It has been a strange year for Kansas. They’re 13-5 and have dropped games you don’t normally see them lose. With Darryn Peterson back and a big ranked win over Iowa State, it felt like things were moving in the right direction. But then came the news that assistant coach Jacque Vaughn would take over for Bill Self against Colorado.

On Monday, Self was taken to LMH Health as a precaution after feeling “under the weather.” Considering he’s had health scares before, including missing the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments in 2023 due to chest tightness, fans had every reason to be worried.

Fortunately for Kansas fans, the university and Coach Self put out a joint statement saying he was doing fine, but wouldn’t coach against Colorado. “I’m feeling much better and I want to thank the well-wishers and the great team at LMH Health,” Self said in the statement. “I’ll be sitting out tonight’s game, and as I’ve said before, we have an elite coaching staff at KU, and I know our players are in good hands in Boulder. Jacque Vaughn will serve as the acting head coach tonight. He will rely on our great group of coaches, Jeremy Case, Kurtis Townsend, Joe Dooley and Tony Bland, throughout the game to lead the team.”

Naturally, people might ask who Jacque Vaughn is, but most hoop fans already know the name. This piece will break down everything you need to know about him.

Who is Jacque Vaughn? Everything you should know about the Kansas acting head coach

Born on February 11, 1975, in Los Angeles, California, Vaughn grew up in Altadena and attended John Muir High School in Pasadena, where he stood out as a point guard and won McDonald’s All-American Co-MVP in 1993. He played his college ball at Kansas from 1993 to 1997 under Roy Williams, starting at point guard and becoming one of the school’s all-time greats.

After finishing his KU career as the Big Eight’s all-time assists leader with 804, Vaughn entered the 1997 NBA Draft and was taken No. 27 overall by the Utah Jazz. He went on to play 12 years in the league with Utah, Atlanta, Orlando, New Jersey, and San Antonio.

His best moment came in 2007, when he played an important reserve role on the Spurs team that won the title by sweeping LeBron James and the Cavaliers.

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His No. 11 jersey is up in the Allen Fieldhouse rafters, and he’s the first former NBA head coach to join the KU coaching staff. Yes, you read that right. For anyone who isn’t aware, Vaughn spent basically his whole coaching career in the NBA before returning to Kansas.

What to expect from him? A look at Jacque Vaughn’s career, highs, lows, strengths, and more

Jacque Vaughn is a coach who leans on stats and values team-first basketball instead of running everything through one guy. He’s not scared to make unpopular decisions either. Sometimes it worked out for him, and sometimes, like in Brooklyn, it cost him his job.

Vaughn retired in 2009 because his body just wasn’t letting him play the game he loved anymore. Despite Popovich asking him if he still wanted to play, the answer was no. But Pop wasn’t ready to lose one of his most dependable guys, so instead he opened a new door. That’s how Jacque Vaughn, “the coach”, was born.

From there, Vaughn kept rising.

Three years after retiring, he landed his first head-coaching job with the Orlando Magic. He stayed for two and a half seasons and finished with a 58-158 record before getting fired. Shortly after, he was hired by the Brooklyn Nets.

Vaughn worked as a pro scout for the Spurs during the 2015–16 season before getting hired as Kenny Atkinson’s top assistant with the Brooklyn Nets. When Atkinson left in March 2020, Vaughn was promoted to interim head coach but eventually shifted back to his assistant role.

In 2022–23, Brooklyn asked him to take over again after Steve Nash was fired. This time, Vaughn did enough to earn the job full-time. They went from a slow start to climbing the East standings. Brooklyn went 12-1 in December and finished 43-32 the rest of the way, reaching the playoffs despite trading away the likes of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

But coaching in the NBA often comes with a short shelf life. Vaughn was fired 54 games into the 2023-24 season as the lack of star power finally caught up to Brooklyn. When he was let go, the Nets had lost five of their last six and were sitting at 21-33, 11th in the East.

Vaughn’s 71-68 record in Brooklyn isn’t going to wow anyone, but the fact that he took the Nets to the playoffs twice earned him two NBA offers. According to The Athletic, he had opportunities to join teams as an associate head coach and as a lead assistant. But when Norm Roberts retired last year, Bill Self already knew who he wanted. He went straight after the Kansas alum.

Self talked Vaughn into leaving the glamour of the NBA for a return to college basketball as his assistant. And now, with Colorado up next, we finally get to see Vaughn step into the head chair and show what he can do once more.