies down low. Unfortunately, I think he prefers a finesse game.

Tomorrow will be a great test when he battles Kalkbrenner in the paint. We will see if he’s ready for a battle.

I’m now giving a big “pat on the back” to all the posters in here that are often critical of everything KU basketball. Me included.

Somehow the wind of our stench has blown all the way back to our coaches and players… probably via some of the sports media helping carry the scent beyond our small, humble webspot.

Juan and KJ have turned it up a big notch! Maybe it’s a case of senioritis… or just maybe, they woke up to the criticism leveled by many.

If those two stay turned up, we will be a very tough out against all D1 opponents.

So… maybe it’s time we start snorting down Hunter’s neck? lol

I guarantee everyone in here… the dude has another gear he isn’t giving us yet. I bet he doesn’t even know it’s there. If the guy can reach down deep in that huge frame and pull out another 10% of hustle, this team will become a National Champion again!

So Hunter… you out there? I’m coming for you! I’m coming for that extra 10%! Your at the crossroads… this is where you turn left and get lost in the Jayhawk annals into nothingness… or you go right and bludgeon every opponent from here on out and retire a champion at KU basketball and become a LEGEND! Let me tell you what that is like… no wait… give a call to Chalmers or Manning and ask them what its like to be a legend!

Hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving! I just feel grateful to still be around… been a tough couple of years. Lost 6 close people and still have a few circling the airport with terminal illnesses. I really feel like we have a “war on cancer.” It’s made me humble and thankful at the same time.

If you watched UCONN take it’s third loss in a row last night against Dayton… you experienced Karaban make the same undercut that happened to Hunter. He was called for a flagrant 1. In our case, we have our big ejected for reacting off being targeted to be injured. This was a crime!!

@wissox Are you sure about that? I only saw 3.0 go to 2.9. I’ll rerun it and check.

Coit wasn’t effective because of the height and athleticism. But he will be valuable in other situations. I’m thrilled how our guys did against the height!

We seem to have plenty of SPARK on this team! Some of that energy has to be from running in so many players so everyone gets some rest. I hope we get Shak back soon!

I’m still on a buzz after yesterday’s game. Why shouldn’t I buzz like a beehive? We scored a big win against a stable of lottery picks and the tallest team in the country!

DUKE CALLS: YES. The phenomenon lives on! We can no longer say it’s favoritism towards K. I will start with the obvious… no punishment for undercutting Hunter! Anyone who has ever dribbled a basketball knows that was a complete cheap shot and warranted a severe call. Hunter retaliated… and I know everyone will jump on Hunter for doing what he did. I thought that way, too, at the time. Having a night to sleep on it… Hunter did the right thing! Only Hunter can stick up for his protection on the court because big guys are always targeted for cheap shots that can put them out of commission. I wish he had blooded his face. Might as well since he received the death penalty.

Now for the Duke call no one is talking about. “The game is won by inches and tenths of seconds!” This is what I was taught playing ball in my youth. Duke advanced the ball to half-court only using .1 second. That is absolutely impossible! It is not possible to catch a ball and call time out using .1 second. Usually, the standard of minimum time to run off a clock on an inbounds play is .3 seconds. This is the minimum. Having one player both catch the ball and call timeout should be a good .5 seconds. This had me screaming every bit as much as the Hunter call!

BILL SELF IS ALIVE AND WELL! Am I the only one who noticed how good Bill looks this season (concerning his health)? He was running the sidelines and coaching throughout the game but especially down the stretch. I recall entire seasons where he sat on the bench and whispered to an assistant during games.

KJ’s BEST GAME AS A JAYHAWK! I’m going along with that! He made many key plays and baskets, and mostly, he shutdown Cooper for most of the game. But he did have help, and I had mentioned before Self might pull something out of his bag… and he did… with constant double-teams and it worked very well!

JUAN LOOKING TO SCORE! Finally! I said earlier that we can’t go too far if Juan leads us in scoring. I’m not so sure now. For one reason, we have balanced scoring coming from everyone on the team! They are all a threat and contribute and it happens often when not expected… but appreciated! Juan has turned his game up a notch and we will be hard to beat in March if we stay healthy and Juan keeps his pedal to the metal!

