"Bill Self, GANGSTA": Kansas fans react as 6-11 Congolese forward ditches NC State in favor of the Jayhawks

Bill Self’s Kansas pulled off a major recruiting win, and its fans are loving it based on the reactions on social media. The Jayhawks landed 6-foot-11 Congolese forward Paul Mbiya on Wednesday, flipping him from NC State.

Mbiya was expected to join the Wolfpack after playing for them recently, but he decommitted two weeks ago. He is officially headed to Lawrence, adding size and upside to an already stacked Kansas roster.

College basketball insider Joe Tipton posted the news on X, and Jayhawks fans reacted to it.

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“Bill Self, GANGSTA!!” one fan commented.

“Never count out Bill Self,” another fan commented.

“This is a good pickup👀,” a fan wrote.

Here are other fan reactions on X.

“State vs Kansas on December 13th just got a lot more interesting,” another fan said.

“The #kubball roster is looking really solid after he and Rosario have gotten on board,” another fan wrote.

“Bill Self pivot game in back-to-back days,” one fan tweeted.

Mbiya’s commitment brought Kansas’ 2025 incoming players to seven, including recruits and transfers.

The group includes shooting guards Darryn Peterson, Kohl Rosario and Corbin Allen, along with power forward Samis Calderon. The transfers are Tre White (Illinois), Jayden Dawson (Loyola Chicago) and Melvin Council Jr. (St. Bonaventure).

With veteran center Hunter Dickinson no longer eligible, Mbiya gives the Jayhawks much-needed size in the frontcourt. He arrives with international experience, playing for ASVEL Basket in France’s U21 ProA League.

Kansas set to put up Bill Self’s old desk for sale

Kansas opened an auction for the former desk of Jayhawks coach Bill Self, who has been leading the program since 2003. The desk has his autograph, and he used it from August 2009 to April 2023.

Fans have until noon of July 10 to put in their bid, with a starting price of $5,000 and $200 increments.

Self is the program’s winningest coach. He has already won two national championships, 16 Big 12 regular season championships and eight Big 12 tournament titles.

About the author

Babatunde Kolawole is a college sports journalist at Sportskeeda with over eight years of experience in the field with Canoncrested.com, Garbersports.com, LiveScore Bet Nigeria and Pulse Sports Nigeria.

Kolawole studied Agricultural Economics on the tertiary level but delved into sports writing after school. Over half a decade later, the experience garnered helped him land this role.

Historically, the Alabama Crimson Tide stands out as Kolawole's favorite team as he was drawn to their rich history.

As for basketball, JuJu Watkins is Kolawole's favorite current player due to how much diversity she has in her game, while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar gets the nod for past players because of how he dominated with UCLA.

Kolawole has appeared on several TV and Radio shows as a guest analyst, and in his spare time, likes to watch movies (a sucker for the Marvel Cinematic Universe) and listen to a lot of music. He also loves to travel.

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Edited by Victor Ramon Galvez