LAWRENCE — Kansas basketball coach Bill Self sounded much more optimistic Thursday about Kevin McCullar Jr.’s potential return, as he previewed the Jayhawks’ game at Baylor.

Self said if McCullar can practice full speed two days prior to the game, there’s a chance he could suit up Saturday. If that doesn’t happen, it sounded like McCullar wouldn’t. Should McCullar come back, it would be the graduate senior guard’s first game back since a Feb. 17 win at Oklahoma.

“I think he’s doing better,” Self said about McCullar, an All-America candidate. “I don’t know when he’ll play next, but I think he’s doing better. I think he’s gaining on it. Hopefully we can get him back out there.”

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Here are five more things to think about before No. 9 Kansas (21-7, 9-6 in Big 12) tips off noon Saturday on the road against No. 14 Baylor (20-8, 9-6 in Big 12):

Bill Self addresses what he thinks his team’s identity is

Asked what he thinks the team’s identity is, Self volunteered that they’re a pretty tough team — and a tough-minded team for the most part that’s starting to understand individual roles better. But as Self thought it through, he mentioned things he doesn’t know about this Kansas squad. He didn’t know if they’re an execution team, an aggressive loose-ball team or a team that has enough athleticism that it can make up for its mistakes.

While he doesn’t think there’s one thing in particular the Jayhawks can hang their hats on, Self believes the team is decent at all of the things he mentioned and hopes it can become better at execution.

Here’s one thing that stands out about Baylor now, compared to earlier this season

This will be the second time Kansas and Baylor will match up this season. Back on Feb. 10 in Lawrence, the Jayhawks won 64-61 against the Bears. And compared to the first time they played against each other, Self pointed out one thing he expects to be different during the rematch.

“They’re playing more zone,” Self said. “Against us the first time, I think the first three possessions they played zone and then after that they went man. They’re playing more zone.”

Kansas will look to avoid another poor shoot-around

After Kansas lost at home earlier this week against BYU, Self brought up how he didn’t think the Jayhawks’ shoot-around went well. How that went, he explained, foreshadowed the loss to the Cougars. On Thursday, graduate senior forward Parker Braun acknowledged the veracity of what Self said.

Braun said there were too many mental errors, scouting report errors and little things that were issues. Understanding Kansas has only one more home game this season, he added they have to do a better job on the road. They have to continue that in neutral-court environments, too.

Here’s what Bill Self said the motivation should be for this team

It’s unlikely Kansas will be able to win the Big 12 regular season title at this point, but that doesn’t mean Self doesn’t think his team has nothing to play for ahead of the postseason. Self highlighted trying to get the best seed possible for the Big 12 tournament and attempting to get the best seed possible for the NCAA tournament.

Bill Self addresses Nicolas Timberlake’s status

Although Nicolas Timberlake appeared to suffer an injury earlier this week during the loss against BYU, Self appeared confident Kansas would have the graduate senior guard available for the game at Baylor. Timberlake has been the guy recently Self has used as a starter when McCullar couldn’t play. Timberlake missed a short period of time in the game against BYU before returning to action.

“I would think that he’s sore, based on what I’ve been told, but he’s going to practice today,” Self said. “He’s a tough kid. He’ll be full-go.”

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Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. He is the National Sports Media Association’s sportswriter of the year for the state of Kansas for 2022. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Could Kevin McCullar Jr. play in Kansas basketball's game at Baylor?