😬 3 Quick Things: Is KU Down to Eight Scholarship Players? 😬
One Question, One Stat, One Tweet from KU-Iowa State
EVERYTHING IN THIS NEWSLETTER IS BASED UPON WHAT I AM HEARING FROM PEOPLE I TRUST. PLEASE DO NOT MISTAKE THIS FOR FACT OR FOR ACTUAL JOURNALISM, WHICH HAS VERIFICATION STANDARDS THAT I HAVE NOT ADHERED TO. I DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY OF THE CONTENT.
One Question: Can you remember a time like this?
KU's lack of bench support has no clear path to improving anytime soon. With Zach Clemence hurting his knee on Saturday, Kansas is down to eight scholarship players with a real chance of making a difference.
It's gotten to the point where I'm counting out Cam Martin, M.J. Rice and Kyle Cuffe. I hope I'm wrong about Rice, but I haven't seen or heard any reason to think otherwise.
That leaves KU with Dajuan Harris, Gradey Dick, Kevin McCullar (finger), Jalen Wilson, KJ Adams, Jo Yesufu (mind f*cked), Ernest Udeh (young), Bobby Pettiford (hamstring).
The starting lineup is generally healthy. The situation isn't catastrophic, but KU's margin for error is as slim as I can recall. Comment below if you remember another time like this late in the season (non-Covid era).
One Stat
The bench shot ONE 2-point field goal in 40 total minutes vs. Iowa State. ONE! That's nearly impossible. Â
One Tweet
I've heard Self has been calmer after losses this season compared to other years. Even last season I was told Self would freak out at times after a loss.
Maybe the second championship has taken pressure of Self. Or maybe he thinks this team needs confidence. Either way, his postgame presser reflects what I've been told.
2012 had Justin Wesley, Kevin Young and Teahan all getting minutes. That feels pretty similiar
I think Self's relaxation also has to do with the fact that so many people didn't even expect us to be a top-tier team, let alone repeat championships with how many players we lost who played a lot of minutes last season. Not expecting a repeat has got me feeling really relaxed, too. If it happens that'd be dope as hell and I'm ready to party again, but the sky won't be falling to me if we don't. I'm just enjoying the process as much as I can, and I want to believe Bill feels the same way.