Rebirth Of Paul?

After a month off from blogging there's still not a lot to report, except for yesterday's mega-deal sending Kevin Garnett to the Celtics, which coupled with the draft day acquisition of Ray Allen could bring long-suffering Paul Pierce back into the NBA spotlight.

Some are saying that the trade immediately makes Boston a front-runner, if not THE front-runner, in the East. Now, almost every Eastern team in contention (Cleveland, Chicago, Miami and the Celts) features a KU alum. And keep in mind that Pierce's old KU frontcourt companion Raef Lafrentz also gained a valuable new teammate in Greg Oden, who joins him on the Trailblazers (where Kevin Pritchard is an exec).

So is it now a virtual lock that a Jayhawk will reach the Finals three years running? Maybe.

However, I have to say I'm lukewarm on the Celtics' prospects. After all they gave up to nab Garnett, they only have like 8 guys left on their roster and not much money left for more signings. Besides, who on that team is going to play any defense? They should be a lot of fun to watch next season, but I'll be surprised if they reach the Finals.

And the Blazers? Give them a few years...

Winning The Lottery (Barely)

Julian goes 13th, to the New Orleans Hornets. Still don't really understand why he flip-flopped and decided to leave; with a dominant junior season (which wouldn't have been hard to envision) he could have gone top five in '08.

The upside for him, aside from instant financial gratification, is that he gets to go to a team that doesn't suck, but isn't so loaded that he'd be relegated to the bench, either. Playing alongside Chris Paul and former OSU dunk specialist Desmond Mason isn't such a bad thing.

Congrats, "Noodle!" I miss you already.

Jacque Wins Title! Jacque Wins Title!

Jayhawk To Win NBA Title

Cleveland's upset over Detroit ensures that for two years running, a Jayhawk will receive an NBA championship ring: either Drew Gooden and Scot Pollard of the Cavaliers, or Pollard's old classmate Jacque Vaughn of the Spurs.

(I think we asked this last year, but can anybody remember any other Jayhawks winning NBA titles, besides JoJo White?)

Unlike Wayne Simien's spectating role last year with the Heat, at least two of these guys (Gooden and Vaughn) will play significant minutes. Drew's in the starting lineup and Jacque is 2nd-string PG behind Tony Parker. And if Cleveland coach Mike Brown is smart, he'll give Pollard some minutes as well; I think he could guard Tim Duncan more effectively than any of their other big men.

I'm particularly sentimental about Scot and Jacque, who played on the best KU teams never to make the Final Four. (Their '97 team was ranked 1st in the nation almost that entire season, with Duncan's Wake Forest team ranked 2nd; both teams tragically fell short in the tourney). Both of those guys, if I'm not mistaken, still live in Lawrence. Seeing one of them get a ring will be very cool.

Pollard lovers, check out this hilarious Q&A on the Cavs website, wherein Scot extols the virtues of Allen Fieldhouse and attempts to revive the "high ten."

B-Rush Is Back!

Brandon's decision to return to Kansas hasn't gained much national attention yet, but I'd think it would pole-vault us right back in to preseason 1 or 2 status. I'll still miss Julian, but in terms of the components of our team, Brandon would have been the more difficult guy to replace.

(Granted, some polls had us at 1 or 2 preseason last year, but I think this year such a ranking would be more legitimate.)

A couple of caveats: first off, how serious is the injury that presumably sealed Rush's return? The worst-case scenario seems to be that he won't be ready to play again until November; that obviously would hurt his development and preparation going into next season.

The other issue is that there will be more and more pressure to get Sherron into the starting lineup; still, that's a good problem to have.

But assuming Rush is healthy for his junior season, the question is: Are we better than Carolina? The correct answer is: Yes.

Non-Con Schedule, NBA Draft

The non-conference schedule was released yesterday, and as promised, it looks like a distinct improvement. Three of those "Jayhawk Invitational" home opponents have not been identified -- presumably they'll be patsies -- but we've earned those indulgences with a 'Zona home game and road trips to G-Tech, BC, and USC, (which as we've noted adds phenom O.J. Mayo to the squad that ended Kevin Durant's college career).

(Plus, as we've also noted before, the conference schedule will include visits to Austin and Stillwater this time).

As for the draft: Ismail! Are you out there? Any comments on your JailBlazers stealing Greg Oden?

And presumably Durant is also going to the Pacific Northwest, joining Collison in Seattle--the very team Self was rumored to be interested in coaching. The addition of Durant would make that job a great deal more appealing to Self, but the good news is, it would now also be appealing to some bigger names, like Larry Brown or a Van Gundy. Plus, Durant's arrival might renew Seattle's interest in the team, preventing the move to OKC that would have supposedly been a plum for Self.

Any thoughts on draft status of Wright and Rush? The picks are always so unpredictable once you get out of the high lottery. CNNSI has them going at 10 and 14, respectively. Fox Sports has Julian at 13, with Rush not on the list (but this one only covers the 14 lottery picks).

Brandon will be thrilled with anything close to the lottery, but if Julian is only at 10 or higher (as appears quite likely) one still has to ask: Why this year? You said you wanted and needed three college seasons; you never proved yourself in tournament play; and with what is sure to be a weaker draft class in '08 you'd have had an excellent shot at the top five...

