Kansas coach Bill Self hospitalized, has 2 stents inserted

Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self was admitted to Lawrence Memorial Hospital and had two stents inserted Thursday, the university said in a statement.

“The procedure went very well, and he is expected to make a full recovery,” KU said. “He is in good spirits and expects to be released from the hospital soon.”

Self, 62, was transported to the hospital after he “felt unwell and experienced some concerning symptoms,” the school said. Self had coached practice on Thursday morning, KU’s final practice of the summer session.

Self missed the Big 12 tournament and NCAA Tournament in March 2023 due to a heart condition. He was admitted to the emergency department at the University of Kansas Medical Center for chest tightness and balance concerns, underwent a standard heart catheterization and had two stents placed for the treatment of blocked arteries. Self later revealed that he’d had a heart issue going back to the fall of the 2022-23 season and had an aorta valve replaced. On the day before the Big 12 tournament, he coached practice and then went to the hospital soon after.

The only other action Self has missed in his 22 seasons at Kansas came at the beginning the 2022-23 season, while serving a four-game suspension as part of the school’s self-imposed penalties in the aftermath of the FBI’s investigation into the underbelly of college basketball recruiting. Longtime Jayhawks assistant Norm Roberts, who retired this offseason, served as interim coach during both absences that year.

If Self were to have to miss time this season during his recovery, there are multiple candidates on staff who could be interim coach. Longtime assistant Kurtis Townsend is the most senior member of his staff, Joe Dooley has been a head coach for 12 seasons — two stints at East Carolina and one at Florida Gulf Coast — and new assistant Jacque Vaughn has been a head coach for both the Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets.

The Jayhawks open the preseason with an exhibition at Louisville on Oct. 24. Their regular season opener is Nov. 3 against Green Bay.

Self, a Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer, has presided over one of the most consistent programs of the 21st century. Kansas under Self has made the NCAA Tournament in every season that it has been held, winning national championships in 2008 and 2022. When the Jayhawks lost to Arkansas in the first round of this year’s NCAA Tournament, it was the first time since 2006 that they failed to advance to the Round of 32. Kansas won 14 consecutive regular-season Big 12 championships from 2005 to 2018.

Self and KU agreed to a new “lifetime” contract in 2023, putting him on a five-year rolling term and making him the highest-paid coach in college basketball.

The Jayhawks, who entered the last two seasons as the preseason No. 1 team in the Associated Press Top 25, ranked 15th in The Athletic’s early Top 25 for 2025-26 last month.

(Photo: Chris Gardner / Getty Images)