🚨 Breaking: Jacque Vaughn Returns to KU Basketball

• 🏀 KU legend joins staff

• 🔒🏀 Major recruiting developments

Support The Hearings by sending this to KU friends and fam. Was this forwarded to you? Subscribe here.

EVERYTHING IN THIS NEWSLETTER IS BASED UPON WHAT I AM HEARING FROM PEOPLE I TRUST. PLEASE DO NOT MISTAKE THIS FOR FACT OR FOR ACTUAL JOURNALISM, WHICH HAS VERIFICATION STANDARDS THAT I HAVE NOT ADHERED TO. I DO NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY OF THE CONTENT.

Kansas legend and former NBA head coach Jacque Vaughn is returning to Lawrence as an assistant coach, as reported by Pete Thamel Wednesday*.

*Vaughn’s candidacy and momentum toward completing the deal were first scooped right here at KUHearings.✅

Vaughn starred at KU from 1993-97 and coached for a decade in the NBA, including two stints as an NBA head coach with the Magic and Nets.

The move comes shortly after assistant Norm Roberts retired, ending his 22-year partnership with Bill Self. Kansas targeted Vaughn just days after the announced, signaling Bill Self had already identified his top target.

Vaughn is as credible a hire as possible for KU. He was a two-time All-American for the Jayhawks, played 12 years in the NBA, and has had two stints as an NBA head coach.

For Vaughn, the return to Lawrence represents a homecoming in more ways than one. Not only did he build his basketball legacy at KU, but he also met his wife Laura while they were both students at Kansas.

💭 The Big Question

I've been Hearing from multiple sources that Self has been looking to inject fresh approaches into his program, and Vaughn's NBA experience was particularly appealing.

Vaughn taking an assistant college job is a bit of a surprise at face value. But long-term changes for KU basketball are looming.

Bill Self’s time at KU won’t last forever, and it’s possible he’s got one or two years left. Maybe Vaughn wants to feel out the college game. Or maybe he just wants to be coaching and KU is his homecoming opportunity.

But to put it plainly: KU will likely need to hire a head coach at some point in the near future. And it just hired a beloved former player who coached at the game's highest level.

So maybe, just maybe, KU is setting a long-term plan in motion.

Help Spread the Word:

Tell your friends about today’s Hearing by copy and pasting this link into your group texts or on social media.

Today in VIP: Major Recruiting Update

I broke news of a major secret visitor on campus Tuesday.

The Jayhawks will now try to close their biggest target this offseason.

Get the latest in VIP.