Long-time Kansas assistant Norm Roberts to retire

Kansas men’s basketball assistant coach Norm Roberts is retiring. Roberts spent 14 seasons with the program.

“I want to thank everybody at the University of Kansas and from everywhere I’ve been lucky enough to coach,” Roberts said. “I’ve been fortunate that I’ve never worked a day in my life. Being able to coach at Kansas and be part of this program has been unbelievable.

“After 37 years as a coach, it is time for me to move on, enjoy my family, spend more time with my wife (Pascale) and sons (Niko and Justin). The thing I’m going to remember most is the players and watching them grow, watching them succeed, and watching them fight through adversity and come back from that.”

Roberts was on head coach Bill Self‘s first coaching staff at Kansas in 2003-24. However, after the season, he was hired by St. John’s to be the Red Storm’s next head coach.

Roberts held that position for six years, leading the Red Storm to 81-101 overall record. St. John’s fired Roberts on March 19, 2010, after the Red Storm lost in the first round of the 2010 NIT. He then spent one season as an assistant at Florida before joining Kansas’ coaching staff once again in 2012.

During Roberts’ time at Kansas, 60 Jayhawks were named to All-Big 12 teams, including five Big 12 Players of the Year, four Big 12 Defensive Players of the Year, two Big 12 Freshman of the Year, two Big 12 Newcomers of the Year and a Big 12 Most Improved Player.

When Self served a four-game suspension during the 2022-23 season, Roberts acted as head coach, guiding the Jayhawks to a 4-0 record. He also served as head coach during the NCAA Tournament when Self was battling health issues.

“This is a bittersweet moment for me because Norm and I have been together since 1995,” Bill Self said. “Norm has played a key role to our success at all of the stops we have had together, especially here at Kansas. From recruiting to developing players to scouting and his knowledge of the game both on and off the court, Norm has been instrumental in what we have achieved. We won alot of games together – many conference titles, deep NCAA Tournament runs, Final Fours and a national championship. We’ve had some unbelievable memories that will last our lifetimes. 

“We should all be happy for Norm to go enjoy life with Pascale and his boys. Norm has done as good of a job as anyone in representing the University of Kansas, the athletic department and our basketball program in a first-class manner.”

Kansas is close to Roberts’ heart. His son, Niko, was a four-year letterwinner at Kansas from 2011-14 and graduated from KU in spring 2014. Norm Roberts is thankful for his time with the program.

“It’s the people that make Kansas basketball special – the fans, the coaches, the players, the administration,” Roberts said. “I’ve been blessed to have 14 unbelievable years here. I want to thank everybody for everything they’ve done for me and my family, and I will forever be a Jayhawk.”