Quick hitters for a Wednesday:
• Kansas coach Bill Self said that it was Ronnie Chalmers' idea to leave his position as director of basketball operations and follow his son down to Miami, where the younger Chalmers was a second-round selection of the Heat. Ronnie Chalmers had been the director of basketball operations for the past three seasons: His son's entire collegiate career.
Mario Chalmers hit one of the biggest shots in Kansas history when his 3-pointer against Memphis forced overtime in the national championship game, which the Jayhawks eventually won in San Antonio last April.
Ronnie Chalmers was Mario's coach at Bartlett High School in Anchorage, Alaska. Ronnie went to Kansas with Mario, but as a father-son, coach-player combination this package was unique. It was nothing like the more commonplace ones, when it can be a summer league or AAU coach that packages himself with a player for a school.
Kansas senior associate athletic director Larry Keating said he had no issues with Ronnie Chalmers leaving. He said that Ronnie gave Kansas "three good years, and I just think he and Almarie [his wife] want to stay close to Mario. Understandable."
Ronnie Chalmers told me in Orlando during the pre-draft camp last May that he was going to stay at Kansas. But he said that before his son had officially decided to stay in the draft. Self said he was convinced that if Mario left, Ronnie would likely follow.
Ronnie Chalmers fit in well with the staff. The Kansas staff is a 40-and-over club with Self, Joe Dooley, Kurtis Townsend and Danny Manning. At least in my observations over the past three seasons, Chalmers was a legitimate member of the staff. The position Chalmers secured was a real one, not one that had to be created to lure him and his son.
Self said he will look to fill the position over the coming weeks.
• Santa Clara coach Kerry Keating said 6-foot-10 senior center John Bryant has met his summer goal of dropping down to 275 pounds from his playing weight last season of 305 pounds. Bryant led the Broncos with 18 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.5 blocks a game.
"He may end up losing more," Keating said. "It was just a matter of him changing his diet and training."
Keating said Bryant will be counted on to produce just as much next season. The Broncos will likely be predicted to finish behind Gonzaga, Saint Mary's and San Diego in what has become a balanced and competitive WCC. Keating said Bryant has a legit shot to get drafted next June because of his size and strength, especially now that he has made a commitment to improving his body.
• Keating said the Broncos are hurting for a fourth team in the school's annual Cable Car Classic. Bowling Green is out, leaving only Belmont and James Madison committed for the Dec. 29-30 event in the Bay Area.
• Keating, like Memphis coach John Calipari, would like to see a ban on July recruiting for college coaches. He said his plan is for 160 days of recruiting, from Sept. 9 to June 30. He said there is no reason to have recruiting in July, not when coaches can go out and recruit during the academic year in more of a traditional setting in the high schools. In addition, he said there are also still plenty of AAU-type events on the weekends during the academic year to observe. There is a growing chorus of coaches who would like to see more down time for their personal lives in the summer, and are souring on recruiting in July. Keating said he would prefer working with current players while they're in summer school on campus to traipsing around the country chasing high school sophomores and juniors.
• Word from a Louisville official is that athletic director Tom Jurich won't pursue the Big East commissioner's job when Mike Tranghese retires in 2009. Kerry Keating would love to see the Big East conference go after his father, Larry, the Kansas senior associate athletic director. The elder Keating was once the athletic director at Seton Hall.
• South Florida coach Stan Heath said he hopes to hear by the end of the week whether Augustus Gilchrist will be cleared to play for the Bulls this season. Gilchrist originally signed with Virginia Tech but was released from that commitment. He then signed with Maryland and enrolled for the second semester last season, but again decided to transfer. The 6-8 forward out of Progressive Christian Academy (Camp Springs, Md.) would be an immediate help to the Bulls. Heath said Maryland coach Gary Williams has been supportive but that the schools are still talking, trying to agree on all the facts of the case.
Gilchrist would have to sit out the season unless a waiver is granted. Heath is hoping that a special circumstance waiver is given to Gilchrist, just like Julian Vaughn received when he transferred from Florida State to Georgetown and didn't have to sit out. The NCAA has been pretty consistent recently in granting waivers only if there is a family illness that necessitates the transfer. Heath said if he gets Gilchrist immediately, and can pair him with returning guard Dominique Jones, USF will have the inside-out tandem necessary to be competitive in the Big East. South Florida finished 3-15 last season, tied with Rutgers for last place in the Big East.
• Pitt coach Jamie Dixon said he still doesn't know if Mike Cook will be granted a sixth year of eligibility after an ACL tear on Dec. 20 ended his senior season. Cook's injury came in the 11th game of the season. Dixon said Cook's appeal (he was already denied once) could go into the fall semester. Cook still hasn't been medically cleared to play five-on-five yet, either.
• Gonzaga coach Mark Few flew with the U.S. Air Force's Blue Angels last week. Few, who was surprised he didn't get sick, said the it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Meanwhile, Few said sophomore wing Austin Daye is on schedule to return to action after resting his knee for a few weeks following an injury. Initially thought to be an ACL tear, the injury, suffered at the LeBron James Skills Academy, turned out to be a minor ligament injury that could heal with rest, not surgery.
• New Mexico State coach Marvin Menzies is expected to hire former Connecticut and South Florida assistant Clyde Vaughan. NMSU administrators were meeting to approve the hire this week.
Vaughan's coaching career at UConn crashed and burned when he was arrested on a solicitation charge in Hartford in August of 2004. Vaughan spent the past few years working out high school and college players.
Andy Katz
