Naismith invented the game as a physical education
instructor at Springfield College in the winter of 1891.
Naismith joined the KU faculty in 1898, coached the
Jayhawk's first basketball team and later became the
director of physical education.
Naismith is the only Kansas coach to have a losing
record.
Naismith retired from active teaching in 1937 and died in
1939 at the age of 78.
The National Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield,
Mass., is named in his honor.
Dr. F.C.
"Phog" Allen 1907-09; 1919-56
590-219, .729, 39 Seasons
Winningest coach in Kansas Basketball history with 590
wins.
All totaled, Allen won 746 games, a record since broken
by one of Allen's former players, Adolph Rupp of
Kentucky.
Allen played under Naismith earning 3 letters between
1905-07.
When he thought about entering coaching, Naismith advised
Allen, "You don't coach basketball, Forrest; you
play it." Allen emphatically disproved that theory,
innovating much of the basketball theory evident in the
modern game.
Allen's Accomplishments
and Honors
24 Conference Championships.
1952 NCAA National Championship; Helms Foundation
national Championship 1922 and 1923.
NCAA Championship Final, 1940, 1953.
Coached 14 All-Americans.
National Coach of the Year, 1950.
Charter member of Helms Foundation Basketball
Hall of Fame.
Elected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of
Fame, 1959.
Driving force behind addition of basketball as
Olympic sport in 1936.
Allen
Fieldhouse was named for him in 1955 and is
still the home of the Jayhawks.
William O. Hamilton
1909-1919
125-59, .679, 10 Seasons
Hamilton bridged the gap between Phog Allen's two tenures
as Kansas' coach. He coached basketball, track and was
athletic director.
Hamilton's teams won 5 conference championships.
Under Hamilton, three KU players became All-Americans,
including Tommy Johnson in 1909, KU's first All-American
in any sport.
Dick Harp 1956-64
121-82, .596, 8 Seasons
Harp spent 8 seasons as Allen's assistant and took over
the head spot when Allen retired.
Harp played basketball at KU, lettering from 1938-40 and
was starting guard on the 1940 KU team that lost to
Indiana in the NCAA finals.
Harp led the Jayhawks to two conference titles and two
NCAA tournament berths. In 1957, he led the Jayhawks to
the finals, where KU lost to North Carolina 54-53 in
triple overtime.
Both Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Bridges became
All-Americans under Harp.
After leaving KU, Harp served as the director of the
Fellowship of Christian Athletes for 13 years.
Harp is one of only five people to have played and
coached in an NCAA title game.
Harp returned to coaching between 1986-1989 under Dean
Smith, another former KU player and assistant under
Allen. While at UNC, Harp became acquatinted with a UNC
assistant named Roy Williams.
Ted Owens 1964-1983
348-182, .657, 19 Seasons
Owens ranks as the second-winningest coach in Kansas
Basketball history behind Allen.
Under Owens, KU won six Big 8 titles, advanced to the
NCAA Tournament 7 times and played in the Final Four in
1971 and 1974.
Owens was Big 8 Coach of the Year 5 times.
Owens coached 5 All-Americans, including Jo-Jo White.
Owens spent 4 years as an assistant under Dick Harp.
Owens was the first KU coach to be fired after the KU
program fell from the national prominence in the late
'70's and early '80s to which KU fans had become
accustomed. While the move was controversial at the time,
KU has again become a consistent top 10 team under his
successors, Larry Brown and Roy Williams, advancing to 4
Final Fours and winning the National Championship in
1988. Although feelings between Owens and the University
were strained after his departure, in recent years
feelings on both sides appear to have mellowed and he has
returned to Allen Fieldhouse to a standing ovation. His
contribution to the tradition of Kansas Basketball is
unquestioned.
Larry Brown 1984-1988
135-44, .754, 5 Seasons
Brown returned the Jayhawks to national prominence,
taking the Jayhawks to the NCAA Tournament in each of his
5 years.
Browns 1986 Final Four team is considered by many to be
the best KU team in the last 25 years.
Brown's 1988 team won KU's second NCAA Tournament
Championship and set the record for most losses in a
season by a National Championship team.
Although Brown brought KU the success that KU fans wanted
and was immensely popular, rumors swirled in each of his
5 seasons that he would leave for coaching jobs in both
the NBA and at other colleges. In 1988, those rumors came
true when Brown left KU late in the summer for a job in
the NBA. Brown's departure opened the door for a little
known North Carolina assistant to take the reins. . . . .
