"Is Bill Self A Better Coach Than Roy Williams?"
by Dave Shepard, OTSL Panelist
Who would've thought that Bill Self would be a better fit for Kansas? In comparing Self to Roy Williams, Self has done the better job at Kansas than Roy when evaluating their first 9 years on the job. It certainly begs the question, given the fact that Self has out coached Williams on the two occasions they have met in the NCAA tourney, could he be the better coach?
Right now if you could pick between Bill Self and Roy Williams to coach your school who would it be? Below I will make an argument that Bill Self is a better coach than Roy Williams. Most experts would have never entertained this idea when Self was hired to replace Old Roy in 2003.
Two times Bill Self and Roy Williams have faced each other in the NCAA tournament and Kansas has won both games by double digits. This is despite the fact that Kansas has been the lower seed in each tournament game. The last time Kansas beat UNC in the NCAA tournament they went on to win the national championship in 2008. In 2011-12, it was UNC not Kansas that had the pre-season All-American player in Harrison Barnes. In the 2007-08 season it was North Carolina with Tyler Hansbrough who had the All-American 1st team pre-season pick, not Kansas. UNC's largest lead in any of these games was just 4. In their first contest against Kansas in 2008 they never once led the game.
Roy Should Learn More About Self:
Coaching Records Against Each Other
Self Williams
W-L 2-0 0-2
PPG 82.0 66.5
FG% 50.4% 39.7%
Roy Williams coached for 15 years at Kansas and had a well known reputation of not being able to win the big game. He did get his national championship, but it took him until he was 54 years old and he wasn't with Kansas anymore. Bill Self won the national title in just his fifth season at Kansas, nearly 10 years younger than Roy when he won his. Bill Self could make it two national titles a week from now. He would be just 49 years old.
Winning The Big Game
First 9 Years Coaching Kansas
Self Williams
NCAA Tourney Wins 22 20
Final Four Appearances 2 2
National Titles 1 0
*Kansas Ineligible in 1988-89 Season
Bill Self has coached for 9 seasons at Kansas. If you compare that with Old Roy, Self won 46 more games than Williams and has a chance to add to that in New Orleans. He has won nearly 84% of his games, while Williams has won just 79% of his contests. In Self's 9 years coaching the Jayhawks, more than half the time he has recorded at least 30 wins in a season. Williams can only make that claim twice. For Self that includes the past three seasons in a row which he has won at least 30 games each season. If he defeats Ohio State this Saturday that would give him 100 wins over the past 3 seasons.
Self Clearly The Better Jayhawk
First 9 Years Coaching Kansas
Self Williams
30-Win Seasons 5 2
W-L 268-52 222-58
Win% .838 .793
Something to think about while you watch the Final Four this weekend.
