I apologize

Senex, that's a great post. Thanks.

Nothing is stated without context, however, and if we look back on it, that was a pretty dark, uncertain period when you voiced those concerns:

* KU had just limped to 3 straight road losses (@ WVU, OSU, and ISU). Even worse, we got our rears handed to us in each one, and weren't even competitive or showing signs of fight or life.

* On top of that, recall that back then Coach was still rotating tons of players in and out, essentially because he, too, was unsure of the best combinations on the floor at that point in time.

* Mason was exceptionally beat up and looked like he was running out of gas, far/far/far from the finish line.

* Devonte was playing well, but had not yet encountered the kind of breakout night he later did in Norman, where he realized that HE could be "the man" on a given night, as needed and as warranted.

* Perhaps most importantly, the light bulb had not begun to go off for Landen (on the offensive end), which led to questions as to how in the heck we were going to grow and reach a higher potential since all any opponent had to do was double-team Perry (knowing there was no other threat down low). The negative cascade effects of that problem (KU playing 4 on 5 when on offense) were clear for all to see.

* The above problem led me (personally) to my biggest concern, and probably the loudest critique of Self I have ever offered in a given season: namely, that in the absence of offensive evolution by Landen and Jamari, we would've been better off having invested more in the development (and playing time) of our athletic freshmen (Diallo and Bragg). It got to the point where I pushed that line pretty hard, even going so far as to say that I felt our ultimate post-season success was contingent on their development. ("Free Diallo and Bragg," etc. etc.)

But then, the script flipped. We saw our first glimmer of the "new KU," I submit, in the TCU game, which I mentioned at the time. I felt that there was a very evident glimmer of truly turning the corner in that game. After that, with Self having firmly named Landen the starter at Center, Lucas's confidence and efficiency on the offensive end took off, and it seemed to inject even greater life into his pre-existing strong suits (rebounding, defense, screening, etc.). This then cascaded into less double-teams on Perry, which opened up spacing inside and created all sorts of new efficiencies and capacity for our offense--including the ripple effects out to our guards. On top of that, Frank re-discovered his energy and legs, and returned to form as the "bulldog" floor general he was before. Devonte hit the gold mine on the biggest of stages in the biggest of games, essentially for the conference crown (i.e., for any hope KU had of getting it) versus OU. Suddenly, we had one of the most formidable backcourts in the land. Once Lucas bloomed and Self filled the gaping hole at the 5 spot, he was able to settle into a much more comfortable, smooth, and efficient rotation off the bench--led by Jamari inside, and Brannen/Svi outside. He made the tough but (in hindsight, correct!) decision that Diallo and Bragg weren't quite seasoned and cool enough under pressure to thrive and contribute in the exceptionally tough, closely-matched gauntlet of Big 12 games that stared KU in the face at that time.

The rest, as they say, is history. And my critiques of Self on the freshmen PT front turned out to be premature and off-base. It took the light going off for Landen offensively (something I don't think anyone on this board saw, to be fair*), but it doesn't matter. Self (and his core four) saw that potential, injected renewed faith and confidence in Lucas, and then everyone else stepped up to perform their role and perform it well. We also learned, in the process, how much of a true "team" we have here, and how on any given night a different person can essentially hitch the wagon to his post and be the lead driver, with others falling in with helpful and essential contributions.

Bottom line: Self is a master, and we are all couch potatoes. Intensive, passionate, caring, semi-intelligent, and KU card-carrying couch potatoes--but couch potatoes nonetheless. He gets paid the big bucks to figure out really tough puzzles (and how to fit everything together, not only in the here and now but 3 steps ahead). And in the final analysis, what might have once seemed as his most tenuous or fitful coaching performance in any season at KU (as voiced by so many on this board, myself most definitely included) now is suddenly looking more like it could be one of his finest hours.

Crazy stuff, no?

It's often been said in the past, and so it must be said again: "In Self We Trust."

(But hey, Coach, let's finish what we've started in April--deal?)

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* Footnote: RE Lucas, like Corpus, I asserted from the get-go on here that he is very effective at his role (defense, rebounding, screening, being where he's supposed to be in the flow of the offense). As a result, I didn't critique him much, given that he was simply functioning in the bounded role he had been asked to perform. [By contrast, I was much more critical of Jamari--not as a person, but in terms of his more erratic "one good play, two bad plays" style on the court.] Little did I know, however, that I would completely miss the boat on Landen's takeoff (on offense--both as a legit occasional scoring option and as a more assertive offensive rebounder and putback artist) once he was firmly inserted into the starting role. Given what we had all seen in Lucas up until that time--a relatively flat-footed big who didn't seem to have much jump and had shown a bad tendency to brick rim shots, not dunk, and put the ball on the floor in traffic--I don't think ANYONE on this board rightly saw that profound and remarkable turnaround coming. If you did, please point to the thread and post from back before it happened, as we will all crown you an Oracle.