College basketball junkie Seth Smith caught up with Bill Self, among other coaches, in Las Vegas last week for the Adidas Super 64 tournament. Smith spoke with 11 coaches in all about the upcoming season, and led off his story with Bill Self and "that game" (thanks for the reminder Seth). While SI's college basketball guru does not speculate on how many palms Coach Cal greased, the jayhawker puts the over/under at 26.
Even though Seth's writeup on Self and the Jayhawks was short, it had some interesting tidbits I enjoyed. First, Self once again commented on the uber-athleticism of his 2010-2011 team, saying this squad, "might be the most athletic team we've had." That is music to my ears, and as I will say frequently over the next year, if this unit is anywhere near as athletic as the 'Hawks from '06 - '08, this could be a very special season.
Secondly, Smith opines that "redshirt sophomore forward Travis Releford will add speed on the wing." Is this a nice way of saying that Xavier Henry slowed last year's team down with his inability to consistently drive to the net, instead opting to plant himself behind the three-point line and hoist jumpshots? In any case, Relaford's development and style of play next season is another reason why I am so excited to see this version of Jayhawks take the court come November.
From Andy Katz's blog comes a quick piece entitled, "Kansas' Self buys into Selby hype," where Coach Self addresses Selby and his initial thoughts on next year's team.
First, I am glad that Self has bought into the hype of the #1 ranked freshman in the 2010 class, considering the fact that he recruited him. Hopefully this means he will get some playing time this year...
Self is also quoted as saying, "I like our team; we'll be more athletic this year, but we won't have the anchor inside like Cole." I like the team too, Bill, in fact I think it will rival the championship team of '07 - '08. As for missing "the anchor" this year...anchors only weigh you down.
KUSports.com editor Tom Keegan posted an article yesterday opining that "KU men's basketball team might be even better next season." Might be better, Tom? How can they not be better! Despite the 29-2 regular season record last season, the Collins-Aldrich-Henry led Jayhawks played uninspired, lackluster basketball all year until eventually bowing out of the NCAA tournament in the first weekend...to Northern Iowa.
Sure, talent was everywhere on that team, but the largest problem was how they were constructed. They featured a big, plodding center and a slashing point guard who could no longer finish in the paint, while Xavier Henry turned out to be nothing more than a pretty spot-up shooter. KU's offensive game plan seemed to be to try and force the ball down low to an out of position Aldrich, and when that failed many games would devolve into the "Sherron Show." This is why I am so perplexed by Tom Keegan's assertion that this year's team will be better because we can easily replace each component of the failed Collins-Aldrich-Xavier core. What will make KU the better team next season is the hope that Bill Self will put out a completely different group of players with a radically different style of play.
Andy Katz from ESPN and Jeff Goodman of Fox Sports have released their annual Preseason Top 25 lists, which are as meaningless as ever but do provide some interesting off-season fodder for fans chomping at the bit for another round of college hoops.
Andy Katz ranks KU 16th overall and writes the following:
The Jayhawks actually might be a bit too low here if they develop the way they should throughout the season. Gone is the leader of this squad in Sherron Collins, the primary post in Cole Aldrich and the X factor on the wing in Xavier Henry. But KU does bring back rising stars in Marcus Morris and Tyshawn Taylor, and Markieff Morris, Brady Morningstar, Tyrel Reed, Thomas Robinson and Elijah Johnson will see their minutes increase as well as their production. Getting top-flight point guard Josh Selby to run this squad was a must. Kansas had to land a marquee player in the spring to maintain relevance at the national level and it did just that. If Selby delivers, the Jayhawks will be in the mix with everyone else in the Big 12.
I have to disagree with Katz when he states, "Getting top-flight point guard Josh Selby to run the squad was a must," and, "Kansas had to land a marquee player in the spring to maintain relevance at the national level." For a team that was perhaps the deepest in the country last season and had potential stars Elijah Johnson, Thomas Robinson, Travis Relaford and Mario Little buried on the bench, they had more than enough talent moving into significant roles to develop into a dominant team. Josh Selby simply turns a really good team into a great team. Furthermore, to say that one player, regardless of ranking or ability is necessary to maintaining national relevance is a slap in the face to Bill Self and the institution that is Kansas basketball.
Surprisingly, Jeff Goodman, a regular KU-hater has them slotted at #11 going into the season and writes:
Collins graduated, Aldrich is leaving a year early for the NBA and Henry departs after just one season in Lawrence. But Bill Self still has solid guards in Taylor, Morningstar, Reed and sophomore Elijah Johnson — and he also added highly touted freshman point guard Josh Selby. The Morris twins are both back, and Withey and Robinson should both receive expanded roles. Nothing of note here really, except that both Goodman and Katz cite Brady Morningstar as a potential major contributor next season. If anything I believe that Morningstar's role will fade in the coming season, much like it did in the final months of 2009-2010. Tyrel Reed should usurp Brady on the depth chart, as his three point shooting, ball-handling ability, and moxy grew in leaps and bounds last year while Morningstar looks to have peaked.
Lastly, I whole-heartledly think KU will end up as a top 5 team by the end of the year, if not #1 or #2 overall. So while preseason rankings are mostly meaningless, they do have some effect on how a team approaches the season. Last season KU came into the year the unanimous #1 ranked team, and thus took a mentality of having to live up to and protect that position. Clearly they were not built to play with a target on their backs, and wins were more often a relief than a joyous occasion. Now the 2010-2011 squad, which I believe is a better, more athletic team, will have the luxury of going out to prove themselves and work up the rankings, gaining more and more confidence each step of the way. Can the season start tomorrow please?
