Bill Self admits he’s in the latter stages of his Kansas basketball coaching journey

There has been a lot of talk about Kansas basketball HC Bill Self after he passed Phog Allen to become the program’s all-time winningest coach. Two national championships and 17 Big 12 regular season titles later, Self has already made an argument as the best to ever coach in the mecca of college basketball. 

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end — including his tenure in Lawrence. Self is 61 and has coached over three decades at the NCAA level. Reporters at JayhawkSlant asked Self how much longer he plans to coach, and he gave an in-depth response that will certainly leave Jayhawk fans thinking.

Bill Self speaks candidly about is Kansas basketball coaching future

"I actually hope to do it a while longer. Times are different, though I used to look at... life at five-year increments. I'm not sure it's five years anymore. Maybe two or three. And then decide what you do after those increments... I don't have the answer, but I know that I'm on the back nine, but I don't know if I'm on 13 or 16, but I'm not on 18."

- Bill Self

Self noted he still wants to coach for a while longer but acknowledged he is on the 'back nine.' That shouldn't come as a surprise considering he's already spent 20 years at the university.

He remains active on the recruiting trail and transfer portal in the ever-changing landscape of college basketball. Many accomplished coaches, including Virginia's Tony Bennett and Alabama's Nick Saban in football, have retired due to the taxing nature of the sport. Self did mention that he believes the prominence of the transfer portal and constant conference realignment will eventually 'balance out' at some point.

Kansas fans might have probably thought about this as well when KU's coach had a health scare before the Big 12 Tournament in 2023. He was unable to lead his team in March Madness when the Jayhawks went down to Arkansas in the Round of 32. Self is in much better health and has clearly recovered from the incident, but it isn't outrageous to think about who might be next at the helm.

The day Bill Self retires will be sad for Kansas and college basketball fans alike. Thankfully, it isn't something fans will have to worry about within the next few years.