KU looking into incident between Self, recruit

KU men's head coach Bill Self addresses a packed Allen Fieldhouse on Friday, Oct. 17, 2008 during Late Night in the Phog.

The Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader alleged Monday that Kansas University basketball coach Bill Self might have had inappropriate contact over the weekend with John Wall, a 6-foot-4 point guard currently rated as the nation’s top high school recruit.

According to a column that ran in Monday’s edition of the paper, Self approached Wall, who was playing in a tournament in Springfield, after a game and said, “Johnny, great win man. You really played well.”

After Wall thanked him, Self added, “I’m not supposed to be talking to you, and you know that, but I just wanted to tell you that was a great win.”

NCAA rules prohibit coaches from speaking with recruits — other than to exchange greetings — during the NCAA’s evaluation period, which is currently in effect.

KU associate athletics director Jim Marchiony said Monday evening that he was aware of the incident and that the university is currently looking into the details of the matter.

“Bill has already told us about it, and we are discussing it internally,” Marchiony said.

Wall, a senior at Word of God Christian Academy in Raleigh, N.C., is currently the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2009 according to Rivals.com, and lists Kansas among the final schools he is considering.