KU’s Bill Self on recent podcast: Transfer guard Remy Martin can help Kansas and Kansas can help him

By Matt Tait     Jun 24, 2021

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In this Feb. 22, 2020, file photo, Arizona State's Remy Martin (1) shows his feelings after a run by his Sun Devils against Oregon State during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Tempe, Ariz.

Although he’s not yet certain that he’ll get to coach him, Kansas basketball coach Bill Self believes the relationship between KU and Arizona State transfer Remy Martin can be mutually beneficial for both parties.

“I think that we’re in a spot where hopefully he can help us, but hopefully we can help him,” Self said Monday on the “Courtside with Greenberg and Dakich” podcast.

Martin, [who committed to KU on May 17,][1] has been exploring his draft stock in the weeks since he announced his plans to transfer to KU.

And although he has until July 7 to make a final decision about whether to stay in the draft or return to school, nearly everything that has happened since that night in May has pointed to him playing college basketball again during the 2021-22 season.

“Remy’s flirting with the draft,” Self said Monday. “And, as far as invites to the combines and things like that, it hasn’t gone as well as probably what he had hoped.”

No worries. Martin has a pretty sound fallback plan and one that he seemed awfully excited about when he committed to Kansas as the top available player in the transfer portal.

“It’s kind of weird to say hopefully I don’t make it to the league so I can play (at KU),” Martin told the Journal-World on the night he picked Kansas. “But I’m really excited for what the future holds.”

So is Self, provided he gets to coach him.

“(Arizona State coach) Bobby (Hurley) and them did a great job with him at Arizona State so there’s nothing negative there whatsoever,” Self said Monday. “Maybe we’ll be a good fit for him. Because I do think there’s some things that he can probably do better as a player, but I also love his talent. I’m excited about him.”

The 6-foot, 175-pound senior from Chatsworth, Calif., averaged 19.1 points per game in 34 minutes per outing for the Sun Devils in each of the past two seasons.
We’re inside of two weeks now from that July 7 decision deadline, and it’s likely that players across the country will start to announce their plans in the coming days.

You’re already starting to see some pull their names out of this year’s draft pool and choosing to return to school for another run.

Baylor’s Matthew Mayer did it. North Carolina’s Day’Ron Sharpe withdrew from this week’s NBA combine, though did not necessarily announce he was returning to school for the 2021-22 season. And a handful of other notable names have made the move as well.

At Kansas, all eyes are on Martin, Ochai Agbaji and Jalen Wilson.

And while Agbaji figures to take his decision all the way to the July 7 deadline — [he currently is at the combine and is starting to appear as a late second-rounder in some mock drafts][2] — it would make sense for Kansas fans to keep an eye out for word from the Martin and Wilson camps before then.

[1]: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2021/may/17/arizona-state-transfer-remy-martin-commits-kansas/
[2]: http://www2.kusports.com/weblogs/tale-tait/2021/jun/23/ochai-agbajis-nba-combine-measurements-s/

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.