Longtime Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self called rumors that he would announce his retirement on Wednesday, “B.S., bad info,” according to a report from Gary Bedore of The Kansas City Star.
Rumors were running rampant online that Self, who has been with the Jayhawks since 2003, was nearing a decision to retire. The 63-year-old told the media after the round of 32 loss to St. John’s last weekend that he wasn’t sure whether or not he would return for a 24th season.
Why Bill Self is considering retirement at age 63
Over the last few years, Self has dealt with a series of cardiac-related ailments. In March 2023, Self was hospitalized after experiencing chest discomfort. He underwent a heart catheterization and did not coach in the Big 12 or NCAA tournaments that season. Kansas lost in the Big 12 tournament after winning the regular season title, and fell in the round of 32 of the NCAA tournament to No. 8 Arkansas as a No. 1 seed.
Last July, Self was hospitalized after not feeling well, again. He had a medical procedure done where two more stents were inserted to improve blood flow to and from his heart. He was released from the hospital a couple days later.
Self was hospitalized briefly this past January out of what the school termed “an abundance of caution.” Self did not need any medical procedures completed as part of the hospitalization, and instead was treated for dehydration and monitored for his atrial fibrillation. He missed the program’s road trip to Boulder, Colo., where the Jayhawks beat Colorado by six on Jan. 20.
What Bill Self said after losing to St. John’s in the NCAA tournament
After Kansas lost to St. John’s by two in Sunday’s NCAA tournament round of 32 contest, Self was asked about his coaching future. His answer was telling, as he clearly is thinking about his health and whether or not it’s best for him to continue on in a high-stress profession.
“I haven’t really gone through much on the court,” Self began. “I’ve gone through some stuff off the court. So I’ll get back and get with family and visit and see what’s going on. I love what I do. I need to be able to do it where I’m feeling good and healthy to do it fairly well. I’ll get back home where it will all be discussed.”
Bill Self on his future:
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 23, 2026
"I'll get back, get with family, visit and see what's going on. I love what I do. I need to be able to do it where I'm feeling good and healthy to do it fairly well... I'll get back home, and it'll all be discussed... I love what I do. I wanna feel good… pic.twitter.com/zYELDwTdZK
Self has taken Kansas to four Final Fours, winning two national championships. He has nothing left to prove on the court.
Is Self’s replacement already in the building?
It would be pretty interesting from a narrative standpoint to have both North Carolina, who fired Hubert Davis on Monday night, and Kansas’s coaching jobs open in the same year should Self decide to retire.
But just like Carolina’s last coaching search, where Davis emerged quickly as the successor to Roy Williams, there is a chance that the same situation could play out between Kansas and Self’s top assistant Jacque Vaughn.
The 51-year-old Vaughn is a Jayhawks alum, and was a two-time second-team All-American for the Jayhawks in the mid-1990s. After a successful NBA career, Vaughn transitioned into coaching, where he was a San Antonio Spurs assistant under Gregg Popovich from 2010 to ’12. He later served as the head coach of the Orlando Magic, before becoming an assistant, and later head coach, for the Brooklyn Nets. He joined his alma mater on Self’s bench last May, and given his prior coaching experience, is seen as a natural successor if Self were to retire.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bill Self Calls Out ‘B.S. Info’ About Potential Retirement: Why Kansas Coach’s Future Is in Question.
