It seems almost ridiculous for people, including sports writers, to second guess or criticize a Hall of Fame coach and two-time national championship winner like Bill Self. The Kansas basketball coach has more rings, including those for conference championships, than he has fingers and toes to put them all on.
Yet, there is one aspect to Self's coaching style that can grate on diehard fans. It is also one in which has cost him players during the NIL era. Self gains different degrees of trust with players during the non-conference portion of the season, then trims his rotation to a tight seven-, or eight-man rotation for Big 12 play.
Oftentimes, this curtails the development of younger players or players down the bench. It's happened with players like Tyon Grant-Foster, Bobby Pettiford, Zach Clemence, Zuby Ejiofor, and Ernest Udeh Jr.
It is not all on Self either. Players used to be more patient and willing to wait their turn to play, but over the last several seasons, that hasn't been the case for some. Sometimes, those players do need more time to develop and aren't ready for many minutes.
What has happened with KU, however, is that players have left that maybe unexpectedly, and it has left the cupboard bare. The 2023-24 roster reflected that as the Jayhawks had plenty of talent at the very top of the roster, but almost no depth. It happened again in 2024-25 when Self recruited transfers over some of his young players. Those transfers didn't work out, and a first-round draft pick in Rakease Passmore left before even suiting up.
Freshmen developed within a season often. If you watch college basketball, you will see freshmen playing well on almost all teams. That doesn't seem to happen as much with KU now as it used to. Unless they are a top prospect, or if in a pinch, you don't see freshmen playing as much. Think of Frank Mason III, or Devonte' Graham, Christian Braun, and Ochai Ogbaji as players who exceeded expectations and showed flashes as freshmen.
Will Bill Self stretch out his Kansas basketball rotation this season?
Regardless of who Kansas adds to the roster, and there are numerous experienced candidates, the Jayhawks' roster should be deeper than it's been for years. There is a terrific blend of experienced transfers and talented young players.
The backcourt has an exciting corps of players with various skills. Leroy Blyden Jr. and Tylan Kinney are dual-threat point guards. Dennis Parker Jr., Kohl Rosario, and Luke Barnett should be able to step into the lineup at any time and bring a positive skill set. Tyran Stokes will take most of the minutes at the three-spot, but he's almost interchangeable with scoring guards, plus Trent Perry will work as his understudy.
Along the frontline, Christian Reeves, Paul Mbiya, Keanu Dawes, and Davion Adkins could all see decent minutes. This might change a little if KU adds Tre White or Jaxson Kohler, or any of the other several players KU has been connected to.
There are limited minutes, and it is almost certain that at least three of these players will play at least 30 minutes a game, but if any roster has the depth to bust this trend, this would be the one. There is talent at every spot, and if KU plays an uptempo pace both offensively and defensively, a deeper rotation makes sense.
Of course, the ability to play defense at the level Self wants is a big requirement for minutes. If any of these players struggle on that end of the court, there is a good chance they will fall down the pecking order quickly.
Still, one doesn't have to squint very hard to see 10 players who could fit into a strong rotation. And that doesn't even count whoever Self fills the last two roster spots with. It will be interesting to see if the Hall of Famer can get past his stubbornness in this area with such a deep roster. If he does or not, KU should be pretty good this season.
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