Lawrence, KS (U-WIRE) -- Fresh off an offseason weight-lifting session, J.R. Giddens has one thing on his mind.

"Man, I am starving," Giddens says.

The 6-foot-five 200-pound sophomore guard is healthy for the first offseason of his college career, and he intends to use every second of it to improve his game. One of his summer goals: get stronger.

"Where do you all want to eat," Giddens demands impatiently. "I could eat anywhere, I'm so hungry."

As he always does, Giddens suggests McDonald's. He will not often turn down a double cheeseburger and a milkshake. But on this Wednesday afternoon, his dinner companions choose Subway.

On the way there, Giddens can't stop talking about the afternoon's workout. Like they've done almost every day since the conclusion of the season, Giddens and some of his teammates played three-on-three after lifting weights.

He loves three-on-three. He likes the emptiness of Allen Fieldhouse when it is just him and his teammates showcasing their athleticism and raw talent.

Giddens describes one play where he and freshman guard Russell Robinson executed a perfect two-on-one play. Robinson beat a defender in transition and threw an ally-oop pass to Giddens on the opposite end.

Slam!

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"We were out there running and playing fast," Giddens said. "We are going to be so fast next year."

Although next year's Jayhawks will look entirely different than this year's senior-led squad, Giddens talks about the 2005-06 Jayhawks with excitement.

He could easily be the leader of that team. As a junior on a team with 11 freshmen and sophomores, Giddens knows there will be room for leadership. He also knows he has to prove to his teammates that he is capable of that role. Leadership has to be earned. This year's group of seniors, for example, spent three seasons training to be leaders.

But next year, there is not an inherent leader or group of leaders. So Giddens wants to lead by example.

Albert Johnson, athletics assistant at Texas A&M, coached Giddens his sophomore and junior years in high school. Johnson was his coach at John Marshall High School and coach of his AAU team, Athletes First.

Johnson and Giddens have remained close through the years, and if no one else believes Giddens can shoulder a team, Johnson does.

Johnson watched Giddens lead his high school team to a state championship during his senior year in high school. He was the leader of the AAU team. Although he admits leadership is different at the college level, Johnson said the key was for Giddens to be an extension of Kansas coach Bill Self.

"J.R can lead with his actions, like playing hard, being unselfish, making the extra pass, being there for his teammates," Johnson said.

That's why Giddens has a list of offseason goals that he wants to achieve.

Along with getting stronger, Giddens said he wanted to work on his weaknesses, like putting the ball on the floor and creating his own shot.

"I really want to get better at ball handling, attacking the baskets," Giddens said. "Obviously I need to get better at attacking the basket."

Just like anywhere he goes, people at Subway look at him with recognition, but unlike some of his other teammates, fans don't often approach Giddens. Today two young boys sit with an older man in a corner booth. They stare with a look of curiosity, as if wondering if that is J.R. Giddens in line at Subway. They don't approach him.

There is something intimidating about Giddens, an element of secrecy. Kansas fans don't quite know him yet.

Giddens' facebook.com account is just an example of what he endured this past season.

Dozens of "You suck" and "Giddens you can't hit a shot" messages had to be removed from his message board after each log-on.

After the Bucknell loss alone, he received hundreds of negative messages from fans, he said. One fan even name-called his mother and his sister.

"I never thought a Kansas fan would do that," Giddens said. "Maybe you expect that at the next level, but not at Kansas."

The bottom line is this: J.R. Giddens didn't make as many shots this year as he did during his freshman season, and he took a great deal of criticism for it.

Giddens averaged 11 points and 3.6 reounds per game his freshman season. He shot 40 percent from three-point range. He was named to the All-Big 12 freshman team.

There was talk of him jumping to the NBA after just one year in college. Giddens said he never considered leaving after his first year at Kansas, but he did get some calls from scouts telling him he was ready for the jump.

"Scouts watched a lot of my game on TV and stuff and saw that I had a good freshman season. I could shoot and I could run and jump," Giddens said. "They thought my game was good for the league."

After missing almost all of the last year's offseason because of foot surgery, Giddens entered his sophomore season with high expectations. He was named to the Preseason All-Big 12 Conference honorable mention team. Self said they were unrealistic expectations for a 19-year-old who missed all of the offseason.

"I was trying so hard, but it was just a weird season from the beginning," Giddens said.

His points per game dropped to 10.1, while his minutes increased from 25 to 27. He shot just 33 percent from behind the arc this season. But it was the number of three-point shot attempts that initiated criticism.

Against Nevada on Nov. 29, he went just 3-8 from behind the arc. He shot 3-10 against South Carolina on Dec. 18. He went two games without a three-pointer against Texas A&M and Kentucky on Jan. 5 and Jan. 9.

