The Kansas basketball season officially tips off tonight, and after taking a lot of time to decide whether he would return or not in the offseason, head coach Bill Self will begin his 24th season. After falling in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, Self took a lot of time to reflect and decide if he would return to the Jayhawks.
Ultimately, Self chose to come back to Lawrence for another season, but it begs the question: how much longer until the legendary Jayhawks coach hangs up his whistle? Well, Self doesn't want to focus on that now, especially with the new season about to begin, but he does acknowledge that the end is near.
"I'm not really concerned about that," Self said during Big 12 Media Days. "I'm certainly not thinking like it's my last [season]. I know I'm on the back nine, but I don't know whether it's 14 or 16 -- I don't know what hole I'm on right now. A lot depends on how we feel. As long as we play well, I'll feel a lot better."
The good news is that it sounds like this may not be the final season for Self in Lawrence, but it does sound like he could be finishing "the round" on his coaching career.
The Bill Self era at Kansas is closer to being over than fans may want to admit
It has been quite the ride at Kansas for Self, and while he returned for this season, it isn't crazy to think this could be his final regular-season home opener with the Jayhawks. Self spoke about this probably not being his final season, but with how his health has unfortunately declined in recent years, that decision may no longer be fully his.
Clearly, as Self stated, the end is near for Self's coaching career, and it could come sooner than Kansas fans really want it to. To coach for 24 seasons in general is amazing, but to do so at one place is even more impressive, and Self has quite the resume of accolades to take with him once he does decide to hang it up.
Self doesn't want to dwell on when his coaching career will come to an end; he simply wants to coach basketball until he simply can't anymore. With a new season beginning, the Jayhawks are not the big bad team of the Big 12 like they once used to be.
For the second straight season, Arizona was selected to win the Big 12 according to the Big 12 Preseason Coaches' Poll, with Houston coming in at No. 2 and Kansas following at No. 3. The Wildcats received the majority of first-place votes with 12, and Houston got the remaining four, leaving Kansas with none.
Tyran Stokes is the talk of the town when it comes to Big 12 freshmen, predicted to win Freshman of the Year and named to the All-Big 12 Preseason Team. If there was ever a season when Kansas could climb back to the top of the Big 12 mountain, this is the year, with Stokes leading this team.
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