HUMILITY AND PERSPECTIVE HAVE TO BE MAINTAINED! Okay, we’ve beaten some good teams early on and remain undefeated and #1, but come on, this team has a long way to go before we proclaim their greatness. We were lucky on Duke’s second-to-last play that Kon didn’t see a wide-open Cooper on the trey line! That would have done wonders for the kid’s short college stint legacy!

DUKE REMAINS AMERICA’S TEAM TO HATE! They have become a recruiting monster that gets about all the players they want. That Kon kid is almost as good as Cooper. All I can say is the pressure is on Scheyer to turn lottery picks into titles. If he can’t soon, he’ll end up another Calipari… selling dreams and bragging rights for a big goose egg in March! I hope he fails miserably!

SUDDENLY WE LEARNED TO SHOOT FTS?! 91.7% from the line? Look how important that was in this game! Had we shot 70% we probably would have lost this game! Can we expect this every game? Of course not! But we shouldn’t be a mediocre FT shooting team. We have a team full of shooters and we should maintain one of the higher percentages in the country! Come on, fellas, take pride in this stat and focus on it!

LOVING OUR DEPTH! I still have PTSD from last year! But I will get over it… and quickly… because we now have a bench capable of keeping up with our starters and sometimes sparking a fire in our play!

RCJH!

Cooper is a baller. No doubt. But he’s 17 and he’s already choked twice now! He will no doubt choke in March, too, because he’s a friggin’ kid.

He’s “fool’s gold” for Duke. Everything rides on him. I prefer our team full of experienced players and a 5-year PG who already has a ring.

Scheyer is Calipari2. Speaking of Calipari… I’ve heard the first “buyer’s remorse” is going down in Hogtown! I’m shocked! lol

@Texas-Hawk-10 I’m glad you experienced that game in person!

And I’m glad ratface was in attendance to see them lose again!

Tonight’s game brought back a lot of old memories for me about Duke.

I have tried. I have tried, over the years, to soften my view of the world and that includes Duke.

F - PUKE!

They go out and play dirty then whine for every little call. Scheyer is a p*ssy! They can buy the best recruits. They can own the refs. But they remain the team America hates.

Hunter’s foot tap was wrong. He didn’t deserve to be ejected. And what about the guy who undercut him? Talk about a REAL RISK OF INJURY!

F - PUKE!

This is a game that will be won by who controls the style… the tempo. That and rebounds. Total possessions.

We are playing a team full of freshmen… and a coach who is basically a freshman. This would be a great time for Self to pull something out of the bag of tricks. I’ll never forget what he did to Memphis in '08, putting Rush out at point to disrupt the flow. Pure brilliance!

Disrupt this group of freshmen and lets not only win, but embarrass them in the process!

There is only ONE major factor in this game… Duke’s Achilles heel… FRESHMEN!

@Texas-Hawk-10 Enjoy yourself! 10 years ago I would be jealous. Now, I’m old and will settle for bbq and a big screen TV! lol

@Zabudda

We better not think we can go toe-to-toe in a game based on height.

I’m hoping we try what we did in our last game and get out and run. We should be willing to try several things to see what works. This Duke team is crazy talented and tall. Not sure their weaknesses. I would think our best shot is to try to control the tempo and find a tempo we do well at and they struggle.

Our on-ball and ball screen defense has to be energetic and pesky to disrupt their offense.

I know one thing… Self better have stressed rebounding this past week. It’s the key to controlling tempo and possessions. KJ! Come on, brother! Get in there and fight!

I have no idea if this is a championship-caliber team yet. But what I do know is this is a team with a plethora of fun pieces! I’m going to have a ball watching regardless of April expectations!

Surely we will have other games where our guys tie their laces extra tight and go out there and run like stallions!

@ImmunoHawk @kuballin10

I’m excited for this team. Guys like David come in with so much energy. Zeke has a lot of that same energy, but on a bigger frame. Yes, guys like Kevin Young made big impacts, probably more on the rest of the team than on any given play.

Self mentioned that we are seeing a “turned up” Juan this year. He mentioned part might be because he’s a senior and seniors play more all out. He also mentioned the reduction of Juan’s minutes. Juan played 29 minutes. That will make a big difference, not only in that particular game but will mean less wear-and-tear on Juan as the season progresses.

