LAWRENCE — Kansas basketball coach Bill Self saw, earlier this month, that the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee projected his Jayhawks as a No. 3 seed for the NCAA tournament.
Speaking with reporters Thursday, Self acknowledged it means something to be slated that way. But while that happened, he also pointed out that the reveal came before a home loss to Cincinnati and a home win over No. 4 Houston. So, in his eyes, it’s still too early to tell what the future holds for No. 14 KU (21-7, 11-4 in Big 12).
But before Saturday’s Big 12 Conference road game against No. 2 Arizona, Self did outline one thing he’d point to that his team needs in order to make a run. It’s something that he’s talked about before. It’s something that, while he didn’t name freshman Darryn Peterson specifically, certainly would seem to have that potential No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft in mind.
“I think you’ve got to do more than one thing, but I would say, ‘Have all our players 100%,’ probably would be as much as anything,” Self said. “I mean, I think that’s probably more important than actually breaking it down to rebounding or making shots. I think the bottom line is have all your players available and 100%.”
Peterson has averaged 19.5 points and 3.8 rebounds per game this season across 17 starts, but along with his success at times has come the fact he’s missed 11 games. He also hasn’t always been able to finish games he’s played in. If he can be consistently available as the regular season comes to an end, ahead of the Big 12 tournament, that experience with the team as a whole could be the difference between an early exit in March and extending one’s stay a little longer.
Self came into this season with high expectations, and thinks what he wanted out of this campaign is still 100% in play. Individually, he thinks players might have improved more than he initially anticipated. But those high expectations were always there, collectively.
Self didn’t downplay the fact that Kansas’ challenges throughout this season have been more notable, because of media attention, but did note that it’s not as if that means things have been more challenging than other years. The challenges, in his mind, are just more public than they’ve been in the past. What has helped minimize the potential issues that can come from that, from Self’s perspective, is how much the players like each other and how fun everyone is to be around.
Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He was the 2022 National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Here’s 1 thing Kansas basketball coach Bill Self would like to see