First came Kansas' shocking setback down the road in Kansas City to a Washington program picked to finish 10th in the Pac-12. A loss to Arizona State followed, even though Kansas was playing at Allen Fieldhouse, a building that's provided as dominant a home-court advantage as any in college basketball.
Surely, Kansas would respond with superiority on Saturday against a Nebraska team that had already lost four games. Instead, the game was in major doubt until Svi Mykhailiuk buried a 3-pointer with 21 seconds left to let the Jayhawks escape with a 73-72 road win.
Now the question, one that hasn't been much of a true concern over the past few years, might finally be worth asking: Can Kansas extend The Streak? With another Big 12 regular-season title, the Jayhawks would run it to 14 straight, breaking UCLA's record of consecutive conference titles from 1967 to 1979.
The sky isn't falling in Lawrence ... but there are legit concerns about this team. We asked coaches around the country one big question: What's wrong with Kansas?
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No depth
Bill Self played walk-on Clay Young eight minutes against Washington. Self got just one point from his bench against Arizona State and just six in the win over Nebraska -- all from Mitch Lightfoot. Kansas has nothing up front besides Udoka Azubuike. Lightfoot is overmatched at 6-foot-8 and only 210 pounds. Talented freshman Billy Preston (6-10, 240) remains ineligible, with his status up in the air. Kansas' lack of big bodies has forced Self and his staff to try to get 2018 signee Silvio De Sousa to qualify early and join the team on Dec. 30. -
No inside threat/no balance
Self has seemingly always had a guy down low -- often two. Now he's forced to play a four-out, one-in offense. Sure, Azubuike is a physical specimen, but he's not a skilled guy who has an array of low-post moves. "It's forced Kansas to play completely different than they are used to," one coach told ESPN. "They used to kill you down low, but the only way Udoka can really score is by dunking." Another added: "They normally have much better balance." -
Defense/ball screens
Part of their defensive struggles comes from a lack of bodies, but part is due to personnel. Devonte' Graham and Lagerald Vick are quality perimeter defenders, and Azubuike is solid down low. A key for Azubuike is staying out of foul trouble, and that's difficult with teams trying to expose him in ball-screen situations. Malik Newman and Mykhailiuk are subpar defenders and can also be exposed. "Azubuike can be attacked, and when he's out of the game, there's nobody else," one coach said. -
Too reliant on the 3
Kansas has shot the ball exceptionally well from beyond the arc (40 percent), but the Jayhawks are too reliant on the 3 and don't have enough guys who can put it on the floor and get to the free throw line. Over the past three games, Kansas is averaging a total of 8.3 free throws per contest. A year ago, Frank Mason III averaged 6.6 foul shots per game. In the loss to Washington, Kansas made just 5 of 20 shots from deep. -
Toughness
Self has said several times that the losses of Mason and Josh Jackson -- his two toughest players -- leave him concerned about the overall toughness of this group. That's always been something Self could rely on -- and now he's questioning it. "They aren't as soft as Self has been saying," one coach said. "But they really miss Frank Mason. He didn't say anything, but he was a killer on the court." -
Talent
There's a chance that this Kansas team doesn't boast an NBA first-round draft pick, which would be just the second time since 2009 that's been the case. I asked one high-level NBA executive how many Jayhawks players he anticipates being selected in the first round. "Zero," he said. One coach who faced the Jayhawks said, "It's not the Kansas we know with three or four bona fide pros. Very good college players, but they may not have an NBA guy on the team." -
The bench is not ready
Most of the coaches I spoke to feel that Lightfoot is in over his head right now -- and maybe even down the road as a key rotation guy at Kansas. While Marcus Garrett has a chance and can help on the defensive end, he's not a threat offensively. Recently eligible Arizona State transfer Sam Cunliffe logged two minutes against Nebraska in his debut. While he's arguably the most athletic player on the team, he'll need to buy into defending and rebounding in order to get consistent minutes. -
Malik Newman is struggling
Newman was a McDonald's All American coming out of high school in Mississippi. He struggled as a freshman at Mississippi State and sat out at Kansas last season after transferring. While he's been more efficient this season, he's struggled the past four games, making 9 of 32 shots from the field. "Newman might not be the right fit at Kansas," one coach told ESPN. "He's just not a Bill Self-type player. He doesn't want to guard." -
Too many bystanders
Preston is playing the waiting game, and there are several others who have been sitting, unable to play. Cunliffe just became eligible, and Dedric and K.J. Lawson -- along with Charlie Moore -- are sitting out after transferring. That's been a handful of guys who have been down at the end of the bench -- likely not as invested because they aren't suiting up.
KU has been through rough stretches before. Two seasons ago, the Jayhawks dropped three of five in January. In 2014-15, Kansas was manhandled by Kentucky and Temple early in the season. There was a three-game losing streak -- to Oklahoma State, TCU and Oklahoma -- in 2012-13.
But Self & Co. found a way.
"If and when they get Preston back and if the other kid [De Sousa] gets eligible, they will be fine," one coach told ESPN. "They aren't struggling that much. As far as winning the Big 12, will the sun rise tomorrow?"
But not everybody agreed.
"He's Bill Self and they'll win a lot of games," another said. "But I think this is the year it ends. This just isn't your typical Kansas team. Too many things missing."