No. 1 recruit visiting Kansas

I want to add a comment about coaching style. The two coaches on Brandon's list who emphasize defense are Coach Self and Coach Boeheim. Coach Self teaches man-to-man principles and demands full defensive focus to play. Coach Boeheim teaches zone defense and is an ancknowldeged master at this style. In the NBA man-to-man defense is the standard with some zone thrown in as a changeup.

Coach Self's players have found great success in the NBA with noted defense as well as being complete players. Mario would never be starting alongside of Dwyane Wade in Miami as a rookie and now a sophomore without that defense. He led all rookies in steals last year and was was tied for third in the entire NBA behind Wade and CP3. But Mario was not the only one. Brandon Rush is starting this year for Indiana as a noted wing defender, Julian right is starting this year for New Orleans as a gifted defender. Deron Williams (recruited by and coached by Bill Self for his first two years) was second in assists in the NBA last year in Utah and is known around the league for his tenacious defense.

There are many fine schools available to Brandon and he is right to look for the perfect fit. My hope is that he sees his education equally as important as his game and gets his degree from the school of his choice. Naturally, as a graduate of KU, I can recommend Kansas for that reason alone. My education has served me well for the past 42 years and I have never regretting traveling from Oregon to study and grow as a person at KU. One big factor shaping who I am is the character of Kansas people I encountered in school here. I could not have asked for a better all-around environment.

October 30, 2009 at 11:07 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Five-star rating

A big assist from Coach Bill Self -

In negotiating his new contract after the last championship Coach reportedly insisted on new practice facilities, new locker rooms and player facilities and new contracts for his coaches before he even considered his own package. Now we see the completion of those items and recruiting will take another big advantage.

It sounds like Mr Perkins has once again proven to be the best AD in the country. Fitting.

October 15, 2009 at 11:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

KU officials deserve pat on the back

Jaybate -

I appreciate your intention and your taking time to expound it here. I did read it all - maybe because it was written to me (smile).

However I disagree with your self-appointed intention. I do think inaccuracies are fair game to the commenter. I think writing style is personal, just as the way I walk is personal. Would you laugh and be derisive of me if you saw me walk? Or would you ignore it and either look away or engage in the purpose of my travel? My original point was that the content of his opinions is often not engaged because of the focus on style and perceived disabilities. I can assure you that once I was able to walk normally. Now I cannot. Yes you might correctly surmise that, with more focus and effort, I might walk a little better. But for me the images are not as important as the content so my dwindling energies are better expended in actually getting where I am going than how I appear while doing it.

I cannot speak for Mr Meyer. I cannot know him or his obstacles and limitations without living his life and walking in his shoes. What I can do is interact with his opinions and I do when I have something to bring that I think might add value to the discussion. For the very same reasons you so ably describe, I value his opinions as from a man who has lived and seen the inside and the great and the not-so-great of the game and the school. I am not wanting to return to the 50's. I do not forget its history (well sometimes I forget too much) because history teaches us far more than promises and empty prose. I am content to live in this day and appreciate the positive wherever I can. Perhaps like Mr Meyer, I have seen and heard and lived enough of the negative to prefer the positive. That does not mean I do not disagree (I guess this response is proof!) but not in a personal way.

October 13, 2009 at 12:10 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

KU officials deserve pat on the back

I cannot help but be disappointed in the efforts of some to attack an journalist's competency and integrity on his own website for an opinion piece. This site is host to the very best source of KU basketball on the web (my opinion - you may attack it at will). Mr Meyer represents that site and has served us for many years. The need to attack him for every article he writes makes reading the comments (not the articles) the difficult task.

I really appreciate the positive contributions so often appearing in these comments. Some of the same posters who seem to have the consistent need to attack Mr. Meyer offer great insights elsewhere. I do hope you might consider not reading or not commenting on future articles of this nature if you are not willing to address your comments to the content and not the personal character of writer or his writing style.

October 10, 2009 at 5:19 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Henry brothers weigh in on Boot Camp

Nice article on Xavier and C.J. Both should be significant factors this year and I also loved their tone.

KUShaw - good article link on Jones. I would think Aaron Miles might be of recruiting help with him. If he thinks 25 family members come to watch him with love is special (and it is) wait until he hears the Allen Fieldhouse love! With a couple million fans watching every game on TV around the world he will never lack love here. Of course Aaron can tell him that as well.

It is unfortunate that LJW likely went to press with this story before reading Zagsblog. I like KU's chances with any recruit that Coach Self visits in his home.