Alas, the agent has been hired, the damage done. Ah, what might have been.

Spring of Discontent

Sorry we've been down so long. I think everyone's been busy, not to mention a little depressed about recent events in the KU hoops universe.

As if losing Julian and probably Brandon isn't enough, a rumor has been circulating that Self might leave to coach the SuperSonics (featuring Nick Collison) if that team were to relocate to OKC. Self is vehemently denying it, so I'll (warily) take him at his word.

Another potential problem: Rush's late (and still indefinite) departure decision leaves Self with no time to recruit any replacements. Sherron says he's upset with Brandon for leaving. On the bright side, I think there's still a chance he could come back; Keegan talked to a scout who said that B-Rush is merely one of about 50 guys with first-round potential in this draft.

Even without him, next season should be a good one. Luke Winn places us at fifth in his power rankings, factoring in the departures. And I know you're all glad to hear that I probably won't be bitching about next year's schedule, which will feature games against Arizona and (on the road) USC, BC, Georgia Tech, Texas and OSU. That's five more marquee road games than we had in '06-7.

Despite the lack of titles (19 freaking years and counting), ESPN charitably lists Kansas as one of the top ten programs of the last ten years. Small consolation, that.

By the way, I've discontinued our NBA playoffs coverage after it was met with massive, widespread apathy last year, but I should note that KU players did exceptionally well in the first round: Drew Gooden and Scot Pollard for Cleveland, Jacque Vaughn for San Antone, and especially Kirk Hinrich for 'da Bulls in their waxing of Wade, Shaq and co. (Unfortunately, Kirk's taking a waxing himself at the hands of Detroit in the second round, but those other guys are hanging in).

B Rush Declares for draft

Kansas' Brandon Rush puts name in NBA draft
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Kansas sophomore standout Brandon Rush says he plans to enter the NBA Draft.
"I'm ready to take the next step," Rush told The Kansas City Star for a story Friday. "I'm ready to make a better life for me and my family."
The 6-6 guard, who also tested the NBA waters out of high school before signing with Kansas, told The Star he will not immediately sign with an agent, which leaves the door open to play another year in college.
"I could hire an agent, but if I do, it will be much later in the process," Rush said. "Right now I want to keep my options open. I'm going into it with a free mind. I don't have anything to lose. I can come back to school or I can stay (in the draft). It's a plus-plus either way."
The university's athletic department could not confirm the announcement Friday morning but expected to issue a statement later in the day.

Say it Ain't So!!!!

Local Radio says Julian will announce today that he is entereing himdelf into the NBA Draft. Speculation is that Rush will go too. :(

Wrap Up

The season's over, but there's still plenty going on.

Roy Williams goes to the Hall of Fame:

“I do feel at home at North Carolina,” the Asheville, N.C., native said. “I’ve probably got thinner skin than most people, but when they make an announcement about North Carolina’s score at Allen Fieldhouse and people cheer, I get that information quickly. That bothers me a great deal. It will bother me the rest of my life."



I'm not a Roy hater by any means, but it will bother me the rest of my life if he keeps complaining about how KU fans treat him. He left three years after saying he'd never leave. And he clearly went home when the cupboard was full. So not only did he leave us, he went from being a special guy to just another coach. We had unrealistic expectations of Roy - as a man as much as a coach. But he fostered that.

He can't be hugely popular at both UNC and KANSAS, and if he can't deal with that, he shouldn't have left. However, congrats on getting into the Hall - he's certainly deserving.

And I'll admit to being pleased that he didn't make the Final Four this year as that would have only increased the chatter about Self not being a good enough coach, etc. UNC was plenty stacked, so there's no reason to assume Roy would have pushed our lineup into the Fial Four.

Dana Altman goes to Arkansas - why didn't he end up at Iowa? Altman had turned down Tennessee, Georgia, and maybe Illinois in '03. I thought I read somewhere that the only job he'd leave Creighton for was Iowa. Maybe not. Iowa gets Todd Lickliter from Butler, Michigan gets West Virginia coach John Beilein.

When this many big time schools make hires, and the biggest name is Dana Altman . . .

Creighton may hire Scott Sutton - Eddie's other son - from ORU. Eddie Sutton coached Creighton before heading to Arkansas in 1974.



So if we want to see a star coach switch we'll have to rely on Kentucky, and see what dominoes drop. I'm betting Billy Donovan, Billy Gillespie, or Tom Izzo takes it.

Slate.com has an interesting theory about why Donovan will bolt to Kentucky:

"And while Florida and Ohio State have a stranglehold on big-time athletics right now, don't count on either to maintain megaprogram status. The Gators won two titles in a row because a perfectly balanced and unselfish team won it all as underclassmen then returned for another helping of glory. That won't happen again. Florida reminds me of Michigan State circa 2001. A championship and multiple Final Fours seemingly heralded untrammeled dominance in East Lansing. Instead, the Spartans have regressed to the mean—they're now just a great basketball team, not the greatest in the land. Florida will continue to be a Sweet 16 presence, but they won't pass UCLA in championship banners any time this millennium. Kansas and North Carolina will remain perennial powerhouses. Florida will return to the usual cycle of solid-but-not-transcendent programs."

What if Kentucky somehow got Bill Self? Who would we want at Kansas?

Kevin Stallings?
Mark Turgeon?
John Calipari?