Bill Self is returning to Kansas for year No. 24 as the head coach of the Jayhawks. A little over a week after Self opened the door to a potential retirement, the KU head coach announced he will continue to lead the program for the 2026-27 campaign. Self will enter next season with over 600 wins to his name as the leader of the KU program.
“Jayhawk Nation, with renewed clarity and the ongoing support from our administration, I remain focused and committed to Kansas Basketball competing for a National Championship. I look forward to seeing and hearing the best fans in college basketball next season at Allen Fieldhouse,” Self said in a statement.
Now, Self is tasked with leading the Jayhawks into a pivotal offseason. The Jayhawks are set to lose at least three starters with two leaving due to graduation (Tre White and Melvin Council Jr.) and one expected to enter the NBA Draft (Darryn Peterson). The transfer portal will open next Tuesday and the Jayhawks will need to add starting-level talent to the roster.
KU already has a four-man high school class that has signed with the program. KU has the No. 1 point guard in the class on the way in Taylen Kinney, a four-star forward in Davion Adkins, a four-star wing in Trent Perry and a four-star shooting guard in Luke Barnett. KU is also actively pursuing Tyran Stokes, the No. 1 player in the class.
Self will look to build a team that can win the Big 12 and make a run in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2023 (Big 12 title) and 2022 (Sweet 16)
Looking back to last season, KU ended the year 24-11 (12-6 Big 12). It’s KU’s third-straight double-digit loss season. It also marks the fourth-straight year that KU has missed the second weekend, which is the longest streak the program has had without a Sweet 16 since the 1981-82 to 1984-85 seasons, which were the final two seasons of the Ted Owens era and the first two years of the Larry Brown era.
It was an up and down year. The inconsistent availability of star freshman Darryn Peterson over the first 25 games of the season impacted KU’s ability to reach its ceiling. The seven games Peterson missed in non-conference play coupled with absences before the start of Big 12 play meant that Peterson played a total of 104 minutes in non-conference play. KU learned to play without him, but there was an adjustment period at the start of Big 12 play.
KU had some big moments during its Big 12 campaign. KU had three top-five wins inside Allen Fieldhouse, including a win over then No. 1 ranked Arizona. KU also had its best road win since 2020 when it defeated No. 13 Texas Tech. But, KU also had some bad losses, dropping games to non-NCAA Tournament teams like West Virginia, Cincinnati and Arizona State. As a team, KU had inconsistent performances and starters were up and down through different periods of the season.
In the end, KU made it to the semifinals of the Big 12 Tournament and the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
