Phog Blog » Bilas: Bill Self is Coach of the Year Candidate

Bilas: Bill Self is Coach of the Year Candidate

posted by Jeremy Chrysler on 2/18/2006 -

Personally, I find the subtle but dramatic transition from free to subscription that ESPN has made over the last 24 months a little bit irritating, but there’s some stuff in there that’s probably worth subscribing for (when the ESPN talking heads aren’t yammering on endlessly about the wondrous splendor that is East Coast Basketball), and this is some of that.

There’s more from Bilas on the Hawks here, but this is is a nice sample:

Coach of the Year:

It seems accepted that Bruce Pearl and John Thompson are the front-runners for coach of the year. Well, I have another name for you:

How about Bill Self of Kansas?

After a start that had everyone wringing hands and losing sleep, Self has guided his team past the toddler stage and has Kansas looking like a solid tourney team and a threat. The Jayhawks do not have go-to guys, but they do have great balance and guys who can take over for stretches.

More important, the Jayhawks defend. Kansas is holding opponents under 40 percent from the field, which leads the Big 12 and is among the best in the nation.

More and more of the big media folk are starting to notice KU. We’re still young enough that I don’t feel comfortable removing the plastic, urine-proof matress cover from the proverbial bed, I feel pretty good about this team’s chances 4 weeks from now.

Thanks to PB reader Gen for the info.

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4 Responses to “Bilas: Bill Self is Coach of the Year Candidate”

ChevyHawk Says:
February 18th, 2006 at 1:06 pm
ESPN’s switch to mostly subscription has really turned me off from their website. They are also slow in posting new info even in the regular news section. Instead of reporting on Sports they have switched to Money as their prime focus. The worst part is that some of the best sources out there for analysis have gone to ESPN now and are no longer as accesible to the public as they used to be.

Love your site and keep up the good work and do not sell out to ESPN
truebeliever Says:
February 23rd, 2006 at 7:27 am
I may be bias–since I wanted Coach Self at Kansas for two years before Roy was offered the Tar Heel job the first time (I know–blasphemy!). But, although I give Coach Pearl and Coach John III big kudos for jobs well done, Coach Self has shown at Tulsa, Illinois, and now KU, that he is a master at 1) building depth and chemistry out of raw, young talent, and 2) doing it his way–with no Dean Smith-like demi-god holding his options.
Jeremy Chrysler Says:
February 23rd, 2006 at 8:44 am
I would think that it’s a 3 horse race between Thompson III, Pearl and Self.

Is there a sweatier man in the world than Bruce Pearl?

I’m surprised he doesn’t have to drag around an IV just to keep his precious bodily fluids topped off.
Peter Says:
February 23rd, 2006 at 1:19 pm
I actually just heard Pearl on the Dan Patrick Show and he commented on his sweat incident by saying, “Next time I will wear a darker suit.”