@BShark

I’m pretty sure it won’t be long before teams stop doing that. Juan has led us in scoring at least twice now in our 4 games (4 games, right?). Juan hasn’t always “taken what the defense gives” but I think he will this year. I’m not sure how he calculates when to shoot and when to pass. It’s part of his basketball IQ, something obviously supported by Self.

@wissox

Buddy… you better get with the program! lol It’s going to be an exciting year of basketball for us! We have some new league challenges and it will be fun to watch this team progress. I believe this team will show us regular progress as the year goes on. It’s not always been that way with our teams, but I think this team has enough depth and guys with multiple skill sets to continually show us new opportunities. I’m positive this is not a year where you want to sleep through any games!

Instead of adding to the gameday post… thought it was worth it to start a more in-depth discussion on last night’s game.

In my 60-year experience with Jayhawk basketball I can’t recall another game where we came out so fast! We would even put Roy’s teams to shame with the open-court speed. It never took us more than a few seconds to get a shot up.

We also showed some full court pressure! Bravo!

I know it is pre-conference play and my guess is that Self is just mixing things up to see what happens. However… it excited me to see our boys run! How many teams have we had in the past that was deep and full of speed but we never used it? How often have we all mentioned not ever using a press? How many times have we started games slow… falling behind teams, especially low-rated teams, where we have to fight and claw to make a late comeback?

More than anything else… one huge criticism of Bill Self, throughout the years is his unwillingness to specifically strategize a unique game execution based on the other team. Bill has always just run KU’s game and all our opponents always knew exactly what to expect.

X-AXIS BALL - The dream lives on!

I’m not so sure our MVP on this team by year’s end won’t be David Coit! He brings hustle. He brings speed. I wonder if our tempo increase is being influenced by David. What are practices like? Also, I give a lot of credit to Zeke. He definitely could be my MVP this year!

Between Harris, Coit, and Mayo, they dropped in 40 pts! Basically half our scoring from 3 small guys. Granted Mayo is 6’4"… but he moves like a small guy and is the epitome of x-axis ball. For those unfamiliar with “x-axis basketball” it is a term I’ve used in here for years. It is the focus on playing a horizontal game more than a vertical game. Less height and more on speed and using the court to it’s maximum potential.

Team Basketball and a fun year!

It was fun reading the stat sheet this morning. Every player made a contribution! I’m feeling this team is on the path of really coming together well! I think AJ might take a little more patience because he appears to be the “thinker” on the team and he’ll be punished most by a faster tempo.

We are all worried about the defensive potential with this team. Can they pick up the Self philosophy? I saw some pretty good indications in this game that say YES! We had more players just playing and not over-thinking. All our guys brought energy! It was a joy watching us disrupt this opponent’s offense. Our weakside help is starting to show improvement. Everything works better when a team has energy.

Love that offensive play with 14 minutes left in the game. Our 3 veterans… Harris pass to KJ pass to Hunter for the slam! We are starting to see other players figuring out offense, too.

This is so much NOT a typical Self team! I’m very excited to see this year play out!

RCJH!

I think we are experiencing the beginning of higher recruits coming in again. Gone is the NCAA threat. Here is the good NIL revenue stream and a HOFr coach sitting at the top of college basketball right now!

I just hope we limit being an OAD farm. It really doesn’t make sense now to go after most of these players unless it is a guy who definitely makes us a contender in that one year.

The portal should remain our main recruiting focus. Sprinkle in a few outstanding HS recruits.

@kjayhawks

I grew up playing center because I had early height. By the time I reached junior high the other boys had caught me. By high school I had guard size but with big man skills. I tried… really tried to become a distance shooter, but never panned out. So my later ball all was based on big man skills… mostly defending and rebounding. My last team before my days ended on an injury was on a team with a 7’1" center. I always had to play him in practice and for the most part I dominated him. Height is a great thing. If all other things are equal, added height is a huge help. Otherwise… executing your game is by far #1.

I’m taking bets right now on Zeke vs KJ on RPM (rebs per minute).

@dylans

I relate exactly to your last post. I could see the ball right after it left the hand where it was going about 80% of the time… so I would hustle to get the right positioning.