The criticism continued, and Giddens was well aware of it.

"I feel like I play bad more than anybody," Giddens said. "Imagine working hard your whole life and your whole forte wasn't going well. Basketball wasn't going well for me."

Giddens said midway through the season, he got so caught up in what he was doing wrong that he forgot to enjoy the game.

He turned to his teammates, especially his best friend and roommate Jeremy Case, sophomore guard. He worked closely with Self to better his overall game, beyond just shooting. He called Johnson hundreds of times.

Johnson told him not to worry about what he wasn't doing; instead focus on helping Kansas win.

"It was one of those times that every player goes through," Johnson said. "I told him to listen to coach Self and to focus on the things he could control to get his confidence back up."

Self knew that Giddens had lost his confidence, but he never gave up on him. He knew Giddens was caught up in the negative publicity surrounding his season.

"I've always thought he thought too much," Self said. "He was worried about doing things that people said he wasn't doing instead of doing things that he needs to do, but it is not intentional."

Self worked with Giddens to improve his rebounding, passing and defense. His teammates encouraged him to keep shooting.

"I had the greatest teammates," Giddens said. "They would say, 'Keep shooting, J, the next one's falling, tonight is your night.'"

But the shots didn't fall.

Giddens reached a low point after the Jayhawks' home game against Iowa State, Kansas' second straight loss. He went 1-11 from behind the arc, and Kansas fans booed him at the end of the game.

"I felt horrible," Giddens said. "I didn't even feel comfortable in my own gym. I felt like people cringed and were like 'J.R. is going to take a shot and he is going to miss.'"

In the four games after the Iowa State game, Giddens sank only four three-point shots. He didn't feel like he was taking bad shots; they just weren't falling.

Johnson said he could see a change in Giddens' demeanor just from watching him on television. In high school, Johnson used to make Giddens make 1,000 shots a day, part of the reason he was such a confident shooter.

"I could tell his mental focus was off a bit when I talked to him," Johnson said. "A lot of them just weren't falling, but I told him he just had to get his confidence back."

Giddens agreed.

"I was focusing so much on making shots and people booing me that I lost confidence in myself," Giddens said.

Anyone who has watched Giddens on the basketball court knows that he is not a player who lacks confidence.

The man who tugs at the No. 15 on his jersey every time he hits a three-point shot, throws down a monster jam or assists a play, is known for his energy on the court. That energy, however, can easily be misinterpreted for cockiness, Giddens said.

"I yell and do all of that stuff and people are like 'Oh he is selfish,'" he said. "But they weren't saying that when I was making shots."

Giddens said he tried to tone down his emotions on the court this season. Fans didn't appreciate the jersey tugging and chest pounding from a player whose shots were clanking off the rim.

"My first year here was so beautiful," Giddens said. "But the fans went from liking me to hating me real fast, even though I was out there trying and giving my all."

Johnson said Giddens' on-the-court personality matched his persona off of it.

"That is how he is on the court and off the court," Johnson said. "His antics may be misinterpreted sometimes. He can come off cocky, but really he is just glad to be at Kansas. The basketball court is almost like a stage for him to let loose and show his emotions."

For as much negativity as Giddens received this past season, he knows he is a better basketball player, mentally and physically.

The shots may not have fallen, but his rebounds, assists, blocks and steals all increased, not to mention his defense. By the end of the season, Self was putting Giddens on the opposing team's best offensive player.

"Coach Self made me a better defensive player," Giddens said. "Overall, I was a better player, I just didn't make shots."

At the end of the season, Self told Giddens they couldn't change what happened this past season. They do, however, control next year.

"Hopefully the expectations for next season, he will be able to deal with better," Self said. "J.R. will be a very very good college player. He has got some things that he needs to work on. We know that.

"He needs time to get in the gym and work on ball handling and passing and be a better basketball player, and not just shoot the ball."

Every day, Giddens is in the weight room, lifting, trying to get stronger. He practices with coaches on individual workouts. He works on his footwork. He has even made a deal with himself.

"Ninety percent of the shots I take in practice or workouts are going to be off the dribble," Giddens said. "I'm going to work on my outside shot, but you can bet J.R. Giddens is going to shoot off the dribble more next year."

If anything, Johnson said this season would help Giddens become stronger mentally.

"Yeah, his shooting percent was down and that is what everyone rests his lulls on," Johnson said "But overall, he improved and he battled through it pretty well for a 19-year-old kid."

The two Oklahoma natives, Self and Giddens, have a name for their relationship.

