KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Amid concerns about his health and retirement rumors, Bill Self said Tuesday he’s not approaching the 2026-27 campaign like it’s his “last.”
“I’m not really concerned about that,” he said when he was asked about his legacy as a coach during Big 12 media day on Tuesday. “I’m certainly not thinking like it’s my last [season]. I know I’m on the back nine, but I don’t know whether it’s 14 or 16 – I don’t know what hole I’m on right now. A lot depends on how we feel. As long as we play well, I’ll feel a lot better.”
Last season, Self missed a game against Colorado in January after he was transported to a hospital for a medical issue. He’d previously missed the Big 12 tournament and the NCAA tournament in 2023 due to heart-related medical issues. He also was hospitalized in July 2025 when he had two stents inserted into his heart. After the 2025-26 campaign, Self said he would talk to his family about his future before he later announced his return.
Self, who has slimmed down in recent years, said the only issue he has right now, related to his health, is his recovery from offseason knee surgery.
“I feel good. I had my knee replaced. I feel good,” he said. “I’m excited to coach this group because I think this group wants to be coached.”
There are questions, however, about which group Self will be allowed to coach.
Self said he does not fear the legal “uncertainty” surrounding his roster after Kansas announced the addition of former Purdue star Trey Kaufman-Renn, who is vying for a sixth year of eligibility.
The Minnesota Timberwolves selected Kaufman-Renn in the 2026 NBA draft before he played in five summer league games, but he did not sign a contract, according to the franchise. He is one of three players on the Kansas roster — along with Melvin Council Jr. and Tre White — who are in a legal battle with the NCAA for their eligibility.
“I welcome the uncertainty, to be honest with you,” Self said. “I think it’d be nice if all the court cases were set on the same date, so if guys were going to be eligible or not be eligible, they all go to school at the same time.
“That’s not the way it works. You’ve got people fighting for their cause starting back in early June, and it’s been different states or different courts that have been stretched out over time. I’m going to coach it. I’m going to coach it the same, whether we have him or not.”
Kaufman-Renn was granted a temporary restraining order to play in September and later an injunction against the NCAA — which the NCAA will likely challenge in the weeks and months ahead. His argument for a sixth season was that he would not have used his redshirt season in 2020-21 if the new five-for-five eligibility rules had been in place.
Self said Kaufman-Renn had been considered a possible addition “for a while.” The coach said he did not have to recruit Kaufman-Renn because of his family ties to Kansas sophomore women’s basketball player Brooklynn Renn, who is his cousin.
“We have an advantage,” Self said. “His first cousin that is like his sister plays basketball on the Kansas women’s team. So that wasn’t me recruiting. I didn’t have to recruit him. I think she was a much better recruiter than I am.”
At full strength, if all are eligible, Kansas will have three proven veterans (Council, White, Kaufman-Renn), two five-star recruits (Tyran Stokes and Taylen Kinney) and four transfers who averaged double figures at their previous stops.
Stokes, a versatile 6-foot-8 guard-forward who is ESPN’s projected No. 1 pick in the 2027 NBA draft, said he’s adjusting to the roster changes as he prepares for his first season of college basketball.
“It’s definitely different and new. Having a new person come in every week is kind of something that you don’t really see every day, but them being able to come in and lock right into what we’ve been doing for the past four months has been a great thing,” Stokes said. “Right now, it’s just a lot of trying to build chemistry. We’re all trying to learn from each other, trying to see what each person can do and just knowing our personnel, but it’s been great. Everyone’s been locked in and focused on trying to win.”
Kaufman-Renn and Council both have preliminary injunctions to play, which are generally more difficult to fight in court than temporary restraining orders. White, who started for the Jayhawks last season, has secured an injunction to play through a lawsuit in Indiana, where the NCAA recently lost a request to reverse that decision.
Kaufman-Renn’s case and the plight of fifth-year players are important for the Big 12, which had multiple athletes in limbo for teams that potentially could make runs in the NCAA tournament.
“I’m a guy that likes certainty. I’m a pretty rigid guy, so I like certainty,” Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark told ESPN. “I like things that are black and white, but in life sometimes there is that gray.
“… I support the NCAA age-based eligibility model. Having said that, I respect the decision-making of student athletes, and I obviously respect the decisions of the court. And we’re going to have to see how this plays out. And I think the uncertainty that we’re all feeling right now, it’ll be a little time until we get to the right place.”
