Why Bill Self let Kansas' starters walk to rebuild around the No. 1 recruit

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Bill Self gave a lesson in college basketball calculus last week in his office as he went through the roster decisions he had to make this spring.Self took a gamble this portal season when he saved his budget to stay in the race for Tyran Stokes, the top player in the 2026 recruiting class, who was choosing between Kansas and Kentucky. Stokes didn’t announce until April 28, at which point many of the top players in the transfer portal were off the board.Advertisement