Self comments on Henry situation

By Gary Bedore     Jun 30, 2009

Kansas University basketballl coach Bill Self today commented to the Journal-World on reports that Xavier Henry and C.J. Henry were having second thoughts about attending KU and still might attend Kentucky.

“I’m still looking into this,” Self said, acknowledging the Henry family was upset about a weekend story in the Kansas City Star that the Henrys felt portrayed the family in a negative light.

“I am ready for the finality of it (on where Henrys are going to school). I believe that will occur very soon,” Self added.

Rivals.com and 610 radio quoted Carl Henry, father of the Henrys, as saying the family would hold a meeting today in Oklahoma City. Rivals said that Self and assistant Danny Manning would be traveling to OKC tonight. Self this afternoon said he was on his way back to his office from a function in KC and did not confirm whether a trip to OKC was in the works.

Self said because of the “article and blogs and people commenting on the article, the family is very upset and concerned about how they’d be treated in Lawrence.”

While expressing anger at the article, Carl Henry said in an interview with 610 radio that his son, Xavier, actually has stayed in touch with incoming Kentucky freshmen John Wall and Daniel Orton and recently told Carl he might want to switch his allegiance to UK.

“A couple weeks ago, my youngest son (Xavier) tells me he wanted to go to Kentucky. Said he’s thinking about it,” Carl told the station. “He keeps in touch with John Wall and Daniel Orton. They are good friends. What happened is those guys get to talking to him, they could probably change his mind. Actually that’s what happened. I was talking to Xavier. I’m telling him, ‘Hey, man, I know those are your friends, you can’t change just like that. You already gave a commitment. You already said you were coming. Now all of a sudden you dont want to come any more? Just because your friends said, “Hey, this (Kentucky) will be a great place?”‘”

Self said the Henrys gave their word they were coming to KU and thus he is “past the point of being concerned with (their) recruiting. Either they are coming or not coming. There’s no reason for fans or people who support the university to be concerned. They gave us their word they are coming. If an article keeps them from coming, of course it’d be disappointing but it’s not anything I can control.”

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