2008 Kansas Jayhawks

The 2008 Kansas Jayhawks finished with a record of 37-3 (13-3), winning both the Big 12 Regular Season and Conference Tournament. The team earned a 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament and won the National Championship. The team’s Sports Reference link is here.

Offense

The 2008 team was so balanced, and this balance applied on offense. It’s top six player accounted from between 9.3 and 13.6 points per game. No one had a shot frequency above 27%. Six of the top seven players had a positive Offensive Adj. PPG +/-, though none scored above +2.00.

Mario Chalmers’ season gets overlooked somewhat due to this balance and a particular shot he is more famous for. But he was very good. Not needing to shoot a ton on volume, he torched the nets with a 60.5% True Shooting percentage, and contributed as an off-guard with assists and ball-handling. Inside, both Darrell Arthur and Darnell Jackson put together strong seasons on the offensive side of the ball. Sherron Collins, Brandon Rush, and Sasha Kaun were also positive contributors on this end.

The team had a very good score of +6.65.

Defense

The 2008 defense was even better than its offense, and was the team’s calling card for a multi-year period during this era (2006-2008). It isn’t hard to see why. Mario Chalmers getting steals. Brandon Rush locking down. Sasha Kaun grabbing boards and blocking shots. Both Darnell Jackson and Darrell Arthur developed into fine defenders, using their size and athleticism to bother shots both inside and out. Russell Robinson’s score is a little lower than expected during this season, although his pressure defense was unrivaled during his career.

But once again, we see that Chalmers was the team’s most valuable defender. Known for his steals, Mario did a fine job of not over-gambling and kept his man in front quite well.

Adj. PPG +/-

The 2008 team saw 6 players with a PPG +/- score above +2.00, the most of any season for Kansas since 1997. This balance manifested itself throughout the year. Once again, note that Chalmers easily graded out as the team’s MVP. He was efficient on offense and solid on defense. The team’s trio of big men in Arthur, Jackson, and Kaun were excellent as well.

The TEAM score of +15.60 is KU’s best in the last 26 years, with 1997 the next closest.

Rock Chalk Championship

The question this team faced during the year was simply, who will take the big shot when the team needs a bucket in a close NCAA Tournament game? At the time, it was a silly question. Whoever was open was the correct one. But KU would face this dilemma. It needed a play; it needed 3 points. Thankfully Coach Self had a trick up his sleeves. Down 3, with 12 seconds left, he had his best driver race downcourt and flip it to his best shooter coming around on a curl.