Thank you, Aljami

[mchenry34]

I think that Al's career is impressive in a similar way to how Verdell Jones had an impressive career. Both were hard working, forced to play out of position and a bit earlier than they were ready for, both expanded their games and got better each year, and both received unfair treatment from the fan base. Al didn't have the benefit of a team being built up around him like Verdell did, but he is really undersold in the ways that he improved. He was a non factor in the BIG his first two years and by the time he was a junior he was featured in other teams scouting reports. Matt Painter mentioned last year after the game in Bloomington that their focus with their scouting report was on making sure that Al didn't get going. He got better with both hands, better as a shooter, better coming off screens, better in transition, and better getting to the rim and through traffic. All the while being a really great representative of the University.

Our fanbase enjoyed tremendous coaching and basketball IQ for nearly 30 years. We saw a lot of great basketball, and Al would have been a great rotation player (maybe 8th man or so) in a lot of those years. Unfortunately, while watching all that good basketball we also learned to treat the players as badly as our coach did. Blaming a kid like Al for not being a lead guard that can take over a game is obtuse at best. He maximized his gifting. We owe him thanks...instead, his last time wearing an IU uniform he was hearing boos as he walked off the court. I know it wasn't him that was being jeered, but I still found it embarrassing that the fans couldn't show enough wisdom to know that booing Archie does damage to a group of kids who seem like really good people. 

I'm 40 years old, as competitive as they come, hate losing and hate watching us lose. I would have done anything to have had the chance to wear an IU uniform. Early in High School when I knew I wasn't good enough to play in college I connected with Coach Knight to tell him I was going to come to IU and be a student manager for him. I waited to talk to the IU team after they played at OSU (I'm from Columbus), OSU won a bunch of those games, and it pissed me off a bunch. But at the time, I always felt a pride that IU fans understood the game so much better than OSU fans. Honestly, OSU fans hardly know what they are watching when they are at the game. They know when the ball goes in and when it doesn't, and that's about it. 

In the early Crean years I was proud of the way that fans supported that rag tag group. Now, we boo our team while they still have a chance to win. We were down 7 for several minutes in the game against Rutgers and missed six important free throws and three or four layups in that stretch. Booing in that moment didn't help us hit the next shot, and there's no way a player like Phinisee or Al or Race or Trayce who all were playing during that stretch and missed crucial open shots would have interpreted those boos as being about their coach. 

I think Al deserved better than that and I think we as a fanbase just about deserve what we get at this point.

Well done Al.

[fasbjd]

Indiana Hoosiers Scholarship Grid
2023 - 2024 (-1)	2024 - 2025 (-1⊕/-3)	2025 - 2026 (-4)	2026 - 2027 (-8)	2027 - 2028 (-11)
Xavier Johnson	Boogie Fland	Boogie Fland	Boogie Fland	Boogie Fland
Anthony Walker	Liam McNeeley	Liam McNeeley	Liam McNeeley	Liam McNeeley
Trey Galloway	Trey Galloway	Open	Open	Open
Anthony Leal	Anthony Leal	Open	Open	Open
Payton Sparks	Payton Sparks	Open	Open	Open
Kaleb Banks	Kaleb Banks	Kaleb Banks	Open	Open
CJ Gunn	CJ Gunn	CJ Gunn	Open	Open
Malik Reneau	Malik Reneau	Malik Reneau	Open	Open
Kel'el Ware	Kel'el Ware	Kel'el Ware	Open	Open
Gabe Cupps	Gabe Cupps	Gabe Cupps	Gabe Cupps	Open
Mackenzie Mgbako	Mackenzie Mgbako	Mackenzie Mgbako	Mackenzie Mgbako	Open
Jakai Newton	Jakai Newton	Jakai Newton	Jakai Newton	Open
Open	Open	Open	Open	Open
(Oversign)	(Oversign⊕/Open)	(Oversign)	(Oversign)	(Oversign)
(Oversign)	(Oversign⊕/Open)	(Oversign)	(Oversign)	(Oversign)
Jackson Creel Shaan Burke James Goodis Jordan Rayford Ian Stephens	Jackson Creel Shaan Burke James Goodis Jordan Rayford Ian Stephens	- Shane Burke James Goodis Jordan Rayford Ian Stephens	- - James Goodis Jordan Rayford Ian Stephens
Italics = walk-ons.   = post-redshirt (Name in black for redshirt year).   = additional year granted due to pandemic.

 

Grid is made to reflect the additional year of availability granted due to COVID-19.  The ⊕ indicates the scholarship availability if all players were to utilize the additional year.