IUBB '24/‘25

[IU Scott]

https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/5-star-class-of-2014-recruit-shares-why-he-didnt-choose-tom-crean-and-indiana/

Didn't know where to put this but it appears to be true about how hard Crean practiced the team.

[5fouls]

12,632,000 seconds until October 15th.

[IUProfessor]

247 has IU 2nd in the B1G for 24-25, behind UCLA: 

https://247sports.com/longformarticle/way-too-early-big-ten-ncaa-basketball-power-rankings-after-heated-transfer-portal-arms-race-ucla-indiana-purdue-oregon-michigan-illinois-231623061/

[Purdue7]

Ware & Edey will be tough to replace on defense….offensively both teams are loaded 

 

[13th&Jackson]

1 hour ago, Purdue7 said:

Ware & Edey will be tough to replace on defense….offensively both teams are loaded 

 

Ballo’s a strong interior defender but not a shot blocker. Ware was an elite shot blocker, but like many young players, tried to block every shot which left him out of position at times

[Euroclydon]

Agree. Ballo is a monster and a good athlete. He's not an elite shot blocker. He's not the quick jumping type athlete like TJD, so he won't be covering a large area to erase breakdowns if someone gets beat off the dribble. But he won't be pushed around. He's a wall.

[IUFLA]

I've always considered Huber's to be the beginning of the season...Coach Woodson's thoughts on this year...

 

[DWB]

10 hours ago, IUFLA said:

I've always considered Huber's to be the beginning of the season...Coach Woodson's thoughts on this year...

 

Thought it was typical "generic" answers, many of them dodged the actual question IMO. His prerogative I guess.

As I've said for months, nothing this summer, recruiting cycle, or anything else will tell us if there is indeed, a notable change in his coaching until we see it on the floor in competitive games.

[IUfaninIllinois]

I think Newton is one that people have really under estimated when discussing our team. This really intrigues me. I don’t think X just says that to say it either.

[Indykev]

Mr.A.Leal says Woody has filled his team. Going with 12. You can say the 13th is not important until it is. You can't teach old dogs new tricks even if they get slapped in the face. That being said, i will be hoping for an injury free season. Amen.

[IU Scott]

3 hours ago, Indykev said:

Mr.A.Leal says Woody has filled his team. Going with 12. You can say the 13th is not important until it is. You can't teach old dogs new tricks even if they get slapped in the face. That being said, i will be hoping for an injury free season. Amen.

I don't think most coaches uses all 13 scholarships. With NIL money I doubt teams will have enough money to fill all 13 scholarships going forward 

[IUFLA]

6 hours ago, IUfaninIllinois said:

I think Newton is one that people have really under estimated when discussing our team. This really intrigues me. I don’t think X just says that to say it either.

[HOOSIER CHAMPS]

Jayon Wells (WSU), Trevon Brazile (Arkansas), and Coleman Hawkins (Illinois) are interesting possible transfers that could help IU reach the 2025 Final Four.  Who should we focus on with social media buzz?  Myles Rice (teammate of Wells) and Luke Goode (teammate of Hawkins) may be able to put in a good word for considering the Hoosiers and a possible NCAA Championship – GO HOOSIERS!

[Maedhros]

6 hours ago, Indykev said:

Mr.A.Leal says Woody has filled his team. Going with 12. You can say the 13th is not important until it is. You can't teach old dogs new tricks even if they get slapped in the face. That being said, i will be hoping for an injury free season. Amen.

The problem last season wasn't leaving a scholarship open. The problem was the backcourt was thin, and a lot was going to have to go right for that group to be successful. That open scholarship could have been another roll of the dice, after so many of our other options at guard crapped out.

This year doesn't have that problem. The backcourt has been addressed. We're fully stocked with guys we expect to contribute at the guard and wing positions. If anything it's the frontcourt that now looks a little thin, but our starters are two experienced guys who should be among the best in the conference.

Injuries happen, yes, but if we're down to needing significant contributions from the 13th guy on the roster then the season is already well and proper f***ed. If, say, Ballo and Reneau both go down I'm going to be morose, but I'm going to be upset for that reason, not because we didn't grab a 13th guy who wouldn't have seen the floor otherwise.

[IU Scott]

37 minutes ago, Maedhros said:

The problem last season wasn't leaving a scholarship open. The problem was the backcourt was thin, and a lot was going to have to go right for that group to be successful. That open scholarship could have been another roll of the dice, after so many of our other options at guard crapped out.

