Here is Bill Self's arc prior to Kansas. After Tulsa/Illionois, there is of course no guarantee that every coach will go on to do what Self has done. But I do think its a decent barometer of what to look for. Ultimately, at the end of the day, I'm not sure we can get a hot coach like Self after his Illinois stint, but we for sure can get coaches after their "Tulsa stint".
Again, you can never be sure how things will turn out but I think the expectation is that we should be hiring coaches who have demonstrated success at smaller schools over a decent sample size. If you can take Tulsa to EE, you can do well at bigger School.
We hired Shaka after his "Tulsa phase" but he shit the bed at Texas where Self excelled at Illinois. That shouldn't deter us from going for coaches with similar track records.
On June 9, 2000, Illinois named Self the head coach of their basketball program. Self's predecessor, Lon Kruger, had recently left the Illinois program to accept a job in the NBA as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks.
In 2000–01, his first season at Illinois, Self coached a squad of mostly Kruger recruits to a 27–8 record (13–3 conference record), a share of the Big Ten title, and a final Associated Press ranking of 4th in the nation, resulting in the Fighting Illini earning a number 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Self coached Illinois guards Frank Williams and Cory Bradford, along with guard/forward Sergio McClain, forward Brian Cook, and center Marcus Griffin, to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament. The Illini failed to advance beyond the Elite Eight after falling to eventual tournament finalists number 2 seeded Arizona. The 2000–01 Illini roster included future NBA players Frank Williams, Robert Archibald and Brian Cook. With mostly the same core, Illinois followed up the season with impressive 2001–02 and 2002–03 campaigns, but fell in the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen in 2002 to Kansas, and the second round in 2003 to Notre Dame.
Self was responsible for the recruitment of many of the 2005 Fighting Illini team, which won the Big Ten title under Bruce Weber.[18]Weber replaced Self prior to the 2003–04 season and coached 2005 Fighting Illini to an NCAA record-tying 37–2 record before falling to North Carolina in the NCAA championship game. In Self's three seasons in Illinois, he led the Fighting Illini to two Big Ten regular-season championships, a Big Ten tournament title, and three straight NCAA tournament appearances.
Again, you can never be sure how things will turn out but I think the expectation is that we should be hiring coaches who have demonstrated success at smaller schools over a decent sample size. If you can take Tulsa to EE, you can do well at bigger School.
We hired Shaka after his "Tulsa phase" but he shit the bed at Texas where Self excelled at Illinois. That shouldn't deter us from going for coaches with similar track records.
Oral Roberts[edit]
Self's first head coaching position came at Oral Roberts who hired him in 1993. In his first season at ORU, the team managed only six wins/victories. Things improved slightly the following year, when ORU won ten games. In Self's third season, he guided the Golden Eagles to an 18–9 record, and in his fourth season, (1996–1997), ORU registered a 21–7 record as the school made its first postseason tournament appearance since its 1983–1984 appearance in the National Invitation Tournament.[16]Tulsa[edit]
After rebuilding the Golden Eagles, Self was hired by crosstown rival Tulsa and spent three seasons (1998 to 2000) there, compiling a Tulsa-best 74–27 record. While at TU, Self coached the Golden Hurricane to consecutive NCAA tournament appearances in 1999and 2000. In the 1999–2000 season, in addition to setting a school single-season record for victories by compiling a 32–5 record, Self led the Golden Hurricane to its first-ever Elite Eight appearance.[17]Illinois[edit]
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In 2000–01, his first season at Illinois, Self coached a squad of mostly Kruger recruits to a 27–8 record (13–3 conference record), a share of the Big Ten title, and a final Associated Press ranking of 4th in the nation, resulting in the Fighting Illini earning a number 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Self coached Illinois guards Frank Williams and Cory Bradford, along with guard/forward Sergio McClain, forward Brian Cook, and center Marcus Griffin, to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament. The Illini failed to advance beyond the Elite Eight after falling to eventual tournament finalists number 2 seeded Arizona. The 2000–01 Illini roster included future NBA players Frank Williams, Robert Archibald and Brian Cook. With mostly the same core, Illinois followed up the season with impressive 2001–02 and 2002–03 campaigns, but fell in the NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen in 2002 to Kansas, and the second round in 2003 to Notre Dame.
Self was responsible for the recruitment of many of the 2005 Fighting Illini team, which won the Big Ten title under Bruce Weber.[18]Weber replaced Self prior to the 2003–04 season and coached 2005 Fighting Illini to an NCAA record-tying 37–2 record before falling to North Carolina in the NCAA championship game. In Self's three seasons in Illinois, he led the Fighting Illini to two Big Ten regular-season championships, a Big Ten tournament title, and three straight NCAA tournament appearances.
