ON MATT’S MIND: Now not the time for Kansas to be ‘Self-less’

Imagine for a moment that you’re
UCLA men’s basketball coach Ben
Howland. You’ve molded your team into
a miniature version of what the championship-
caliber program was under John
Wooden in the 1960s and ’70s. Major
prospects such as Jordan Farmar, Arron
Afflalo, Darren Collison and Kevin Love
put you at the top of their list of coaches
they want to play for.

On Howland’s watch, however, the
Bruins are becoming the Buffalo Bills
of the Final Four within arm’s reach
of a national championship – yet
there’s something so great missing at
the tournament’s final stage, it’s almost
tangible. The word “championship” in
“championship caliber” instead refers to
Pacific-10 crowns these days for the guys
at Pauley Pavilion – not a bad thing – but
the 11 national-title banners hanging
from the rafters serve as a reminder to
Howland of what ultimately is expected
of UCLA basketball.

Previously at Illinois, Bill Self represents
the big name for Kansas that
Howland did when UCLA lured him
away from Pittsburgh. Self reached his
first-ever Final Four this season and
enjoyed immediate success.
Despite the basketball-rich tradition
at Kansas (the team plays on the court
named after basketball inventor Dr.
James Naismith himself, after all), the
Jayhawks wielded only (with “only” being
relative) two national championships
before Self arrived five seasons ago. By
adding a third, he has endeared himself
to generations of loyal fans at one of
the most prominent basketball schools
in the country.

That’s a pretty good bargaining
position.

In fact, Self says he’s looking for security.
It’s obvious he wants the long-term
deal and contract he deserves that would
show he’s appreciated. It’s perfectly fair
for him to expect as much.

Kansas now needs to step up to the
plate and do what it couldn’t do with
Roy Williams in 2003-retain its A-list
coach.

Williams elected to return to his alma
mater, UNC, in hopes of making more
money and winning a national in his
home state.

As a member of the Big XII Conference,
the Jayhawks are not exactly the candidates
you’d expect to be a coaching cradle.
Well, maybe not a cradle. Williams and
Self were hardly infants in the coaching
biz when they arrived in Lawrence, Kan.,
but they still came with larger aspirations
than Kansas could offer.

Self, like Williams, has ties to another
big school. Self’s predicament is that
he is an alumnus and former player of
Oklahoma State, which is a conference
rival of Kansas.

It would be a big step back to try to
build up Oklahoma State to Kansas’ level.
Granted, Self would’ve had a similar
recruiting base, but the climb is much
farther.

But put yourself in Self’s position.
Oklahoma State is the only school that
can offer him the opportunity to go
home. Although that might not be liquid
currency, it does carry some weight.

Kansas now needs to consider its
own future prosperity not be cheap,
to open up its checkbook and to write
out whatever it takes to retain Self. The
security he spoke of is what will keep
the prized coach in the Jayhawks’ arena.
Who’s going to fault them?

If that fails, maybe Memphis’ head
man John Calipari will be seeking new
employment.