IUCrazy2

We are going to have a really tough schedule this year. Kansas, Arizona, a Big East team, an ACC team...this team should be tested before conference. Woodson was talking the other day about getting Louisville on the schedule in a few years. He wants Kentucky back. I don't see the lackluster schedule issues going into the future.

One thing he has to watch is that there were rumblings out there that he may have not been putting in that extra effort is 3 years here so far either. If you are going to call out teammates in public, you have to make sure that your entire house is in order as well. His may be and it could just be a few players kind of sounding off about being called out, but what a risk. Do that behind closed doors.

Kn a perfect world, where guys rise up to meet expectations in the offseason: XJ, Bates, JHS, Geronimo, TJD. I know Race is not getting pushed out of the starting lineup but I would prefer to swing him in with Reneau as the second unit. Geronimo just opens the floor up in a way that Race has not (up to this point).

Officially Big Ten favorites now IMO. We are potentially going to be deep and athletic.

Crean was a bit of a goofy dude but he really seems to support former guys.

Why is he not cool? The Walsh guy doesn't exactly jump off the page as "wow, isn't he cool" either.

So Jordan has replaced Fife as the heir apparent. I'm kidding.

Yeah, things seem to be falling into place for him right now where leaving looks more likely. I think with him that this team has the potential on paper to be at least an outside threat in the NCAA tournament. Without him, unless the incoming freshmen really show out, Sweet 16 is probably the realistic ceiling. That would still constitute a big step forward, but going into the season with TJD would be about as good as I would have felt about a team since Zeller's Sophomore year heading into a season. (I think that Zeller team was clearly better going into the year, but this would be the best since). Without TJD, we are looking at Crean's last tournament team as a comparison IMO.

If TJD comes back, I will be shocked if we don't get UNC for the ACC challenge.

Nothing against this guy, but let's be real, if he is coming it is likely because TJD is not coming back. I prefer TJD.

No

At $400k/yr for a Nijel Pack, you will probably have trouble getting money for guys past 13 scholarship players. The money is more than I was expecting for a player of his caliber.

No.

He said Ranch and gave a shout out to Pizza X...I think he is coming back fellas. (This is tongue in cheek...hopefully that is clear, it is that time of year)

I guess we see. If I was the governmwnt I might be interested in the structure of all these agreements because I think they were set up to avoid the gift tax. It is kind of whatever. Glass went out and kind of set up the type of group that I suggested a few months ago given how NIL works. So I get why they are doing it. I just think this is all a joke and froma University perspective I think you will find that it ends up having more cost than benefit. People who used to donate to the AD will be donating to HFG. If Nijel Pack at $400k/yr is the going rate for a middling type of talent then it is going to be really expensive to field a competitive team. And that money going to big b-ball and b-ball player is going to take money from everything else, up to and including the non athletic donations. And I just can't shake the feeling that if you removed the jersey from these guys, they would be worth less than what they are compensated for their scholarships. I base that on g league salaries.

Yeah they are. That is Hoosiers For Good's #1 purpose. To get NIL money to athletes at IU and oh yeah they may do this charitable thing too. It is as simple as this. A taxpayer is allowed to give a gift up to $16,000 to another individual this year. At $16,001 they have to start paying taxes on the gift. So if you go big donor who wants to drop a "gift" of $100k on TJD, they cannot just hand him $100k. They have to report that gift and then pay taxes on it. So you make a "charity" like HFG and suddenly that gift is a charitable contribution that is tax deductible. The player has to pay an income tax on it but that is usually less than the gift tax. Donor gets to write it off. TJD shows up to a dinner and the charity gets to charge for the plates or the speech or whatever. The charities won't complain because what they are getting is more than they were...but in most cases the value they are getting is probably less then just getting the cash that the athlete got paid....because it isn't about charity, it is about getting money to people who will possibly help your school win games. It is just putting the sleaze out in the open. It is "legal" now but is no different than what most here would complain about the Kentucky's of the world doing in the past with Nike as the go between.

