Late yesterday, reports broke that, after Rivals.com No. 1 2009 high school recruit John Wall's game in Missouri, Kansas coach Bill Self went up to Wall, said hello, and gave the following quote:

Self: "Johnny, great win man. You really played well."

Wall: "Thanks."

Self: "I'm not supposed to be talking to you, and you know that, but I just wanted to tell you that was a great win."

Well then. That was from Springfield News-Leader reporter Allen Vaughn, someone who would seem to have little reason to lie about an innocuous -- albeit potentially damaging -- exchange between a recruit and a coach. Still, reading the story late last night, it was easy to expect a sudden denial from Self, forcing some sort of he-said, he-said situation between him and an unknown reporter.

Not so much. As it turns out, Self isn't denying it. He admits he said hello, but doesn't think that qualifies as a recruiting violation. From the Associated Press:

“Basically, it’s accurate,” Self said after beating Texas A&M 73-53 Monday night. “I don’t know if the exact quote is accurate. After the game was over, like I always do, like every coach always does, I had to catch a plane. So I went back to tell the coaches, `Congratulations, good win.’ I was approached and shook a hand and said, `I can’t talk to you, but you played really well.”’

Slightly differing versions there, but only by a degree. The question now is whether talking to a recruit -- even if all you say is "I can't talk to you, go away, but you played well," -- qualifies as saying more than "hello." The NCAA clarification on the matter (HT: Deadspin) says ""A contact occurs any time a coach has any face-to-face contact with you or your parents off the college's campus and says more than hello. A contact also occurs if a coach has any contact with you or your parents at your high school or any location where you are competing or practicing."

Does this qualify? It will likely be up to an NCAA committee to decide. In either case, it's a major, serious mistake by Self, one we can't imagine a coach as smart and as seasoned as him could make. Brazen? Accidental? Stupid? It might be all three.

Related: Ill-behaved People, Big 12 Basketball