Some of positioning you can be taught without seeing the ball. Like if a ball is shot from the corner… most rebounds will go towards the other corner (opposite direction from shooter). If someone is shooting from out front, most boards stay in front of the goal. Pretty basic stuff.

Sometimes I knew someone was going to shoot and before it left his hand I was already headed to a spot where it was a good chance the board was going there.

College basketball has become a pretty darn wimpy sport. I can’t think of the last time I really saw a guy battle for position, or seal off his spot well.

BASKETBALL TIP-OF-THE-DAY: If you are a college player and want more minutes and attention… learn how to rebound. No one else is doing it. You may not make the league some day, but I guarantee if you are snagging 10+ boards a game you will get your playing time!

I think we all love KJ… and we feel the pain of seeing such a physical specimen and great athlete… not quite reaching a high enough platform to take it to the league next year. He’s such a great person and while here has become a man. I know he’s one of Self’s favorites, too.

Monster kudos to the fellas! Great win!

We would have had a perfect season if we had scored 3 more points against the purple kitties! lol

This will turn out to be a toughening year. The real education goes to Coach L.

@bskeet said in KJ Rebounding:

These are two of the most experienced and successful coaches in their sports. I gotta believe they know more than those of us in the stands.

100%! But it’s good for fans not just to praise emperors. It then becomes a kingdom, with the emperor wearing no clothes. I criticize aspects of KU basketball… doesn’t mean I don’t have the highest respect and admiration for Self and company.

KJ drives me crazy! I have to admit that. I’d like to borrow him from KU basketball for just one week. Take him into the streets for some reality ball where you can use a pipe wrench and not be called for a foul. I agree with Self’s defense about one thing with KJ… I know he’s tough. He can lose a loved one and jump on a plane and go fight hard for his team. He just needs the experience of Jaybate’s meso ball… with the threat of being decapitated if he loses. For those fairly new to KUBuckets… here is a better explanation:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesoamerican_ballgame

Of course… the above description lacks the color and character when described by Jaybate… our long-lost resident Jayhawk philosophical writer. Can’t believe I described him in so few words! lol

BACK TO SELF: I am very happy with Bill and the state of affairs surrounding Kansas basketball! In my book, he has really accomplished 3 NCs (one was without the trophy ceremony). We have consistent winning basketball, a classy coach who knows how to talk to the public and has a deep-felt respect for his players, and we always stand a chance of winning another title! That’s all we can ask for. Can he do better at winning more trophies? I’m sure all of us can do better with our lives. I am always going to bark my vision from my official position as couch potato. It may be valuable enough to earn me a stick of butter to melt on top!

I’m still very excited about this year… especially excited if we achieve some tiny level of defensive efficiency!

Yikes! Some of us are going to H - E - Double hockey sticks because we think KJ is hugely underperforming in rebounds. I guess now Self is defending KJ and others from fan challenges:

https://fanrecap.com/jayhawks-coach-defends-star-forward-amidst-growing-criticism/?utm_source=kansas-jayhawks&utm_medium=RP&utm_campaign=ncaaf-mk&utm_content=1452028995114192&fbclid=IwY2xjawGmTqRleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHfQm0eB5GvLYiRch2lrrhgMUc62RJuz5IMRW2Dvj_vwTAEztLFbycNQAIQ_aem_J90WHxdy0VszFlwmp6RwEA

I don’t see how anyone can defend a guy his size getting so few rebounds. In a certain sense… KJs poor rebound counters the rest of the optimism he gives the team with his dunks. I’ll take Ws over dunks any day of the week. At some point we will face a more challenging stretch of the season and I’ll bet the ranch we will be right back here screaming about lack of rebounds, though I will compliment some of our new guys for really going after balls… Zeke comes to mind first!

@FarmerJayhawk said in Other games 2024-2025:

It’s really annoying how early in the year the refs call EVERYTHING then in 2 months Hunter will get all but assaulted and no call

He doesn’t help himself. He reacts to all those hacks with a look of shock, going to the refs and saying things, and gesturing with his hands/arms he was hacked.

Instead… he should do more of putting on an injury show after he gets hacked. That’s a lot more effective at earning calls. Let Self impose ref pressure. Players, especially big men, just don’t get respect and whining to refs only makes it worse!