Des Moines, Iowa — The official word on Kansas basketball coach Bill Self remains that he is “day to day” and that his status for Thursday’s NCAA Tournament opener will be determined on game day.
But at least a couple of Jayhawks believe strongly that they’ll have their head coach on the sideline for Thursday’s game.
“He will be coaching,” KU forward Jalen Wilson said during the Jayhawks’ media session on Wednesday at Wells Fargo Arena.
Senior guard Kevin McCullar Jr. had similar confidence while talking about Self in the KU locker room, saying without hesitation that he expected Self to be coaching the team on Thursday when they take on No. 16 seed Howard in the first round at 1 p.m. on TBS.
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Self has been with the Jayhawks for their most recent practices, including an off-site workout on the campus of Drake University on Wednesday. He did not attend KU’s open practice session at Wells Fargo Arena, however, and was not at his normal spot at the podium when the Jayhawks met with the media. His wife, Cindy, was in the stands during Wednesday’s 40-minute open practice display at the arena, which drew hundreds of KU fans seeking autographs and a glimpse of the top-seeded Jayhawks in action.
Assistant coach Norm Roberts continued to handle Self’s role during media availability and team activities at Wells Fargo Arena, and Roberts said Self was “doing well.”
“He was at practice today, he was at practice (Tuesday) night and all of our meetings,” Roberts said. “He’s doing well, he’s getting better all the time. If you ask our guys, he got after them pretty good today so he was doing really well.”
McCullar laughed when asked about Self’s demeanor upon his return from a recent hospital stay that kept him out of the Big 12 tournament.
“He was back in full form, getting on us and making sure we’re sharp,” McCullar said. “You know, it’s win or go home now, so no more mistakes can be made. Just having him back around, pushing us every day now, it’s great to have our leader back with us and we’re looking forward to him coaching us.”
Roberts said Self had not heard of any restrictions placed on Self upon his return to practice.
“Obviously they want him to tone it back a little bit,” Roberts said Wednesday. “But I haven’t been told anything like that through the doctors.”
Regardless of the rules or special instructions, Wilson said it was the same old Self in the eyes of the players.
“He’s looking great, feeling great, and, you know, he’s excited. We’re all excited,” Wilson said. “It’s great to have him back on the court with us, for him to be able to coach us and start off tomorrow with a bang.”
Wilson also said he was not worried about any rust affecting Self, who has not coached a game since KU’s regular season finale at Texas on March 4.
“We know coach’s role,” Wilson said. “He will be coaching. He’s doing everything he’s been doing. He was down for a while for the Big 12, but he’s back, he’s energized and excited and ready to get this going again. We’re super excited to have him back, so we know we will have him.”
