The University of Kansas' men's basketball team plays at the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) in the Big 12 Conference. The men's basketball program officially began in 1898, following the arrival of Dr. James Naismith to the school, just six years after Naismith had written the sport's first official rules. Kansas has had only eight head coaches in the 120 years of basketball at the University of Kansas.
| Years | Duration of head coaching career at Kansas |
| Record | Number of career games won-lost at Kansas |
| Percent | Percentage of games won at Kansas |
| Years | Coach | Record | Percent | Notes and honors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1898–1907 | Dr. James Naismith | 55–60 | .478 | Retired • Only Coach in Kansas Basketball history with a losing record[2] |
| 1907–1909, 1919–1956 | Dr. Forrest "Phog" Allen | 590–219 | .729 | Retired • Known as the "Father Of Basketball Coaching" for his innovations of the modern game[3] • Created the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC)[4] • Successfully lobbied to make the game of basketball an Olympic sport • Helped to create the modern NCAA tournament, which began in 1939 • 1952 NCAA Championship • 1922 and 1923 Helms Championships • 1940 and 1953 Final Fours • 24 Conference regular season championships (1908, 1909, 1922–1927, 1931–1934, 1936–1938, 1940–1943, 1946, 1950, 1952–1954) • Inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame in 1959[5] • Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 |
| 1909–1919 | William O. Hamilton | 125–59 | .679 | Resigned[6] • 5 Conference regular season championships (1910, 1911, 1912, 1914, 1915) |
| 1956–1964 | Dick Harp | 121–82 | .596 | Resigned • 1957 Final Four[7] • 2 Conference regular season championships (1957, 1960) |
| 1964–1983 | Ted Owens | 348–182 | .657 | Fired • 1971 and 1974 Final Fours[8] • 6 Conference regular season championships (1966, 1967, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1978) • 1 Conference tournament championship (1981) • 1978 Basketball Weekly Coach of the Year |
| 1983–1988 | Larry Brown | 135–44 | .754 | Accepted position as head coach of the San Antonio Spurs • 1988 NCAA Championship • 1986 Final Four • 1 Conference regular season championship (1986) • 2 Conference tournament championships (1984, 1986) • 1988 Naismith College Coach of the Year • Inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002[9] • Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 |
| 1988–2003 | Roy Williams | 418–101 | .805 | Accepted position as head coach at North Carolina • 9 Conference regular season championships (1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2003) • 4 Conference tournament championships (1992, 1997, 1998, 1999) • 1990 Henry Iba Award Coach of the Year • 1992 AP Coach of the Year • 1997 Naismith College Coach of the Year • Inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007[10] • Inducted into College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 |
| 2003–present | Bill Self | 579–138 | .808 |  • 2012 and 2018 Final Fours • 14 Consecutive Conference regular season championships and 16 Regular season Conference Championships Overall (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022) • 8 Conference tournament championships (2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2022) • 2009 and 2016 AP Coach of the Year • 2016 National Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year • 2016 USA Today National Coach of the Year • 2016 Bleacher Report's National Coach of the Year • 2012 Naismith College Coach of the Year • 2013 John R. Wooden Award Legends of Coaching Award • 2012 Adolph Rupp Cup • 2009 Henry Iba Award for Coach of the Year • 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2017, 2018 Big 12 Conference Men's Basketball Coach of the Year • 2006, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2016 AP Big 12 Coach of the Year • Inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017[11] |
Notes:
- In 1919, Karl Schlademan coached, and won, the first game of the season before relinquishing the coaching position to Allen in order to concentrate on his duties as head track coach.
- In 1947, Howard Engleman coached 14 games (going 8–6) after Allen was ordered to take a rest following the 13th game of the season. Engleman's record is not listed in this table as he was never officially a head coach at the university.
- In 2022, assistant coach Norm Roberts coached and won 4 games after KU Athletics suspended Bill Self and assistant coach Kurtis Townsend in connection with a 2017 NCAA investigation into the Jayhawks recruiting program.
- ^ Sandomir, Richard (December 15, 2015). "Basketball's Birth, in James Naismith's Own Spoken Words". New York Times. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
- ^ Schafer, J. (December 15, 2015). "KU Professor Finds Rare Audio of Basketball Inventor Naismith". Kansas Public Radio. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
- ^ Kerkhoff, Blair (1996). Phog Allen : the father of basketball coaching. Indianapolis, IN: Masters Press. ISBN 1570281114. OCLC 35249522.
- ^ "Key Dates in NABC History". National Association of Basketball Coaches.
- ^ "Forrest C. "Phog" Allen". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
- ^ Johnson, Kenneth N. (2014). More University of Kansas Basketball Legends. Arcadia Publishing Inc. ISBN 9781625852236. OCLC 951507051.
- ^ "Harp, Dick". Kansas Sports Hall of Fame.
- ^ Owens, Ted (2013). At the hang-up : seeking your purpose, running the race, finishing strong. Olathe, Kansas: Ascend Books. ISBN 978-0988996441. OCLC 861536197.
- ^ "Larry Brown". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
- ^ "Roy Williams". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
- ^ "Bill Self". Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2017-09-14. Retrieved 2018-04-05.