@drgnslayr said in KU ROSTER 2026-27:

What I wonder... it's that most of our team didn't hesitate at all to move into the portal. I'm not for certain, but do the rest of the upper D1 teams lose this many?

It's not uncommon at this point for teams, even top teams, to lose most of their roster every season now. KU keeping a big chunk of its roster last offseason was more of an anomaly than this offseason is.

KU is currently down to 3 returning players with Kohl, Calderon, and Corbin Allen who redshirted last season.

At this point, other than resolving the Stokes situation, it looks like a bruising big man should be the top priority in the portal. The Big 12 has become the old Big East in regards to physical play and KU doesn't Calderon and Adkins are not that style of big man.

@approxinfinity said in 2026 Transfer Portal Chaos/Madness Thread:

As far as Haslem, I'd say Lebron was one of the leaders as well, barking orders at Mario and doing his talcum powder thing. Things people accept because you're the best player on the team.

You're only focusing on what you see on the court. Team and franchise leadership also includes practices and off court stuff that the general public never sees. Guys like Collison and Haslem didn't spend their entire careers including many as DNP's for no reason. There's a reason why despite not being star players, each franchise retired their numbers. That doesn't happen without those guys being viewed as franchise leaders for many years.

@crimsonblu22 said in KU ROSTER 2026-27:

@Texas-Hawk-10 saw that, hate to have to play him. Think they have the money to pay him?

Yes, they spent $28 million on NIL for football last year. Tech probably has the deepest NIL pockets in the Big 12 with the possible exception of BYU.

24/7 has a crystal ball for Flory to end up at Texas Tech next season.

North Carolina has hired former Denver Nuggets head coach Mike Malone as their next head coach.

@approxinfinity said in 2026 Transfer Portal Chaos/Madness Thread:

@rockchalkjayhawk you said it well.

The big unknown factor to me is locker room demeanor. Work ethic. Team identity. This year we had a kid who wasnt a leader getting paid the most. Scorer, good kid, smart. DP was all these things but not a leader. Probably will be with time and if he is graced with good health.

I think Flory could be a leader next year. Lets make sure we at least have our highest paid guys be leaders.

Highest paid players don't have to be the leader of a team. It doesn't even have to be the best player that's the leader of a team. Using the NBA as an example, there's a reason why Nick Collison was kept around by the Thunder for so many years and retired his jersey. Same thing with Udonis Haslam and the Miami Heat. Those two were never the best players on those teams, but they were the leaders.

The ideal leadership situation for Kansas next year is the slim possibility of Melvin Council getting one more year of eligibility.

@approxinfinity said in 2026 Transfer Portal Chaos/Madness Thread:

There's a consistent theme here. Bill Self is sawft.

What would the roster and staff have looked like if this hadn't happened? https://kualumni.org/news/kansas-signs-mens-basketball-head-coach-bill-self-to-lifetime-contract/

Do we still win a championship in 2022?

Should you ever give a coach a lifetime contract in NIL era? Does this undermine natural tension and accountability? Expectations dont change.

Mike Krzyzewski signed a "lifetime" contract with Duke University on November 14, 2001 immediately after winning a title, and then won in 2015 and 2021. Not all coaches can get 10 McD AAs every year and the Dukie whistle. So, thats anomolous.

As of March 2026, there are only 2? lifetime ie rolling year-to-year-contracts in college basketball: Bill Self (Kansas) and Rick Barnes (Tennessee). Barnes signed his in 2025.

Duke didn't win in 2021, Baylor did. Duke didn't even make the NCAA Tournament in 2021.

@BeddieKU23 said in 2026 Transfer Portal Chaos/Madness Thread:

Seeing Flory is entering the portal. Peace out y'all

He also declared for the draft which is not uncommon for players to also enter the portal in those situations.

@approxinfinity the shot also wasn't a buzzer beater. There was still 3 seconds on the clock and Memphis had a decent half court look to win it.

Mario's shot wasn't a buzzer beater and it didn't win the game. That's why it's not as high up as other moments.

@drgnslayr said in Other Games 2025-2026:

Oh crap! Duke lost! lol

That last second shot reminded me of when Laettner took down Kentucky in 1992. I watched that live, too. Karma!

I think it sucks that UA and Mich play first. That seems like it would be the championship game... but never count out UCONN! They are the only team remaining that knows what it's like to go the distance!

I used to be for any B12 team this late in the race... but UA has a lot of really shitty fans bashing KU. It was enough to make me pull for Michigan. This should be one helluva game!

Also... I'm pulling for UI, especially Brad Underwood! Kansas native from McPherson! He's a KSU grad. And KSU tried to hire him after Weber, but he was smart enough to stick it out at Illinois! Good man!

There's a very solid bracket strategy called OSOC. For 17 of the last 18 seasons, the champs have either been a 1 seed or UConn with Villanova in 2016 being the exception as they were a 2 seed.

@ROCKCHALK2025 said in Other Games 2025-2026:

@Texas-Hawk-10 I know what you really meant to say- anyone but anyone but Puke' Couldn't of happened to any better team bunch of aggorant shits - - -- Cocky. I'm so happy.

I posted after the game was over. I'm glad Duke lost, but I also don't want Hurley winning another because that man is the biggest jackass in college basketball.

Dan Hurley is going to be an even bigger insufferable jackass if UConn wins again. Anybody but UConn at this point.

This is awesome being here on the 18th green for Gary's triumph! Everyone around me is so happy for Gary and seeing him overcome everything he's gone through in the last few years.

@FarmerJayhawk said in Coaching Changes:

I talked to a lawyer friend of mine earlier. A court might not look at it very fondly because non-competes generally aren’t enforceable if there’s no geographic issue (Tucson to LFK is a long way) and there are no trade secrets really at stake.

Even if a judge rules on it, by the time that lawsuit would make its way through to a conclusion, that's a lot of extra money and time wasted if KU tried pursuing it.

Looks like if Self retires, Tommy Lloyd won't be an option because there's language in his contract that prevents him from leaving Arizona for another school within the conference.

At this point, if Self does decide to retire and KU does end up looking outside the KU family, Otz would be my pick. His buyout is only $4 million and it sounds like ISU is struggling a bit with NIL because they don't have the wealthy donors that can fund NIL like other schools can.

@nuleafjhawk said in INDIANA. UCLA. LOUISVILLE. AND.......:

@Texas-Hawk-10 seedings don't mean quality teams. Look at our early exits lately. It doesn't matter where a team is seeded. It matters how they perform.

In case you forgot, seeding is based on a team's performance throughout the year. Very rarely does the best team in the country actually win the NCAA championship.

Lol, this is an embarrassing take. KU has been lower than a 4 seed twice since 1990 I believe. Duke went 12 years from 2010-2022 without winning an ACC title and a bunch of early exits from the NCAA Tournament during that time as well including losing to a 15 seed.

It sounds like Tommy Lloyd is UNC's top choice followed by Billy Donovan and Dusty May.