"We have a no-bullshit relationship," Giddens said. "If he feels anything that he needs to say to me, he can say it. If I feel anything, I can walk into his office and do the same."

Addressing emotions between a player and a coach is important, Self said. Right before the Big 12 Tournament, Self pulled Giddens aside. He told him that with second-leading scorer Keith Langford out with an injury, he had to be more aggressive, something Giddens struggled with as his confidence started to slide.

"I don't fault his trying, but I do sometimes fault his aggressiveness," Self said. "I think he could really really try, but when you are not confident, you are not very aggressive."

There were times Self's honesty was hard for Giddens to hear. especially with all the other criticism of him. He always knew, however, that Self had his best interests at heart.

"Its like the relationship you have with your older sister," Giddens said. "One day you may like her and one day you hate her, but when people talk bad about them, you would knock them out."

Self always supported Giddens but told him that criticism is part of being a high-profile player at Kansas.

"J.R. has been the beneficiary of some older guys taking the majority of the load of criticism," Self said. "But when you take 16 shots against Iowa State and have a hard time making them and you take important shots, which is what good players are supposed to do, when things don't go well you kind of open yourself up to that."

Before the car can even pull into the parking lot at Jayhawks Towers, Giddens has consumed the entire footlong meatball sub. He hurries up to his fourth floor apartment to catch the tip-off of the NCAA National Championship game.

Giddens is one of the few Jayhawks watching the game. He doesn't, however, seem to enjoy it.

He sits in front of the television like a distracted six year old who has eaten too much sugar.

During commercials, Giddens stands in the middle of the room practicing his favorite basketball moves with a volleyball.

"It's less bouncy, better for inside," Giddens said.

His favorite move is one where he goes between the legs twice, palms the ball in one hand and potentially blows by his defender.

"That is one you'll be seeing a lot of next year," Giddens says.

The championship game is intense, and Giddens appears irritated that North Carolina holds on to beat Illinois and boasts the National Championship trophy.

He turns off the TV before CBS can play their annual NCAA Tournament highlight reel with "One Shining Moment" playing in the background.

It's not that Giddens was mad that the coach who recruited him won the coveted national championship trophy, although he admits he never received a phone call from Roy Williams to inform him of his departure for North Carolina.

He said it was just so hard to watch the tournament after the way the Jayhawks went out.

Slowly, Giddens is getting over the loss that he blames himself for. Like most of his teammates, Giddens broke down into tears after Kansas' 64-63 first round loss to Bucknell.

"A lot of it was my fault we lost," Giddens "I feel like I let down the fans, my teammates and my family."

It hasn't been easy, but Giddens is trying to put this past season behind him.

Several weeks after the loss, Giddens sat down to watch the McDonald's All-American game, a contest he competed in two years ago.

Three Kansas recruits represented the Jayhawks in the high school showcase: Micah Downs, Mario Chalmers and Julian Wright.

Chalmers stole the show. He scored 20 points and dished out five assists. He put on a defensive clinic, also collecting five steals and four rebounds. In a 10-second time span, Chalmers drained a three-point shot, stole the ensuing inbound pass and knocked down another three.

"Oh man," Giddens said. "That kid can play."

Thirty seconds later, his cell phone rings. A loud voice can be heard yelling on the other line

It is Giddens' pal C.J. Giles, freshman forward.

"Did you see that, man?" Giles says to Giddens over the phone.

Clearly, the returning Jayhawks are excited about next year's team.

They are going to be young, but Self thinks they will be quicker, allowing them to be more effective in the press and in transition.

"We'll be so young and green and we won't know what we are doing," Self said. "But we will be fast and athletic, and that is fun to think about that."

After the McDonald's game is over, Giddens looked relieved. The kind of relief a person has when they realize their luck is about to change.

"I just have to keep working hard this offseason to make sure that next year is better than this one," Giddens said.

He vows to be a more complete player. A leader. A guy who can go off the dribble, but is still a threat from the outside. The athlete who grabs an ally-oop pass out of the air and slams it down over a defender. The best defensive player on the team.

Giddens wants to be all of those. That is what drives J.R. Giddens.

"People may say I am thinking about the NBA and stuff," Giddens said. "But really I just want to focus on being the best leader and basketball player I can be."

Two weeks ago, after another offseason work out, Giddens walks slow and stiff.

"My legs hurt so bad from this karate that we have been doing," Giddens said. "But we look good in three-on-three. People better watch out."

Giddens will tough out his tired legs. He opens the door leading to the players lounge next to the Kansas locker room.

"Is anyone hungry?" Giddens asks his teammates.

(C) 2004 University Daily Kansan via U-WIRE