This year doesn't have that problem. The backcourt has been addressed. We're fully stocked with guys we expect to contribute at the guard and wing positions. If anything it's the frontcourt that now looks a little thin, but our starters are two experienced guys who should be among the best in the conference.

Injuries happen, yes, but if we're down to needing significant contributions from the 13th guy on the roster then the season is already well and proper f***ed. If, say, Ballo and Reneau both go down I'm going to be morose, but I'm going to be upset for that reason, not because we didn't grab a 13th guy who wouldn't have seen the floor otherwise.

You are right about last year, it wasn't about not having a 13th player. It was that guys like Gunn and Banks didn't develop and Newton not being healthy.

[IUfaninIllinois]

6 hours ago, IUFLA said:

Yep saw that! I wonder how high that is.

[IUfaninIllinois]

11 hours ago, Indykev said:

Mr.A.Leal says Woody has filled his team. Going with 12. You can say the 13th is not important until it is. You can't teach old dogs new tricks even if they get slapped in the face. That being said, i will be hoping for an injury free season. Amen.

I agree but I also think this is an absolute much deeper team this year compared to last year.

[tdhoosier]

4 hours ago, Maedhros said:

The problem last season wasn't leaving a scholarship open. The problem was the backcourt was thin

....which is why that scholarship needed to be used on another backcourt player. The logic doesn't make sense to me. 

I know this has been litigated to death, but people arguing my side of the point do not think of it as Monday Morning quaterbacking, because many of is foresaw this issue before a game was played last year. 

-XJ was coming off of an injury and has never been consistent
-Cupps was an undersized Freshman
-Jakai was doubtful to play as early as the prior Spring (him being out for the season was not a surprise if you were paying attention)
- And none of the above were/are good shooters.

So, we were banking on Gunn (i don't consider Banks a backcourt player), who logged very few minutes in his Freshman season. Can't do anything about it now, but the staff definitely dropped the ball by not going after another guard harder at the beginning of the portal. Getting another good guard could've made last year's team better. 

As for this year, I can't quantify how much more production a 13th player would bring because I think a competitive 'end of the bench' player will bring intangibles in practice that we may not see first hand. Bottom line is that it's a no risk/high reward scenario and an insurance policy. I can't remember a year when we didn't have at least 2 or 3 major contributors go down for a considerable amount of time.

Injuries are not fluke.

The bigger fluke is a team staying healthy for an entire season. 

We're allowed 13 spots for a reason

And gone are the days when we need to save a scholarship for the next season. 

So why not fill it? 

 

[IU Scott]

1 hour ago, tdhoosier said:

....which is why that scholarship needed to be used on another backcourt player. The logic doesn't make sense to me. 

I know this has been litigated to death, but people arguing my side of the point do not think of it as Monday Morning quaterbacking, because many of is foresaw this issue before a game was played last year. 

-XJ was coming off of an injury and has never been consistent
-Cupps was an undersized Freshman
-Jakai was doubtful to play as early as the prior Spring (him being out for the season was not a surprise if you were paying attention)
- And none of the above were/are good shooters.

So, we were banking on Gunn (i don't consider Banks a backcourt player), who logged very few minutes in his Freshman season. Can't do anything about it now, but the staff definitely dropped the ball by not going after another guard harder at the beginning of the portal. Getting another good guard could've made last year's team better. 

As for this year, I can't quantify how much more production a 13th player would bring because I think a competitive 'end of the bench' player will bring intangibles in practice that we may not see first hand. Bottom line is that it's a no risk/high reward scenario and an insurance policy. I can't remember a year when we didn't have at least 2 or 3 major contributors go down for a considerable amount of time.

Injuries are not fluke.

The bigger fluke is a team staying healthy for an entire season. 

We're allowed 13 spots for a reason

And gone are the days when we need to save a scholarship for the next season. 

So why not fill it? 

 

It was roster construction and not having a 13th player. Instead of Walker they should have gotten a guard instead. I have not had time to research but I bet most of the top teams don"t use all 13 scholarships.

[Hoosier4Life53]

I have zero concern about not filling the 13th scholarship, unless someone with rotation type talent drops into our lap. This year’s roster construction is in much better shape than last year. As someone else said, if we’re in real need of playing the 13th man, then our season is in the tank anyway.

[IU Scott]

This year on paper the roster seems more balanced. Players who can play multiple positions in case of injuries.

