Fixing image starts with respect

Friday, October 23, 2009

“RESPECT THOSE WHO PLAYED BEFORE YOU,” a sign just inside the newly renovated locker room for the men’s basketball team reads. “WE ARE KANSAS BASKETBALL.”

These words serve as a reminder of what Kansas basketball is all about: tradition, great players, championships, and class.

During the past 111 years, the Jayhawks have made the state proud by representing the University with class and demonstrating the sportsmanship and integrity that set them apart from other schools.

My first memory of watching the Kansas basketball team came during the 1996-1997 season. The team was loaded with talent and started the season 22-0. Heading into the NCAA Tournament, the team was 32-1 and the odds-on favorite to win the national championship.

And then it happened. Arizona upset Kansas in the Sweet 16 and the dream was over. The Wildcats went on to win the national title and the Jayhawks were left wondering what could have been.

The ’96-’97 Kansas Jayhawks deserved to win the national championship. The players had worked hard enough to get there, they played unselfish basketball, and they represented the University as well as any team in school history.

The nation’s best team didn’t win in it all in 1997, but it presented a positive image that was tough for anyone to cheer against.

Kansas doesn’t look very good right now.

No, not the players — they look great. Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich have been picked as the preseason Big 12 Co-Players of the Year. The Jayhawks have another stellar recruiting class and are the preseason No. 1 team.

But all of that has been overshadowed in recent weeks by a series of events that will stay with the program for a long time. An on-campus fight with the football team and an arrest of Brady Morningstar on a DWI charge has left national media talking more about what is going on off the courts than on it.

When members of the Kansas basketball and football teams came to the University, they were told about the proud traditions that surround Kansas and the unmatched fan support that they would receive. But somewhere along the way, some players forgot what the “KANSAS” on the front of their uniforms stood for.

A lot of teams can win basketball games. A lot fewer teams can win with class.

Every time a Jayhawk basketball player puts on his uniform, he is representing the players who have made Kansas basketball what it is today: Danny Manning, Wilt Chamberlain, Raef LaFrentz, and Paul Pierce, among others. By getting into legal trouble, players are tarnishing the legacy that was built by these all-time greats.

But it’s not too late. The Jayhawks still have a chance to turn it around. I’m not looking forward to hearing about the fight or the reason behind Brady Morningstar’s suspension every time I watch a game on TV this year, but I know it will happen. It will be an uphill battle for Kansas to clean up its image this season, but the team can do it by showing respect for the great Kansas teams of the past.

We are Kansas basketball, and Kansas basketball is winning with class.

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