Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self underwent a heart procedure in which two stents were inserted, the school announced Thursday. The procedure went smoothly, and Self is expected to make a full recovery, according to the statement.
Self, 62, was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital on campus after not feeling well and experiencing “concerning symptoms.” He is expected to be released from the hospital “soon.”
“Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self felt unwell and experienced some concerning symptoms Thursday,” the statement from the Kansas athletics department said. “He was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital, where he had two stents inserted.”
“The procedure went very well, and he is expected to make a full recovery,” the statement continued. “He is in good spirits and expects to be released from the hospital soon.”
In 2023, Self missed the Big 12 tournament and NCAA tournament after undergoing a heart procedure in which he received a catheterization and had two stents inserted for blocked arteries. Coming off a national championship in 2021-22, the Jayhawks were a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament before losing in the second round to No. 8 Arkansas.
Self returned to the team on April 5, 2023, and acknowledged that he needed to make some lifestyle changes after the health scare.
“I think I have to wake up a little bit and maybe do some things from a lifestyle standpoint, a personal habit standpoint, that I’ve been very, very, very inconsistent with my entire adult life,” Self told reporters then, via the Associated Press.
“And I said that jokingly earlier, can you imagine a doctor telling you to lose weight, eat right and exercise?” he continued. “I’ve been told that a long time, but I’m taking that serious for the first time I probably have in my life.”
Earlier that season, Self missed four games while serving a suspension for self-imposed penalties by the Kansas basketball program following an FBI investigation into a college basketball corruption scandal involving eight schools.
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In both instances, longtime assistant Norm Roberts replaced Self as interim head coach. However, Roberts retired following the 2024-25 season. There is no word yet on who would fill in for Self if this absence becomes an extended one.
Former Jayhawks star Jacque Vaughn, previously an NBA head coach with the Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets, joined Self’s staff in May. Assistant Joe Dooley has had head-coaching stints at East Carolina and Florida Gulf Coast. Kurtis Townsend is the senior assistant on the basketball coaching staff.
Self has coached at Kansas for 22 seasons, beginning with the 2003-04 campaign. He has compiled a 624-156 record, winning 16 Big 12 regular-season championships and eight conference tournament titles. In the NCAA tournament, Self has coached the Jayhawks to four Final Four appearances and two national championships.
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Kansas opens its preseason with an exhibition at Louisville on Oct. 24. The Jayhawks tip off the regular season on Nov. 3 against University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
