Here’s a hypothetical: Let’s say the three-point attempt by Davidson’s Jason Richards falls through, or Mario Chalmers’ against Memphis doesn’t.
Would more than 1,000 Kansas fans have been disco dancing — led by Bill Self in his Tony Manero open collar and bell-bottom whites — at Kansas Speedway on Saturday night?
Probably not.
In the two-month whirlwind celebration of the Jayhawks’ One Shining Moment, nothing is as important as what happened at the speedway’s infield.
Bill’s Basketball Boogie hoped to raise $500,000 for Self’s nonprofit Assists Foundation to improve the health of children. Bill and his wife, Cindy, aim to open a multi-purpose athletic campus in Lawrence or the Kansas City area to essentially give kids a place to play outdoors.
“Back when I was growing up, we were out riding our bikes, doing all sorts of things outside,” Self said. “You don’t see that today.”
If it were as simple as unplugging the home electronics and cutting off the energy drinks, then we wouldn’t have seen a report early in the week that passed as good news: The child obesity rate in the United States has stabilized at 17 percent. Yikes.
Children’s health has been a concern of the Selfs, the parents of two teenagers, for a few years. They started the Assists Foundation in 2006 with a stated goal of raising $1 million for the project.
But that year, Kansas’ season ended with a first-round bounce out by Bradley. That came one year after Bucknell. Not the kind of feel-good occasions to launch charity endeavors, no matter how worthy the cause.
Then providence smiled on the Selfs. Richards missed his prayer, and Chalmers hit his, and fans who paid $250 for a boogie ticket, who bought autographed jerseys of KU players in the NBA in a silent auction couldn’t get enough of Self or give enough to his foundation Saturday.
The on-stage auction fetched $12,500 for a national championship ring. One of the coolest items, a framed collection of autographed jerseys of the program’s five Final Four most outstanding players, brought $8,000.
Somehow, the foundation got its hands on a Michael Jordan No. 45 signed Bulls jersey, and it brought $10,000.
“Winning has given this more legs,” Self said. “We had planned on doing more and tried to do more, but there’s no doubt our voice is out there stronger because of the championship.”
Or, as athletic director Lew Perkins said, “I’d be back in the office answering mail about why we didn’t win and what we’re going to do about the coach.”
Instead, Perkins, most of the Jayhawks’ athletic administration, chancellor Robert Hemenway, many ex- and current players and former coach Ted Owens posed for photos and chatted about good times old and new as credit cards were swiped.
Self talked plenty about the event creating awareness, but in today’s out-of-whack coaching salaries, it’s about more than that. Self is a signature away from a bigger deal, probably more than $2 million annually. Being moved by a charitable spirit is almost a moral obligation for those so fortunate.
But those who know Self best understand that Saturday was merely a disco-fueled extension of his nature.
