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Self Joins $3 Mil Club

What is the price of a missed three pointer? For Kansas a missed three pointer by Jason Richardson meant a successful shot a the national championship and ultimately Bill Self staying home in Lawrence and signing a ten year, $3 million per year contract. In doing so, Self joins a very select group of college basketball coaches consisting of Florida's Billy Donovan, who is getting about $3.5 million, probably Kentucky's Billy Gillespie who is getting around $3 million and has yet to sign his contract, perhaps UCLA's Ben Howland, probably Louisville's Rick Pitino and most likely Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, Michigan State's Tom Izzo, UNC's Roy Williams and Memphis' John Calipari. I've included a number of coaches on this list that I'm just guessing at because the available public data includes bonuses and limited information about the effect of shoe and clothing contracts that are more and more now paid through the universities rather than directly to the coaches. In any event, Self is in exceptional company and undoubtedly has a longer term contract than almost any coach on this list.

In signing this contract and agreeing to stay at Kansas, Self declined an offer from T. Boone Pickens University, better known perhaps as Oklahoma State which made a run at him following the Final Four. With a department swimming in money, the offer would probably have been significantly higher than the one he took to stay at Kansas, but as both he and athletic director Lew Perkins said about the discussions on the new contract, there were no negotiations. Self told Perkins what he wanted and that's what he got. Must be nice to have a boss that will be that pliable. Of course, he is the major asset of the athletic department and the face of KU athletics - not someone Perkins could really afford to let slip away.

Full post as published by Sports Biz on August 09, 2008 (boomark / email).