But I’ve always thought that a lot of this “Kansas fans still loathe Roy” stuff has been overplayed, that for most people the bashing of Roy has been at least partly in fun. I mean the guy did leave Kansas, after all. I think that makes him fair game for some light-hearted abuse, no? A Lawrence barber shop calls the bathroom the “Roy Room”? Fans boo when North Carolina scores are announced? A few people on Internet boards tell Williams jokes? That seems pretty harmless fan stuff.
Sports are, in many ways, all about heroes and villains. Roy was a hero for a long time, and then he left, and that made him an entertaining villain. I know it bothers him. But I also hope (and believe) that with the passing of years, Williams will be invited back to Lawrence, his era celebrated, his jersey retired. I do think that will happen. But there has to be that passing of time. Right now, he’s the coach at North Carolina.
Again, though, by focusing on Roy we can miss the obvious: Bill Self is doing every bit as good a job at Kansas as Roy Williams ever did. He’s getting some of the best players in America. He’s winning Big 12 championships and Big 12 tournaments. He’s made Kansas virtually unbeatable in Allen Fieldhouse again — the Jayhawks were 20-0 in the fieldhouse this year. Yes, his Jayhawks had a couple of tournament slip-ups while he was transforming them, but two Elite Eights and one Final Four in five years seem like a pretty good run.
(And, of course, this year isn’t over yet. I think Kansas matches up really well with North Carolina tonight. I think the Jayhawks are one of maybe three teams in the country that can run with the Tar Heels, but I also think they’re better defensively. If Kansas makes its threes tonight, I think they win.)
So, yes, while it’s a little bit of fun to boo Roy Williams, while it might be cathartic for people to still feel bitterness over an old slight, the truth is that everyone at Kansas should see what’s right in front of them. Bill Self is the ideal coach. It’s time for Kansas to really embrace him. It’s time for athletic director Lew Perkins and Kansas management to give him a long-term deal and pay him like one of the best coaches in America.
It’s also time for fans to appreciate that coaches like Self, coaches who can win consistently and define their programs, are almost impossible to find even for the most storied programs in the country. Kentucky has been looking for its new Adolph Rupp for decades. Indiana has been trying to replace Bob Knight for so long that some people think their next coach should be … Bob Knight. UCLA only now — 30 years after John Wooden retired — seems to have found the right coach. North Carolina had huge troubles after Dean Smith retired.
Eventually, as we know, North Carolina came after Roy Williams. Twice. He has resuscitated that program, as every Kansas fan knew he would. In the meantime, though, Kansas found Bill Self, who is good enough to make people forget Roy Williams. Now Kansas people just have to let themselves forget.
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