photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas guard Frank Mason III (0) charges up the court with a steal during the first half, Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016 at Allen Fieldhouse.

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas guard Frank Mason III (0) charges up the court with a steal during the first half, Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2016 at Allen Fieldhouse.

Finding talented players with which to work never has been an issue for Bill Self in his 14 seasons as the head coach of the Kansas basketball program. Some of Self’s teams have featured dominant big men, others dynamic guards, but every season he knows what will work for the Jayhawks and what won’t.

Often times, Self’s squads are known for their toughness and defense, and this year’s group might get closer to embodying those qualities in the weeks ahead, but there is no questioning the strength of the 2016-17 Jayhawks. It’s their offense.

Led by the high-octane backcourt of senior Frank Mason III, junior Devonte’ Graham and freshman Josh Jackson, KU is averaging 85.8 points per game and shooting 50.4% from the floor (eighth in the nation) entering Saturday’s matchup with Texas. With that trio acting as the team’s lynchpin, and Kansas lacking its typical depth in the post, Self had the savvy to long ago implement an uncharacteristic four-guard lineup and accept that the Jayhawks could maximize their impact by playing faster than his other teams.

Mason, in particular, can push the ball at a breakneck pace in the open court. But it’s not as if the veteran point guard is the only player capable of taking an outlet pass and sprinting up the floor. Any Jayhawk who secures a defensive board can look to Mason, Graham, Jackson, Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk or Lagerald Vick and know each one is able to attack the retreating defense.

“What we have, we have four good players that you can pitch ahead and they can all go make plays,” Self said.

Other backcourts in the coach’s time at KU have played fast, but this specific group might end up turbocharging its way past its predecessors. Over the past several years, no Kansas team has played at a pace — defined as possessions per 40 minutes — higher than 69.8. Sports-reference.com only has statistics on pace dating back to 2009-10, but when comparing this year’s number to those the difference is distinct. Eighteen games into the season, KU’s pace is at 72.2.

That’s a great sign the Jayhawks are playing to their strengths, because the more possessions they have the more chances they get to burn opponents with their proficient scoring. KU’s offensive rating — points scored per 100 possessions — currently sits at 118.0, the 10th-best number in the nation.

At times, KU even pushes the ball successfully after an opponent gets a basket, putting its perimeter play-makers in position to score early in the shot clock — bringing on more possessions — as often as possible. Self said he wouldn’t have necessarily encouraged that with previous teams.

“I think playing faster is definitely more of an emphasis,” he said of this season. “No question. I think I’m giving my guys a little bit more freedom to shoot it early, which I think sometimes is good and sometimes it’s not good. But the good thing is they’re playing with a freer mind.”

In the past, Self would’ve been more likely to discourage his teams from quick shots, instead insisting they swing the ball and run half-court sets regularly. As an example, the coach said when he has a talented big such as Joel Embiid, he wants that man getting touches in the post.

“You know, if we had Joel, those (quick looks) would be bad shots. If you don’t have Joel, those are maybe OK shots,” Self said. “So I think our personnels dictate a little bit that we’re trying to score earlier.”

Although the coach said he doesn’t ask players to run a secondary break out of transition, quicker shots mean more frequent occasions to have Jackson, Landen Lucas, Carlton Bragg or anyone in position, really, to attack the offensive glass, as well. The Jayhawks average 14.7 second-chance points a game and, per sports-reference.com, gather 35.7% of available offensive boards (32nd, nationally).

photo by: Nick Krug

Kansas guard Devonte' Graham (4) looks to push the ball up the court during the second half, Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017 at Allen Fieldhouse.

This Kansas team is going to play fast, no matter which combination of five players is on the floor. But doing so when Bragg comes in as the big should be a mandate, too, in order to get the most out of the 6-foot-10 forward’s minutes off the bench. The sophomore, coming off a 10-point outing at Iowa State, identified running the floor in transition as the area where he can be the biggest problem for bigs who are guarding him.

“Just me beating my man up the court,” Bragg said of perhaps his biggest offensive strength.

There’s no guarantee KU will be able to finish the season maintaining its current pace. With 12 more Big 12 contests and the postseason ahead, odds are opponents will try to slow games down as a way to limit the Jayhawks’ effectiveness.

Then again, this group is so swift and Mason so hellbent on winning, there might not be any reliable way to slow KU down.

According to Bragg, the Jayhawks haven’t reached their potential in a number of areas — including offensively.

“I think we can play a lot faster than what we’re playing now,” he said.