Wayne Selden: Kansas Hoping Rebirth vs. Florida Puts an End to Questions

LAWRENCE, KAN. — Before the season opener for Kansas last month, an NBA scout turned to me on press row and asked: "What is Wayne Selden?"

Once thought to be a possible one-and-done prospect who has lived in the first round of mock drafts since he arrived on campus, Selden's stock has taken as big a hit as any high-profile player in the country through the first month of the season.

Is a shooter? Is he a slasher? Is he a defensive stopper?

Selden has been searching to not just figure out what he can be at the next level; he was searching for what he could bring to Kansas this year.

The numbers didn't tell a very flattering story.

USA TODAY Sports

Selden came into Friday night's game shooting 26.5 percent, the low point coming last Sunday when he missed all 10 shots that he took against Michigan State.

When nothing was going right on Friday night against the Gators, who limped into Allen Fieldhouse with their own issues, Selden had what the Baby Jayhawks hope was his "aha" moment, scoring 14 of his season-high 21 points in the second half to help his team rally from an 18-point deficit to win 71-65.

"It should give him confidence," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "He needed to see the ball go in."

That's all it takes sometimes for a young player, but it goes way beyond that for Selden and the Jayhawks. Self has a roster with as much talent as they're used to seeing in Lawrence, but a team that has four freshmen in the rotation and still needs a GPS from game to game just to find its way.

What the Jayhawks need out of Selden is not only a secondary scorer to complement Perry Ellis, they need him to be a leader, because that's just not in Ellis' personality.

Self said last year that Selden had the chance to be as good a leader in the program as he's ever had. That's high praise considering the guys Self has had roll through Lawrence. Only issue is it's pretty hard to lead when you're shooting under 30 percent from the field.

That's why on a much larger scale than giving the 11th-ranked Jayhawks a chance to pull out one comeback, Selden's buckets in such big moments against the Gators gave him some credence as a leader.

"He's an alpha male," Self said "He just hasn't had anything go right for him for the most part the first four or five games of the season, and it was nice to see that lid come off." 

Sitting courtside on Friday night, it was clear that Selden can provide more than just buckets. He was by far the most vocal Jayhawk, even getting on Ellis on multiple occasions for missing boxouts. 

USA TODAY Sports

"That's Wayne. I want that," Ellis said. "I want him to do that. I want my teammates to get after me when I'm doing something wrong."

Self said he didn't have any talks with Selden during his cold streak, because "the more you talk about some things, the more you magnify the situation."

What Self wanted was for Selden to concentrate on the other details of the game and forget about his shot. To his credit, Selden had a game against Rider earlier this season where he went scoreless but had nine assists. He's also appeared to improve on the defensive end this season.

Orlin Wagner/Associated Press

But as valuable as those assets are, the Jayhawks need Selden to get buckets, and he needs to figure out how he can score.

What I told that NBA scout on the opening night was that in a scrimmage this summer, I had seen a more explosive Selden, who battled knee issues throughout his freshman year. With his body and his strength, he could be a great slasher and a shutdown defender, and that's who he needed to be.

Against the Gators, we saw a lot of that. His defense helped hold Florida leading scorer Michael Frazier to 10 points. He opened the game with a driving layup and made several other strong drives to the bucket. His biggest shots were two contested jumpers off the dribble during KU's run in the second half, shots that had been clanging off.

"He made real points the second half," Self said. "Those are real college baskets when you don't run good offense and you just jump up and make a shot. They weren't easy points. That should give him a lot of confidence."

It should.

But this was just one game in a long season, and it's too soon to say all is right for Selden. For the Jayhawks to be really good, they need more than just an occasional great game from the sophomore.

For Selden to get back in the good graces of NBA scouts, he needs to be a presence on a nightly basis.

What we saw Friday night is that it is possible. He has that kind of ability. And if he plays with the effort and confidence he showed on this one night, Kansas has a chance to be pretty good, and that NBA stuff will take care of itself.

C.J. Moore covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @CJMooreBR.