The mere mention of the overzealous KU fan who stormed McCarthy Hall on Wednesday looking to share free-throw shooting advice with the Kansas men’s basketball team brought immediate smiles to the faces of KU coach Bill Self and shooting guard Malik Newman on Thursday afternoon.

But, according to Newman, there was one KU player who saw the man who inspired a phone call to KU police and that player caught at least a little of the commotion.

“I didn’t see it, but Lagerald (Vick) actually came in the room and told me about it, like he was walking in as the actions was taking place,” Newman recalled. “At least from what he told me, it sounded like he did. I know he caught pieces of it. He told me about it and I think it’s crazy. For a guy to take time out of his day to come all the way down here and want to yell at some young men about some free throws and things like that, it just speaks about the fan base, how much they love us, how much they care.”

Earlier Thursday, Self was asked about the same incident that came in the wake of Udoka Azubuike’s rough free throw night at Oklahoma on Tuesday and Self, too, could not help but smile.

“If it’s Rick Barry, I’m all for it. Or Mark Price,” joked Self, referencing two of the best free throw shooters in NBA history. “I did get that report. It was a little strange, because it was unsolicited, but it was probably all good intentions. I mean, I was told that the security over there called. They just thought it was strange that an older gentleman would be kind of stalking and hanging out in the dormitory area. But I don’t think anything definitely was ill-intended, but probably just a little unusual.”

Asked for his first reaction to the news, Self again kept his answer light.

“I didn’t have a reaction,” he said. “Because apparently he told everybody that he was coming to see me next. So as long as it’s not Freddy Krueger I’m OK with it.”

The incident, although by far the most serious, was one of dozens that surfaced Wednesday in reaction to Azubuike’s struggles, with fans, friends and even self-proclaimed free throw experts calling KU, Self’s radio show and even the local media to try to offer their input on how Self and company can fix Azubuike’s free throw woes.

While Self appreciates and understands the sentiment, it also sounded like he was fairly confident that he and his coaching staff, who are paid to handle such matters, would be able to address the situation effectively.

“I didn’t see him,” Self continued. “I’m sure it was good intentions. What he’s probably saying is no different than what many others have told me that we should do. So everybody’s got their own opinions on those sorts of things. … I believe we can work with it. And I think (Azubuike will) attack it in the right frame of mind.”