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For three straight summers, the Kansas alumni team has entered The Basketball Tournament believing it had the pieces to win it all.
And for three straight summers, the dream has ended in heartbreak.
Whether competing under the moniker of Mass Street or JHX Hoops, the former Jayhawks have repeatedly watched a $1 million prize slip away. They have failed to advance past the Round of 16 in each of the last three tournaments, with the latest collapse perhaps the most painful.
Last year, JHX Hoops squandered an eight-point fourth-quarter lead before former Miami (Ohio) guard Eric Washington buried the game-winning step-back jumper.
With the prize doubled to $2 million this year and the need to get over the hump, the former Jayhawks searched for a late-game answer after years of close losses.
They’ve found their answer, and he’s one of the most legendary shot-makers in Kansas’s history.
Mario Chalmers is finally making his TBT debut.
Chalmers and his fellow Jayhawks begin the tournament Tuesday at 8 p.m., as JHX travels to enemy territory to face Kansas State’s Alumni TBT team (Purple Reign) in an offseason iteration of the Sunflower Showdown.
Why now?
It’s not the opportunity to stick it to K-State one more time or to match up against his former NBA and BIG3 teammate Michael Beasley. He laughed and said, “No, absolutely not,” when asked if Beasley’s decision to suit up influenced his.
Chalmers, in his words, will always be a KU guy. He won a championship in Kansas, started his family in Kansas and loves to come back and revel in the love and memories that the heart of the country provides. He bleeds crimson and blue.
But above all, Chalmers’ decision to make his TBT debut was fueled by a promise he had to keep.
“The main motivation to play this year was Dr. (Scott) Ward,” Chalmers told The Star. “Scoot was always trying to get me to play in TBT. I always told him that I would, and it never worked out. He unfortunately passed away before I could.
“So this is my tribute to him.”
Ward, who served as an academic advisor for Kansas men’s basketball beginning in 2003, died in January after struggling to recover from a major surgery in December. While his title reflected his work in the classroom, those who knew him say his impact stretched far beyond academics.
To generations of Jayhawks, Ward was a mentor, father figure and, in many ways, the heartbeat of the program.
“He was the guy for us,” JHX assistant general manager and former KU point guard Tyshawn Taylor said. “He pretty much helped all of us graduate from college. But he was more than that. He’s the one that connected all the generations. Our TBT team wouldn’t be possible without him. He was the glue for us.”
Ward’s fingerprints are all over the current roster.
Taylor said Ward helped connect him with former Jayhawks from different eras, bringing together players such as Chalmers, Frank Mason and Marcus Garrett. He also helped raise money and secure donations through the relationships he built during more than two decades at Kansas.
“He was a huge part of this s-,” Taylor said. “He really devoted his time to it when he had so much other stuff going on. We love him, we respect him, and we all want to play for him.
“When we lace them up, it’s gonna for sure be with a purpose outside of just winning some bread.”
To achieve their goal of honoring their late mentor, the Jayhawks will look to Chalmers as a veteran leader who can deliver in the late-game moments that have haunted them deeper into TBT play.
“He’s still able to be a guy who we go to late in the game when we need a bucket,” Taylor said. “I don’t know that we will have to depend on him every time because we have guys like Frank, Jacob (Hanna) and me. We have four guards that can control the game and handle pressure.
“But when we need a bucket or a big shot, I think we all know where that ball is gonna go.”
