NEW ORLEANS — Confetti falls into his hair, a long hug with his recently widowed mother on the floor, a crowd of media outlets absorb every word he says to them.
Here’s Bill Self, once again at the forefront of the sport. Factor in everything that goes into college basketball coaching and it’s obvious that Self is arguably the best out there. Monday proved it. You could also ask anyone in the college coaching profession; The name of himself is always included when listing those who top a list of top trainers. It often occupies slot no. 1.
His No. 1-seeded Jayhawks made history Monday night, holding against North Carolina, their 72-69 win giving the program its fourth national championship: 1952, 1988, 2008 and now.
Self just became the first Kansas coach to win multiple NCAA tournament titles. Fourteen years after Mario Chalmers scored a 3-point success to lift Kansas from a nine-point deficit late against Memphis — and then won in overtime — Self brought his team back to the mountaintop. He did it in classic self-style, coaching a second-half masterpiece and doing what had never been done in a title game in the 80+ year history of this great event.
Kansas trailed 38-22 in the first half, and their halftime deficit of 15 points (40-25) looked disheartening after North Carolina unfolded a long 29-13 run. Instead, it’s Kansas in the end, whose win ranks as the greatest comeback in title game history. The Jayhawks did it with a well-rounded player performance; Five guys finished between 12 and 15 points for Kansas. It was a classic Self masterpiece. For the third straight game, Kansas scored more than 41 points in the second half. Adjustments, adjustments, adjustments.
He’s at the top of his craft, which he’s essentially maintained at a level for over 15 years.
“I think we’re probably all a little overwhelmed and exhausted,” Self said. “And I don’t know that I’ve ever had a team flip the script like we probably did at the NCAA tournament, whether it’s Miami in the Elite Eight or whether it’s this game. But it would be special to win anyway.” But to win when your team had to fight and come back the way they did and show so much staying power is what makes this off the charts. I thought that would be good. And that’s a hell of a lot better than I thought it would be.”
The win obviously comes with a looming situation for Self and Kansas. This uncertain future has the potential to affect what the self can or wants to do. Kansas is awaiting punishment from the NCAA (via the IARP), and sources have told CBS Sports it’s likely the damage will be severe – and will be coming soon. A verdict on Kansas in the near future is likely.
This, of course, goes back to the FBI scandal, as the NCAA charged Self and his program with five Level I violations. He’s guaranteed a ban, and its length can range from low double digits in games to sitting out an entire season. He will fight anything and the university will certainly try to sue on his behalf, but as this is the IARP there is no appeals process.
There is a possibility that Kansas will also be suspended for the 2023 postseason.
Here’s the question. Title #2 in hand. Get back into sport yourself. Would he choose to resign at the helm? I’m not suggesting he should. I’m not predicting he will. But if he did, who could blame him? We already know from Self and Kansas’ own prior statements how little they care about how the NCAA is handling this case. It’s as antagonistic a situation between a school and the NCAA as we’ve seen in a long time — maybe ever. But the man has five Level I allegations against him and his program. Kansas could expect something catastrophic later this spring.
No one knows when Self’s next game will be, but it’s safe to say he won’t be coaching college basketball in November, not when a suspension is all but guaranteed at that point. At 59, he still has many coaching years ahead of him. How will he spend them?
What if the NBA calls? Jobs change at a high rate in this league. Few candidates would have Self’s credentials. Has been considered before and is respected at this level. As with many college coaching greats, there is a natural curiosity that has persisted for years. Surely he would have to be offered a job, but if so… who would say he wouldn’t take it? Or shouldn’t?
Maybe that will just fuel him though. College coaches’ DNA is usually to be more resistant to and fight and push back the NCAA, rather than rejecting punishment and looking elsewhere for success. That seems the more likely route. Kansas just won a national title after years of living in recruiting limbo. A national championship will give him as much boost as possible, especially given the uncertainty that’s still out there with his case. If anything could help level recruitment barricades, a title would do it.
If Self was able to do so under the cloud of uncertainty, what goods could be waiting when Kansas comes on the other side?
It took him 14 years to win a second. He is one of only 16 men to make it in his sport. It feels natural for him to be at this point, if not delayed by a few years. he is so good With Self and Kansas, it was basically a numbers game, and if he stuck with it long enough, he was going to make it. He might have gotten there in 2020 when Kansas had the best team. If this pandemic never landed, maybe this Tuesday after the title game we’ll be talking about three-time champion Bill Self. The NCAA tournament is really hard to win but Self is such a good coach. Getting two doesn’t feel so much like an achievement as it is a natural progression in his career — even if his promotion came with an alleged rule-break that will make Kansas and its upcoming infractions one of the biggest stories of the offseason.
“They’re hard to come by,” Self said of national championships. “Nobody has ever put pressure on me that we still have to win one, but I think I put pressure on myself because I know that place deserves more than what we won. And this year I don’t know how these guys feel about me, but I’ve never felt more connected to a group than this year.”
Self lost his father, Bill Self Sr., just a few weeks ago. A title run coupled with major life events can make you think about bigger things than coaching in games. It was definitely a special group. Ochai Agbaji grew into one of the greatest four-year-olds of all time in Kansas, and his development speaks to Self’s ability to create an environment in his program where one-and-dones can thrive as can four-year-olds, getting better and each year better and better.
“When you go through things and when individuals go through things, everybody’s dealing with crap,” Self said. “But I never said a word to these guys about anything I went through, but they raised their own level to a level that has supported me to learn from players.”
The man has won 763 games in his career. I’d love to see him coach well into his 60’s at KU, but by and large Self has nothing more to prove in college. Winning multiple championships will take you to a level few others can match. This man won 14 consecutive championships in the regular season. This will never be repeated again at the power conference level. He can stay and fight the NCAA, take the suspension and endure sanctions and restrictions he’s never faced before. Self has been at the school for 19 seasons. If he stays at it, the future could include another championship or two years later. But it’s probably not on the table for 2023.
If there was ever a window to try something different, now would be the time. Maybe even the last time.
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