Pre-Conference KU Basketball is Underrated

It’s here! The 2021-22 Kansas Jayhawk basketball season is finally here. After a virus-shortened end to the 2020 season and a low-attendance, socially-distanced truncated 2021 season; 2022 will be close to back to normal. Allen Fieldhouse will be at full attendance, teams will be playing full 31-game schedules, and hopefully there won’t be any dramatic pauses or shutdowns. Tonight’s game against Emporia State is the only broadcasted exhibition game KU will have.

With that in mind, I wanted to celebrate the period of the season we are in. College basketball gets overlooked this time of year with football still in full swing, Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Years holidays approaching, and the more important conference and tournament games still some time away. Even many fans of college basketball in general or KU in particular tend to downplay games in November or December. But here’s why you shouldn’t! Pre-conference KU basketball is a time to be excited about.

Reason 1: College Hoops is Back

This goes without saying, but any games are better than none. It’s been a long time since March. While the off-season has spiced up in recent years with so much roster turnover…who goes to the NBA, who transfers out, who transfers in, what late recruits decide, etc.…there’s nothing like seeing live competition. For KU fans specifically, it’s the return to the Fieldhouse, the Jayhawk on center court, the bright lights, the whistles, the squeaks of the shoes, the substitution horn, the band playing “Living on a Prayer”, the crowd roaring after a fast-break dunk, the Rock Chalk chant, the Alma Mater, the analysis on TV or radio or online before and after, etc. The season is just different than the off-season. This morning many Kansans awoke to frost on the ground for the first time in months. The cold weather has returned. It just feels like basketball season.

Reason 2: Season’s Unlimited Potential

Prognostication is fun, but until the ball is tipped you don’t exactly know how the games will turn out. Will this be the year that KU finally makes it back to the Final Four and cuts down the nets? There are no losses or periods poor play to poor cold water on those dreams yet. The journey begins tonight, even if it is only a preseason game. In the same way, it is fun to finally see how much the returning players have improved, how the freshmen look, and in this new era how the incoming transfers play. Thinking about Remy Martin breaking down his defender and getting to the cup or kicking it to a shooter, or how much Dejuan Harris has improved makes you believe that these are the guys and this is the team that can do it. At Preseason #3, this team has the accolades to be there at the end of the year.

Reason 3: Easy Wins, Less Stress

One-possession away conference games and nail biters in March Madness are fun, but can be very stressful to watch. Games that are basically guaranteed wins allows you to enjoy watching the superior talent and coaching of the Hawks. Looking at non-conference Allen Fieldhouse games against non-power opponents since 2003-04 season, Self’s Jayhawks are 106-3, with the most recent loss being against Oral Roberts in November 2006. And the games themselves are often fun, at least for a while. More fastbreaks, dunks, up-and-down play, and possessions equals more fun. And while these games sometimes find a lull in excitement as the margin gets wider, the walk-ons getting to play and the chance at getting 100 points doesn’t happen every day.

Reason 4: New Faces, Fun Lineups

Once we get into conference play, the rotation is normally shrunk down to about 8 key players. But early-season games allow Self to experiment with lineups and we get to see freshman and others who didn’t contribute much get more court time as they seek to improve the value they bring to the team. The 2022 team has 10 players who played at least 25% of minutes last year for their respective teams. None want to sit on the bench. It also has 4 incoming freshman who want to earn court time. Guys will play hard when they want to.

Reason 5: New Matchups

KU will face Tarleton State for the first time in school history, and then Stony Brook the following week. Where is Stony Brook located you ask? Why Stony Brook, NY of course!

Reason 6: Dave Armstrong

The corny catchphrases and homerism mixed in with the genuine excitement is something you don’t miss until its gone. He’s been doing games for years, and moved over to ESPN+ to call the Jayhawk Network games a few years back. We should get him tonight and also for the Tarleton St., Stony Brook, UTEP (in KC), Stephen F. Austin, and Harvard home games. Wow!

Reason 7: Games Only Get Better from Here

So, you’re not convinced yet? Who remembers what team KU beat by 39 the first game of the 2007-08 season (it was Louisiana Monroe, 107-78 btw), but we all remember how that season ended! Fair point. Sure, not every game of the season is equal. But we have to start somewhere. So even if you don’t find yourself as excited for preseason basketball as I am, try and make the most of it. Enjoy the season!