October 3, 2009 at 1:50 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Standards have been lowered

This discussion has predictably landed like a hand grenade in our midst. There are a couple of points being completely missed here.

The purpose of the university is to educate and prepare people for careers and raise the awareness of the populace in diverse subjects.

These young men come to KU to study and play basketball and football etc. Yes they come from cultures somewhat different than Me Keegan came from. But many if not most hope to obtain future employment in the NBA or NFL or otherwise just as we hoped to obtain employment when we graduated. I have been thankful that I was sufficiently prepared to acquire such opportunity.

The employment in the NBA, to narrow it down to one sport, is to be one player of fifteen in a city/area of 2-10 million people. Many of these people follow the sport. So their employment conduct will be scrutinized far closer than mine, than goodness. To use words in private is not a problem. But the trouble is words used frequently tend to slip out in public. That is when it appears on YouTube and in the local newspaper. An example:

A few years ago Carmelo Anthony of the Denver Nuggets was discovered to have appeared in a video entitled Stop Snitching which warned that residents of Baltimore who collaborated with the police would face violence (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmelo_...). When that discovery was made public the NBA, the Denver Nuggets and Mr Anthony received intense criticism and public outcry. Whether you agree that the statement was unfairly criticized or not it violated his employment contract. It cost him and his team much community disapproval. He later distanced himself from the video.

So my point is holding standards that meet the larger community standards is wise preparation for such employment. The student-athletes who come to KU can rightly expect that those standards are encouraged and required. It is not much different at North Carolina or UCLA. When NBA teams prepare for the annual draft every incident such as this will be intensely scrutinized and the players will be asked about it in their interviews. Just being a great basketball player is not enough. The athletes are expected to represent the community just as here they are expected to represent the university.

Being violent as some have pointed out is far worse than the words we use. But people do judge based on what they hear or see or read about, both words and actions. The 50ish white guys are actually the very guys paying for the new practice facilities and improvements and paying for the tickets that help the university pay for all athletic and some academic programs. For Mr Taylor and Mr Collins, I can only suggest as part of their education at KU that they find more acceptable role model to look up as well as rappers - acceptable that is, to their future employers.

September 26, 2009 at 1:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Perkins calls meeting with KU football, basketball players; statement issued

Average Citizen - good call on the recruits. These guys are way smarter than some folks here realize (maybe they have not thought about it). No recruit is going to eliminate KU over this incident. We still have terrific people wanting to come here to study and play ball because the school and the traditions are much bigger than any player - knucklehead or not. It is perhaps being blown up because it does not happen often at KU.

I am not fond of the players' actions here. I believe Lew when he says it will not happen again. Being suspended by the AD is not conducive to being drafted high in the NBA.

But I stand behind the school that fostered and nurtured me to a degree and a great start on a career. I have full confidence in both coaching staffs and the AD's staff to educate young men as the university has always done. Out of every negative there is always a positive. Part of that education is learning to recover from our falls.

September 23, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Fresh faces: Go behind the scenes as Nick Krug explains one of his recent photos

Hey Nick -

I have been appreciating your photos for some time now and am glad to have you step out from behind the camera to talk with us. You are among the best in the business and LJW and we are fortunate to have you.

How about a picture of you?

September 12, 2009 at 6:50 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

How Keegan voted

Nice work Mr Keegan. Thanks for sharing. I agree that Oregon (I live in Oregon) does not belong in the top 25 after Thursday's offensive fiasco. Now the race is on between Boise State, TCU and BYU to play in the Rose Bowl (assuming The PAC-10 winner goes to the BCS championship).

Obliviously no poll can get a season right this early so the next few weeks should be interesting.

September 8, 2009 at 7:14 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )

Flourishing friendship

First to boomrsoonr26 - thank you for serving our country. You drive one of those honkers and its all good no matter what the name.

I echo the thanks, Gary, for a feel-good, behind the scenes look at two of our freshmen. The excitement is so high here with the coming years. It is beyond this year we cannot help but look as one of Coach Self's strategic points is to keep recruiting competitors who can push each other to greatness as well as players who want to be here as students and enjoy the experience for several years. Foundational.

We don't seem to talk much about the unsung heroes returning and ready to be a force as well this year. Guys like Reed, Theahan, Morningstar, Releford and Little. You guys are not forgotten and will be essential this year. I remember how Russell Robinson was forgotten after a slow freshman year but was the glue to carry us for the next three years. You're called heroes because what you do is beyond the call of fame and fortune and you sacrifice your own desires for the good of the team. I hope and expect to see each of you in key moments throughout the coming season. Thank you.

September 8, 2009 at 7:04 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )