IMO, he has coached his last college game at KU.
With the OKC Thunder missing the playoffs, they have to fire Scott Brooks at this point, I'd think. It would be crazy to keep letting him roll the balls out there and underachieve.
With that job open, the choice for both OKC and Self must be Self to OKC. It's too perfect.
Self's world revolves around OKC. He's spent three years of his life away from that area (coaching at IL). He grew up in the vicinity of OKC, went to college at Okie State, was an assistant at KU and Okie State, and then a HC at Oral Roberts, Tulsa, IL, and KU. (KU is about 4-4.5 hours from OKC, by the way.)
OKC desperately needs a solid coach that can convince KD and Westbrook to buy in to the franchise over the next 5-7 years. If they get one, they'll win multiple championships. If not, they'll be a wasteland in three seasons. It's one of the most important coaching hires you'll ever see a NBA team have.
On the other hand, Self has the chance to coach an NBA franchise in what is basically his hometown. His parents live there (and I'm pretty sure his Dad was a successful coach and an official with the OK version of the IHSA). His mentor is Larry Brown, the only coach to ever win a NCAA (at KU) and NBA championship. And frankly things at KU are a bit stale. They may be winning B12s every year, but they haven't been a national player for a few seasons and that's not likely to change next year with Cliff and Oubre gone (and bringing back a similar team that simply wasn't that good in the games that mattered).
This needs to happen for both sides.
By the way, I saw speculation that Brooks is gone, and Billy D is the favorite for the job. Will Self really let him steal the perfect NBA position?
With the OKC Thunder missing the playoffs, they have to fire Scott Brooks at this point, I'd think. It would be crazy to keep letting him roll the balls out there and underachieve.
With that job open, the choice for both OKC and Self must be Self to OKC. It's too perfect.
Self's world revolves around OKC. He's spent three years of his life away from that area (coaching at IL). He grew up in the vicinity of OKC, went to college at Okie State, was an assistant at KU and Okie State, and then a HC at Oral Roberts, Tulsa, IL, and KU. (KU is about 4-4.5 hours from OKC, by the way.)
OKC desperately needs a solid coach that can convince KD and Westbrook to buy in to the franchise over the next 5-7 years. If they get one, they'll win multiple championships. If not, they'll be a wasteland in three seasons. It's one of the most important coaching hires you'll ever see a NBA team have.
On the other hand, Self has the chance to coach an NBA franchise in what is basically his hometown. His parents live there (and I'm pretty sure his Dad was a successful coach and an official with the OK version of the IHSA). His mentor is Larry Brown, the only coach to ever win a NCAA (at KU) and NBA championship. And frankly things at KU are a bit stale. They may be winning B12s every year, but they haven't been a national player for a few seasons and that's not likely to change next year with Cliff and Oubre gone (and bringing back a similar team that simply wasn't that good in the games that mattered).
This needs to happen for both sides.
By the way, I saw speculation that Brooks is gone, and Billy D is the favorite for the job. Will Self really let him steal the perfect NBA position?
