KU basketball's Svi Mykhailiuk says summer tour helped restore his confidence

LAWRENCE — Svi Mykhailiuk says he got something very important back this summer.

His confidence.

The Kansas basketball junior guard returned to campus this week after a summer stint playing for Ukraine’s Under 20 national team in Europe. His tour culminated in the FIBA U20 European Championship tournament from July 16-24 in Finland.

Mykhailiuk, who led Ukraine with 14.9 points per game in seven contests, also averaged a team-high 16.3 field goal attempts. After two years of playing a complementary role with the Jayhawks, Mykhailiuk said he enjoyed being a team’s go-to guy for Ukraine.

“The last two years I didn’t play very much, as you know, and when a player is not playing, their confidence gets low,” Mykhailiuk said. “Where with this summer, I played a lot and played good, I think, and that’s what gave me my confidence back.”

Ukraine finished eighth in the 16-team tournament, and Mykhailiuk’s own performance could be described as uneven. While the 19-year-old guard was second on the team in rebounding (5.6) and third in assists (2.7), he made only 19 percent of his 3-pointers and 36.8 percent of all shots.

“I shot it not really good,” Mykhailiuk admitted, “but you know, it is what it is.”

Mykhailiuk left Lawrence in late May and spent two months training with his teammates in his hometown of Cherkasy. Built-in relationships with teammates such as 6-foot-9 Arizona State freshman Vitaliy Shibel made the transition back to the national team an easy one.

Still, he found time to keep in touch with his KU teammates, facetiming with them and following along with their summer activities.

“They’ve been watching me, I’ve been watching them,” Mykhailiuk said. “It’s not that hard to get used to.”

Since his campus return, Mykhailiuk has played pickup basketball with two new faces: freshman Josh Jackson and sophomore transfer Malik Newman. He said he’s been impressed with each and believes both can help the Jayhawks win, though Newman must sit out this year due to NCAA transfer guidelines.

KU coach Bill Self also kept tabs on Mykhailiuk, observing his 10-pound slim-down and how it seemed to make the junior faster.

“Svi had a good summer, but he didn’t shoot it well, like he’s capable of shooting it,” Self said. “So I’m excited to get him back. But he looks good. He’s actually kind of, he may have gotten kind of heavy last year and he’s slimmed up a little bit. He told me (Friday) this is the most explosive he’s been in a long time.”

The departures of juniors Wayne Selden and Brannen Greene appear to point to an increased role for Mykhailiuk this fall, but he says he is taking a wait-and-see approach to everything. Regardless of his role, Mykhailiuk, currently a projected first-round pick (No. 27) in the 2017 NBA Draft at DraftExpress.com, said the decision to return for a third college season wasn’t a difficult one.

“A lot of guys left and I think the team is going to be really good this year and I want to help my team to win,” Mykhailiuk said. “It’s been like family to me, like home, and I just want to spend one more year here.”

CHAMPIONS CLASSIC TO CONTINUE — KU has renewed its commitment to the Champions Classic.

The Jayhawks joined Kentucky, Duke and Michigan State in agreeing to a three-year extension of the blueblood doubleheader Wednesday, assuring the event will continue through at least 2019.

KU associate athletic director Larry Keating, who handles the Jayhawks’ scheduling, called the Champions Classic the “top event in the regular season“ in an interview with ESPN.com. Keating is credited as an early architect of the annual doubleheader, which began in 2011.

“You usually have four of the top 10 and it should be that way again,” Keating said. “No one has ever thought of not doing it. Everyone knows the value of it. The four fan bases can get to all cities where the event takes place. It has been everything we thought it would be and more.”

The Jayhawks, who play Duke on Nov. 15 in New York as part of this season’s Champions Classic, will face Kentucky (2017, Chicago), Michigan State (2018, Indianapolis) and Duke (2019, New York) under the new agreement.

KU is 1-4 at the event, defeating the Blue Devils 94-83 in 2013.