One other thing I could see coming of this, the guys getting in right now will cash in. However, I think the market will end up resetting itself. Nijel Pack is not worth $400k a year. Sorry. He isn't worth $250k a year either. He was on a team that went 14-17 last year. Yeah, he is a decent player but how much of his stats is related to the fact that the rest of his team is just awful? So guys will cash in now, but eventually I think you will see most schools come around to the idea that these guys are not worth that investment. That Miami guy basically just lit about 3/4 of that money on fire IMO.

Another question, I thought NIL is supposed to be independent of where you went to school. Couldn't Nijel Pack accept all of these offers and then go wherever the F he wants? Like Miami booster just blasted out to the NCAA that they are operating a pay for play scheme which should be against the rules. Someone outed Ohio State as well. If the companies feel that he is worth "X" for his NIL, then he should be worth that no matter where he plays. For example, Nike pays Lebron James to endorse their product. Lebron is the marketing tool they are purchasing. They don't give a rat's butt if he is playing in Miami, Cleveland, or L.A. They are not selling him as part of those teams, they are just selling him. The NCAA wanted to get out in front of things, they should say "hold up, we have questions here and we are not going to allow Pack to play at all until we get them answered." The Miami guy has a big mouth and he idiotically broke the rules (IMO) out in the open. If the NCAA thinks they are going to have any control whatsoever, this is their hill to die on early in all of this.

I think it will be interesting to see how the government handles all this. Really all these charities are is schemes to transfer money to players. At a certain point you wonder how the taxes should work and whether or not some type of money laundering (maybe not correct term) comes into play. If we are seeing $800k payouts to flipping Nijel Pack, the government is probably going to take a hard look at that whole system because without a real governing body it screams "Hey, potential white collar crime opportunities here."

The state hasn't panned out for us that much recently. Yes, a guy like TJD has but for each of him there is a Damezi Anderson type. It goes back to Crean.

Had not seen posted but ESPN released their final? rankings for the 2022 class. Reneau came in at #22, JHS at #24, and Banks at #78.

To be clear, I am not worked up. Recruiting is going well. TJD sticking around for another year makes the likelihood of a good year next year higher, but it is not out of the question if he stays in the draft either. I am using current players and events to discuss the idea at large though. Could the NIL give you more defacto scholarships that could be used to obtain or keep guys who are 4 year dudes who may turn into a guy who will help your program win down the line, even though they are not able to now? That is the thrust of my point. Like Lander, if there was any thought that by senior year this guy could be a pretty nice contributor, instead of him leaving do you convince him to stay as a non scholarship guy but get his expenses covered? Or that big kid Sparks from Ball State. Maybe preferred walk on in the future means you don't have a scholarship but we got these NIL deals that will cover your expenses. Does that allow a school to take a chance on some guys who need to develop? Does it cut down on the transfer craziness? I think the idea has merit. Is there the potential for hurt feelings? Sure, but I think some of those could be inevitable anyways in these situations. "People will never go for it..." How do you know if you don't try? It's the Wild Wild West right now. We finally have a chance to really compete because the stuff the other blue bloods used to do that we shied away from is completely legal. Lean all in while we can before they start pulling back on the reins. Getting Indiana back as a big name who is winning games is important while the rules are lax. It will be easier to retain position then to have to try and make up more ground when/if they try and rein some of this back in.

Which means either TJD is staying in the draft or we have a player or two who is still planning on leaving but has not announced yet....or someone who is going to be leaving and doesn't know it yet.

Yeah, either way it is telling a guy that you don't have a scholarship for them. I think that is an easier sell with someone on the team then someone who isn't.

See my response to him. Guys get forced out for this stuff all the time. "They just were not a fit...." Yeah, the not a fit guys that are almost always down the bench dudes who barely play. We had a bunch of talk on the forum about tough conversations with guys in the offseason about their likelihood of being able to play. In the past you just forced dudes out to make room with those "tough conversations". Using NIL in the manner I described allows the kid to not have to transfer, stay on the team, and get that scholarship back. In the past it was "peace, we wish you well on your future endeavors" as if that is more altruistic.