Former Kansas University guard Greg Gurley spoke on a cell phone Friday from a room in St. Luke’s (South) Hospital in Overland Park, his wife Amy, 8-pound, 2-ounce newborn daughter, Jane, and 3-year-old daughter Kate one big, happy family.

“Tell coach Williams to get over here. I can give you directions,” quipped Gurley, wanting to introduce his college basketball coach — Roy Williams — to Williams’ second Gurley “grandchild.”

Three years ago, during July of 2000, Gurley told Williams he thought of him as a father figure and a grandfather figure to his children, an emotional scene that helped Williams stay at KU and decline an offer from his alma mater, North Carolina.

Gurley isn’t sure there will be a repeat in 2003, as Williams is again considering a coaching vacancy at UNC.

“I don’t know,” Gurley said. “I think it’s good the decision was delayed. Once I heard North Carolina would give coach 24 to 48 hours, I knew coach wouldn’t be bullied into such a major decision.

“I’m sure he said to himself, ‘I will not make a knee-jerk reaction.'” Gurley said. “It’s not the way coach is. He will make an educated decision.

“He’s still not going to have much time to think about it with the Wooden Awards this weekend.”

North Carolina athletic director Dick Baddour first contacted 15th-year coach Williams about becoming Carolina coach Wednesday. On Thursday, Baddour released a statement saying the job had yet to be offered, and he and Williams would hold discussions over the weekend.

Williams left for Los Angeles and the Wooden Award festivities Friday and will return to Lawrence in the wee hours Monday morning after attending tonight’s black-tie dinner.

North Carolina sources have told various Carolina reporters they expect Williams to be introduced as UNC coach Monday or Tuesday. Friends of Williams in Lawrence and even Williams’ son, who lives in Charlotte, N.C., maintain the coach was still undecided and grappling with the decision.

“I really don’t know much,” former KU athletic director and Williams friend Bob Frederick said. “I just know he’s having a difficult time with it. I think all the factors that were existent the last time in his mind that made it difficult still exist.”

In a nutshell, Williams must choose either his players past, present and incoming, or a job at his alma mater. Carolina papers have reported Williams simply wanted to receive the Wooden Legends of Coaching Award Saturday as Kansas coach, not Carolina’s, which is why, they say, he is delaying the announcement until Monday or Tuesday.

Lawrence folks say hogwash, indicating Williams would tell his players if any decision had been reached. As of Saturday afternoon, no players meeting had been called for today or Monday.

KU fans who had hoped a secret deal had been reached with Philadelphia 76ers coach Larry Brown had to be upset after Brown’s comments appeared in Saturday’s Philadelphia Inquirer.

“I think they’re just protecting themselves,” Brown said after Carolina’s AD stated other candidates besides Williams were being considered for the job. “I don’t think they’re talking to anybody, and I’d be pretty accurate on that. I think they want (Williams) badly. They got turned down once before, so what are you going to say? I don’t see any reason if he’s the guy they really want, why should it matter.

“But if they stay in the family, you hear Roy and then me, and I haven’t heard too much after that.

Brown told the Charlotte Observer: “I care a lot about what goes on in Chapel Hill. I don’t know where Roy is on this. I just feel bad that he has to go through this and the university has to go through this. And it’s tough for me, because I don’t know where I’d be on the list (of candidates).”

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Relaxing golf: Williams’ son, Scott, told the Durham, N.C., paper that his father was going to enjoy golfing this weekend with KU benefactor Dana Anderson in Los Angeles. Williams and Anderson both attended Wooden ceremonies Saturday.

“I think golf has always been his release form the real world,” Scott Williams said. “You’re not competing against a person, you’re competing against the course. The course is not going to ask you questions about your future. The course is not going to ask about how many free throws your guys shot during the year.”

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Just say no to UNC: KU sophomore Keith Langford’s mother, Charlene Taylor, told the Raleigh News and Observer the KU players are desperately hoping Williams will stay.

“It’s hard,” she told the paper. “Keith likes him, likes playing for him. They definitely don’t want to see him go.

“Naturally, we’re concerned,” Taylor said. “He’s one of the reasons Keith is there. All we can do is just sit and watch. He told the kids they’d be the first to know, that they’d know before anybody else. I haven’t talked to (Williams). I feel like if he hasn’t talked to the kids, he doesn’t want to talk to the parents.”