Kansas Jayhawks?

[Larry Gude]

Can someone please tell me why does elite talent go there to play basketball, year after year after year? They are sometimes great but, always good.

I get North Carolina and Duke, the tradition AND great locales. Same for UCLA, USC and Florida. I get Michigan State, much of the East Coast, Syracuse, Georgetown, UConn, the local talent. Kentucky and Louisville aren't the worst places on the planet, have tradition and local talent.

But Kansas? No local talent. Middle of nowhere. Rough weather.


WT?

 

[Beta84]

Can someone please tell me why does elite talent go there to play basketball, year after year after year? They are sometimes great but, always good.

I get North Carolina and Duke, the tradition AND great locales. Same for UCLA, USC and Florida. I get Michigan State, much of the East Coast, Syracuse, Georgetown, UConn, the local talent. Kentucky and Louisville aren't the worst places on the planet, have tradition and local talent.

But Kansas? No local talent. Middle of nowhere. Rough weather.


WT?

just curious -- where are the players from that go to KU? Are they from the east/west coast, or do they typically take players from the middle of BFE and just pile them up?

 

[Larry Gude]

just curious -- where are the players from that go to KU? Are they from the east/west coast, or do they typically take players from the middle of BFE and just pile them up?

They tend to get lots of West Coast kids.

 

[Beta84]

just curious -- where are the players from that go to KU? Are they from the east/west coast, or do they typically take players from the middle of BFE and just pile them up?

answering my own question...

17 guys on the "roster"
5 from Kansas
2 from Oklahoma
2 from PA
1 from DC
2 from Chicago
1 Texas, 1 Minn, 1 Cali, 1 NV, 1 NJ


Main contributors are...
2 PA, 1 MN, 1 OK, 1 IL, 1 NJ, 2 KS. I can understand most of those guys going there. Chicago because there aren't many good teams nearby (but geez, Kansas?) so OK. But the 2 PA guys who are twins and the NJ kid? Makes no sense to me!

As for the west coast, if you noticed how crappy the Pac (lack)-10 is this year, that's part of it. There aren't many traditional powers out west, so Kansas is as "close to home" as they can get and compete for championships. Who knows how that started.

 

[BuddyLee]

2,000 victories. Kids want to go to a winner and Kansas has been a winner.

 

[Zguy28]

Can someone please tell me why does elite talent go there to play basketball, year after year after year? They are sometimes great but, always good.

I get North Carolina and Duke, the tradition AND great locales. Same for UCLA, USC and Florida. I get Michigan State, much of the East Coast, Syracuse, Georgetown, UConn, the local talent. Kentucky and Louisville aren't the worst places on the planet, have tradition and local talent.

But Kansas? No local talent. Middle of nowhere. Rough weather.


WT?

It is circular. Good players go there because they are a perpetually good team. They are a perpetually good team because good talent goes there. Same with Chapel Hill or Duke. They have an occasional bad year, like UNC is having, but it will rebound.

Fear the turtle.

 

[nachomama]

It is circular. Good players go there because they are a perpetually good team. They are a perpetually good team because good talent goes there. Same with Chapel Hill or Duke. They have an occasional bad year, like UNC is having, but it will rebound.

Fear the turtle.

I don't think I've ever seen a defending National Champion team fall as hard as the Tarheels have this year. They are going from winning the championship to probably not making the dance at all. Crazy.

BTW - Didn't Roy Williams coach at Kansas before coming to UNC?

 

[Severa]

Kentucky and Louisville aren't the worst places on the planet, have tradition and local talent.

Hey now...
UofK got to 2000 wins before anyone else...
UofL wrapped up their 54th and final season at Freedom Hall by defeating #1 ranked Syracuse.

 

[Beta84]

I don't think I've ever seen a defending National Champion team fall as hard as the Tarheels have this year. They are going from winning the championship to probably not making the dance at all. Crazy.

BTW - Didn't Roy Williams coach at Kansas before coming to UNC?

There are a few teams that have won it all and not made the dance the next season. My Gators are one of them. It's really tough to win it all when you lose all of your top players (as the Gators and Tarheels both did after winning). UNC won't make the big dance since they already lost their opening round game and are 16-16 on the season. They shouldn't even make the NIT if everything is fair.

And yes, Roy Williams coached at KU before he went to UNC. Bill Self (KU's current coach) moved over from Illinoize.

 

[kom526]

More generous alumni?

 

[Otter]

Can someone please tell me why does elite talent go there to play basketball, year after year after year? They are sometimes great but, always good.

I get North Carolina and Duke, the tradition AND great locales. Same for UCLA, USC and Florida. I get Michigan State, much of the East Coast, Syracuse, Georgetown, UConn, the local talent. Kentucky and Louisville aren't the worst places on the planet, have tradition and local talent.

But Kansas? No local talent. Middle of nowhere. Rough weather.


WT?

Didn't Naismith invent basketball and wasn't he their first coach?? Didn't Chamberlain go there in the 50s?? Long history of a great program and as someone else said, they are good so the talent goes there and its a revolving door of great talent.