Players who can play PG if needed. Rice, Cupps, Galloway, Carlisle.

Players who can play the 2 and 3, Carlisle, Galloway, Newton, Tucker, Leal

Players who can at the wing and the 4 MM, Reneau, Tucker, Goode, Leal

Players who can play the 5, Ballo, Reneau, can't remember the name of the transfer from Bellermine

 

[Seeking6]

16 hours ago, IUfaninIllinois said:

I think Newton is one that people have really under estimated when discussing our team. This really intrigues me. I don’t think X just says that to say it either.

I saw that reply and am like X just isn't throwing stuff out there. For the kids sake and ours I hope he finally gets a chance to showcase himself. Has to be brutal sitting this long.

[Maedhros]

1 hour ago, tdhoosier said:

....which is why that scholarship needed to be used on another backcourt player. The logic doesn't make sense to me. 

I know this has been litigated to death, but people arguing my side of the point do not think of it as Monday Morning quaterbacking, because many of is foresaw this issue before a game was played last year. 

-XJ was coming off of an injury and has never been consistent
-Cupps was an undersized Freshman
-Jakai was doubtful to play as early as the prior Spring (him being out for the season was not a surprise if you were paying attention)
- And none of the above were/are good shooters.

So, we were banking on Gunn (i don't consider Banks a backcourt player), who logged very few minutes in his Freshman season. Can't do anything about it now, but the staff definitely dropped the ball by not going after another guard harder at the beginning of the portal. Getting another good guard could've made last year's team better. 

As for this year, I can't quantify how much more production a 13th player would bring because I think a competitive 'end of the bench' player will bring intangibles in practice that we may not see first hand. Bottom line is that it's a no risk/high reward scenario and an insurance policy. I can't remember a year when we didn't have at least 2 or 3 major contributors go down for a considerable amount of time.

Injuries are not fluke.

The bigger fluke is a team staying healthy for an entire season. 

We're allowed 13 spots for a reason

And gone are the days when we need to save a scholarship for the next season. 

So why not fill it? 

 

Everything you say about last season makes perfect sense and I agree. I had all the same concerns this time a year ago. This year is different.

Cupps is a year older. Newton is as healthy as he'll be. And both guys are depth pieces, behind the incoming Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle in the rotation. Add Trey and Leal and we're six deep at the 1 & 2. Some of those guys will move to the 3 in certain lineups, but that's where we'll also have Mgbako, Goode and Tucker on the wing. I just don't see backcourt depth as a concern at all. And if you're looking for intangibles at practice, walkon Jordan Rayford was on scholarship for Air Force.

I don't think the point of having the 13th scholarship open is to just have it sit there. I think rather, given the state of the roster and the work already put it, it's that the staff can afford to be picky. We don't need to fill it just to fill it. Doing so might make us incrementally better at the margins, but apparently the staff feels the scholarship has more value in being available for a true difference that might hit the radar. Unlikely as that may be, I can't say they're wrong to do so. I simply don't see a scenario where the 13th guy on this roster makes a significant impact on a winning team.

[FKIM01]

8 minutes ago, Maedhros said:

Everything you say about last season makes perfect sense and I agree. I had all the same concerns this time a year ago. This year is different.

Cupps is a year older. Newton is as healthy as he'll be. And both guys are depth pieces, behind the incoming Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle in the rotation. Add Trey and Leal and we're six deep at the 1 & 2. Some of those guys will move to the 3 in certain lineups, but that's where we'll also have Mgbako, Goode and Tucker on the wing. I just don't see backcourt depth as a concern at all. And if you're looking for intangibles at practice, walkon Jordan Rayford was on scholarship for Air Force.

I don't think the point of having the 13th scholarship open is to just have it sit there. I think rather, given the state of the roster and the work already put it, it's that the staff can afford to be picky. We don't need to fill it just to fill it. Doing so might make us incrementally better at the margins, but apparently the staff feels the scholarship has more value in being available for a true difference that might hit the radar. Unlikely as that may be, I can't say they're wrong to do so. I simply don't see a scenario where the 13th guy on this roster makes a significant impact on a winning team.

This all day long.  I don't get the hand-wringing sense of urgency over filling the last scholarship.  It the perfect player becomes available, use it.  Otherwise, given the talent already on the roster, there's nothing wrong with having a little "dry powder".

[IUFLA]

That last picture bears out what Brian Walsh said as a guest on the "Rising Coaches Podcast." 

The kids love Woody, and they love playing for him...