Kansas University reserve junior center C.J. Giles has been removed from the team indefinitely for issues related to but not limited to his academic performance, according to men’s basketball coach Bill Self.
“He has some personal issues that must be addressed,” Self said Tuesday. “Nobody should read anything more into it than he has personal issues that must be addressed. His status with the team will be addressed if and ever if those personal issues are addressed.”
Giles, who did not practice with the team Monday or Tuesday, could not be reached for comment. The voice mailbox on his cellular phone was full.
When asked if Giles was in town, Self said: “I hope so. His issues are concerning school. A lot of his issues are concerning school. I’m not saying those are the only ones, but he’s got some major issues concerning school, so hopefully he is addressing those.”
Talking after the completion of practice inside Allen Fieldhouse, Self did not sound overly optimistic about Giles’ chances of getting his personal business in order any time soon.
“He just has some issues that need to be dealt with,” Self said. “He hasn’t been very good at dealing with those issues thus far or consistently. Hopefully, he can get everything in order. But I’m not sure it’s something you fix overnight either.”
Beyond those related to academics, Self did not reveal what other issues Giles needed to get in order before his status on the team could be addressed. Self did indicate that Giles was not in any legal trouble.
Consistency hasn’t been Giles’ forte on the court, either. A 6-foot-11 native of Seattle, Giles is gifted with exceptional speed, quickness and agility for a player his size, but has been slow in developing offensively. He averaged 6.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game last season. His best game came against California, when he defended Leon Powe well and posted career highs in minutes (32) and blocked shots (five). He scored a career-high 21 points against Chaminade and contributed 10 points, six rebounds and strong defense in a blowout victory over Kentucky.
“He’s got a lot of God-given talent, but we keep talking about a guy with a lot of God-given talent who is playing 16 minutes a game,” Self said. “He has potential to be a terrific player. He is a terrific prospect, but there’s a lot more that goes into being a terrific player. He knows that. And certainly we as a staff and as a team know that as well.”
Even without Giles, Self has numerous options available to fill the 80 minutes per game from the two post positions. In the latter half of last season, Julian Wright joined Sasha Kaun in the starting lineup. Darnell Jackson and Giles backed them up. Freshman Darrell Arthur, a 6-foot-9 native of Dallas, will be a prominent member of the rotation. Wright is expected to play both on the perimeter and inside this season. Matt Kleinmann, a 6-foot-10 sophomore, also lends frontcourt depth if needed.
“It’s a blow because we went from being the deepest team around to all the sudden we’re not near as deep in practice,” Self said. “It would be just like getting somebody nicked up in practice, although this situation is much more serious than that.”
By that, Self meant that he could be sure that an injured player would return to the team. In Giles’ case, the coach said: “There are no guarantees.”
Self said he was unaware of whether Giles was doing anything to keep his body or game in shape.
“He does not need to be doing anything but taking care of his personal business,” Self said.
Self, when asked if it should be something Giles will be able to take care of, said, “It hasn’t happened yet.”
Before last season, Giles made no secret of his desire to play well enough as a sophomore to declare himself eligible for the NBA draft. As is the case with many student-athletes who project themselves as early entries to the NBA, Giles front-loaded his schedule with less challenging classes and has more difficult ones remaining.
Self said he expected to have “close contact” with Giles “the next few days, the next week, but no definite timetable.”
Giles originally signed with the University of Miami, was released from that commitment and came to KU, where his father, Chester, played for Ted Owens for two years (1979-80), battled knee injuries, and averaged 3.1 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. Chester moved from Seattle to Lawrence during his son’s sophomore season and was a regular at home games last season.