Click here to watch a short video from Cole Aldrich talking about his last few weeks in Lawrence as well as his pre-draft experiences. The most interesting piece of information from this video is that Cole, despite being in line to make millions of dollars in just a few short months, is still as committed as ever to his classes and final exams. That is akin to winning the lottery and showing up at your 12 dollar an hour job bright and early on Monday morning. So kudos Cole, you are a better man than me.
Watch Terrence Jones announce his decision today, live at 5:30 pm CT on Oregonlive.com. It is largely assumed he will choose between Washington, Kentucky, and Kansas.
Obviously KU has been very late in the game recruiting Terrence, but oftentimes the final team can make the best impression. Couple that with the now #1 ranked Josh Selby putting the proverbial full court press on Jones, and I have a very good feeling about Kansas' chances.
UPDATE: You can go to watch it live now, and the hats will be in play. Repeat, the hats are in play.
When Josh Selby announced his intentions to attend the University of Kansas he was one of the highest ranked recruits in Kansas history. Now, he is the highest. Today's new Rivals rankings have combo-guard and future Jayhawk Josh Selby sitting alone as the #1 rated prospect in the country.
For Bill Self and Kansas, landing a likely one-and-done prospect of such magnitude is somewhat unchartered territory. What makes this situation even more unique is that rarely do the top prospects find themselves on as deep and talented of a team as KU projects to be next season. So while I can see many old-guard Kansas fans a little put off by Self's willingness to recruit players who almost assuredly will leave for the NBA after their freshman seasons, the fact that he also has shown the ability to create rosters deep with talented upper-classmen as well as highly-rated freshman such as Selby and Xavier Henry sets him apart from one-trick ponies like John Calipari. So for KU fans in the Bill Self era, it appears we are spoiled with the best of both worlds.
Terrence Jones, who will be announcing his decision tomorrow at 5:30 pm CT remained the 13th overall ranked player. If Self were to land both Jones and Selby to go along with the underrated Royce Woolridge (#120), it would be his best class since 2005 when #8 Julian Wright, #12 Mario Chalmers, #13 Brandon Rush and #28 Micah Downs all became Jayhawks.
The Kansas Jayhawks will participate in this year's Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden. The Jayhawks will be squaring off against the Memphis Tigers on December 7th, with the winner playing either Syracuse or Michigan State.
As I live in the New York area, this is especially good news. Furthermore, all four participants should be top 25 teams, making these two games a good test for a Hawks team I expect to be very, very good. In fact I will put in my prediction now: KU over MSU, 86 - 83. Josh Selby will score at least 25 points playing in the hallowed halls of MSG, and will posterize Kalin Lucas not once, not twice, but thrice.
5-star recruit Terrence Jones, by far the best player left unsigned, has spent his final official visit on Kansas and is in Lawrence today, 4/26. Hailing from Portland, Oregon and rated the 13th best recruit in the 2010 class, Jones is a projected as a PF/SF and is listed at 6'8" 220 lbs. Jones is a left-handed shot, and is noted as being a superior inside-out player, great defender, and very adept ball-handler.
The Oregonian has a wealth of information and video on Terrence here. He plans to announce his decision Friday, April 30th.
Jones has also made official visits to Kentucky, Oklahoma, UCLA and Washington. Arizona and Oregon are also reported to be in the mix, however as he has remained unsigned up until this point I have to believe that none of the aforementioned schools made a big enough impression on Terrence, or else he would have committed already. In the past, we have seen Bill Self land big time recruits late, notably Darrell Arthur. Also working in KU's favor is that fellow 5-star recruit and future Jayhawk stud, Josh Selby, has also been applying the full-court press to bring Jones to Lawrence. It would appear that all the pieces are in place for Bill Self to land yet another stellar recruiting class, with Selby and Royce Woolridge already committed. The addition of Terrence Jones to an already incredibly athletic group of players is a scary prospect for not only the Big XII, but the rest of the nation. Unlike last year's somewhat soft, jump-shooting collection of players, these Jayhawks would be reminiscent of the "freak squad" that was the 2007 and 2008 teams. The alley-oop would most certainly be back in vogue, as would the ability for almost every player in our starting five to take it to the rack strong and finish - two aspects that were noticeably absent from last year's team. Already a very good team on paper, if Jones lands in Lawrence I believe Kansas will go into the 2010 season as the most versatile, athletic team in all the land.
Got nothing to do on a Wednesday night? The Jayhawker has all your KU hoop viewing needs figured out. At 8 pm ET be sure to watch the next (fingers crossed!) great Kansas guard Josh Selby compete against the rest of the McDonald's All-Americans on ESPN.
Afterwards, tune into PBS at 10 pm ET to see "The Street Stops Here," a documentary on Bobby Hurley's St. Anthony high school basketball team, home of Tyshawn Taylor.
The Shiver
Jayhawk Slant
Phog.net
University Daily Kansan
Phog Blog
Rock Chalk Talk
Rush The Court
Yahoo - Rivals.com
SI.com KU Page
Deadspin
KUSports.com
Fox Sports College Basketball
Upon Further Review
Rock Chalk Jay-Blog
The Sporting News College Basketball
Cackamasaurus
SI.com College Basketball
Ken Pomeroy's Rankings
From Andy Katz's blog comes a quick piece entitled, "
KUSports.com editor Tom Keegan posted an article yesterday opining that "
Click 
When Josh Selby announced his intentions to attend the University of Kansas he was one of the highest ranked recruits in Kansas history. Now, he is the highest. Today's new 
The Kansas Jayhawks will participate in this year's 
Got nothing to do on a Wednesday night? The Jayhawker has all your KU hoop viewing needs figured out. At 8 pm ET be sure to watch the next (fingers crossed!) great Kansas guard Josh Selby compete against the rest of the 