Why Kansas’ Bill Self says KJ Adams is ‘as valuable as any player we’ve ever had’
Kansas Jayhawks men’s basketball coach Bill Self on Friday found himself in the rare position of defending the on-court contributions of one of his favorite players of all time.
KJ Adams.
The defense came during a Friday news conference that took place ahead of Saturday’s nonconference game against Oakland. Tipoff is 5 p.m. at Allen Fieldhouse (livestream on ESPN+).
“KJ? Our fans think (about) what he doesn’t do?” the 22nd-year KU coach said response to a reporter’s assertion that some have questioned 6-foot-7, 235-pound senior KJ Adams’ value as a starter.
“I would agree with our fans. Yeah, he can get more rebounds. I agree with our fans. He can be a better screener. I disagree with everybody else. He’s as valuable as any player we’ve ever had here. I mean, he is a stud.
“Our fans also say the same thing about Juan (Harris, point guard). Was that your next question?” Self continued. “And you know what I would say about that? ‘Juan, you know how to win better than anybody else knows how to tell you to win. Do what you do.’”
We’ll let Self take it from here ...
“And that’s how I feel about KJ, too. Now, granted, I don’t disagree with what people have said, to an extent, and it’s OK to talk about your own. But when somebody else talks about your own, you get (ticked) off about it. Just like our kids.
“The whole thing is, what he brings to the table is an element that we can’t be near as good without him on the floor. Do they see how he can guard three guys in one possession and cover for everybody’s mistakes?
“Do they see how he can get a rebound and be our best pusher in transition at 6-foot-8 or 6-foot-7 or 6-foot-6, depending on haircut day? I mean, there’s a lot of things that he could do, but I would agree for him to be as good as he can be there are more things that he can do.
“But I think there’s a lot more things any good player on any team can do for the most part, to put him in that situation. The way I would look at it, freshman year to sophomore year, he’s the most improved player in the league. From sophomore to junior year, he should have won it again. Then, from this point, is he better this year than he was last year? And the answer is yes. That’s how I look at it.”
Adams, who played on a sore ankle that had him listed as questionable heading into shootaround Tuesday, scored seven points on 1-of-7 shooting with three rebounds and three blocks (in 27 minutes) as KU beat Michigan State 77-69 in Atlanta.
He scored 14 points on 7-of-13 shooting and grabbed two rebounds while playing 37 minutes in a 77-69 win over North Carolina on Nov. 8. He sprained his ankle in the game against UNC.
“I would say there’s always things he can do positioning-wise,” Self said of Adams. “I would say obviously the mindset (regarding rebounding).
“Now let me make an excuse for him. Against Carolina he plays 37 minutes in a high-possession game when we said all along we’re going to recruit to the point where he doesn’t have to play 30. It’s so much easier to have more juice when you know you’re coming out, or when you don’t have to quasi-pace yourself to an extent.
“And the other day, we can talk about, ‘Do we win the game without him? No. Was he as effective? No. Would you rather have him not as effective playing on one leg?’ The answer is yes.
“So I don’t look at it from a negative standpoint at all. I look at it thank God we had him out there. But does he need to rebound the ball better? Absolutely. Can he do some other things better? Absolutely, but so can everybody else.”
Self said Adams has been able to practice since the MSU game. Self, who is two wins from 800 for his career, believes the Austin, Texas native will be able to play in Saturday’s game against Oakland (1-2) — a team that fell to Illinois 66-54 Wednesday in Champaign, Illinois.
Senior guard Shakeel Moore will not play Saturday, Self said. Moore has not played in a game this season because of a sore foot following early-September surgery.
“He’s gone through shooting drills, but he hasn’t practiced,” Self said of Moore. “I was hopeful it could be day to day, since we have a significant period of time being at home and only playing two games over the next 10 days.
“I was hoping that that could be something that we could get some practice time, but I don’t know if that’s going to be the case yet.”
