Kansas basketball fans are used to seeing their team atop the Big 12, but this offseason has brought a wave of skepticism. An insider’s recent comments have sparked debate: Is Kansas really on the outside looking in for the conference’s top-five teams?
Has Kansas Lost Its Grip On the Big 12? One Analyst Thinks So
For nearly two decades, Kansas under Bill Self has been synonymous with Big 12 dominance, routinely capturing regular-season titles and earning high NCAA tournament seeds.
However, the past two seasons have marked an unprecedented downturn for the Jayhawks. As basketball insider Jon Rothstein bluntly states, “the last two years are the first time at Kansas that Bill Self has lost double-digit games in a season, and the last two years at Kansas, Bill Self finished sixth in the Big 12 last year and the year before he was tied for fifth.
“Those are the two worst conference finishes in the history of Bill Self’s Hall of Fame career,” he explained.
This back-to-back slump has led to a dramatic shift in perception. Rothstein argued, “Kansas is now in a scenario… if you said ‘Jon, give us right now your Big 12 preseason conference power rankings,'” he said.
“Kansas would not be in the top five of the Big 12. I’d go Houston, I’d go BYU, I’d go Texas Tech, Arizona, and Iowa State. Kansas would not be a top five team in the Big 12”.
These comments reflect a growing consensus that the Jayhawks are no longer the conference’s gold standard.
The numbers back up this assessment. Kansas finished last season 11-9 in conference play, good for sixth place—a far cry from their usual perch at the top. With the Big 12’s depth increasing, the margin for error has disappeared.
Kansas Facing Serious Roster Questions Ahead of 2025
Kansas faces significant roster uncertainty heading into 2025-26. The projected starting five is filled with question marks: Elmarko Jackson is coming off major surgery, Darryn Peterson is a highly touted freshman but unproven at the college level, and key transfers like Jayden Dawson and Trey White are being asked to play outsized roles.
As Rothstein noted, “Looking right now at the roster that Kansas has assembled, I see nothing but questions… Kansas is two legitimate players away from being vintage Kansas, from having a dog in the fight”.
Meanwhile, Big 12 rivals are surging. Texas Tech and BYU, for example, have made major roster upgrades via the transfer portal and are being touted as possible national contenders. Houston and Arizona also bring strong returning cores, making the league more competitive.
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The changing dynamics of college basketball, especially with NIL deals, have leveled the playing field.
“Being a blueblood does not have the same cache that it used to when it comes to recruiting the best of the best,” Rothstein emphasized. Now, Kansas must compete not just with tradition, but with programs offering immediate opportunity and compensation.
Kansas enters the 2025-26 season with more to prove than at any point in the Bill Self era. With recent struggles, roster uncertainty, and a stronger Big 12, the Jayhawks are, for now, on the outside of the league’s top five—a reality that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.
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