KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas coach Bill Self came to the Big 12’s basketball media days here somewhat of a broken man.
That’s a reference not so much about the recently concluded NCAA case against the Jayhawks or the health scare involving his heart last spring but also a recent run-in with his two grandchildren, ages 5 and 3. Chasing them around Allen Fieldhouse prior to the annual Late Night in The Phog preseason festivities earlier this month, the Jayhawks’ coach fell and broke two ribs.
“I don’t think broken ribs are minor … probably the least athletic move of my life,” Self joked. “Certainly the definition of feeling old.”
In a revealing interview session Wednesday at Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tipoff, Self didn’t seem like anything resembling a 60-year-old who had stents put in his heart last spring during March Madness which caused him to miss the postseason. He’s slimmer, trimmer and ready for some sort of fight in his 21st season at KU.
“Now it’s time to go for the throat,” Self said responding to a question about being able to recruit without the cloud of an NCAA investigation hanging over the program.
Self said over the four years-plus the case took to be resolved, Kansas didn’t land a single recruit ranked inside the top 20. While that won’t get much sympathy from the majority of coaches who would give a limb for that kind of talent, it does reflect the standard Self holds himself to. He definitely responded during the dark days.
Since the FBI dropped its bomb exposing what it called widespread corruption in the sport in September 2017, Kansas won four Big 12 regular-season titles, Self was awarded a lifetime contract on the eve of the 2021 Final Four and KU won the 2022 national championship. Less than a week after that NCAA case came to its conclusion, the Jayhawks were named the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 preseason poll for the fourth time under Self.
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