lillurk

No one asked me, but I think you can imagine a scenario where next year is fine even if it falls short of the long-term expectations we have for the program. Do a few things have to go right? Yes, but no slim-to-no-chance sorts of things. I’ve decided not to get too optimistic because that won’t end well, but if IU shows some progress and makes the tournament, it could be in a good position for the following year.

I figured, but recruiting is weird, man

That would be a weird criteria for whether IU has a chance if that’s what you’re implying.

Chris007 had some insight a page or two back.

I think he may have played up a year in AAU (@Uspshoosier probably knows if he did), but I was worried about underwhelming AAU #s last year.

I might add that this applies to Smith, too. Does it seem like hustle and attitude could be consistently better? Of course. But the sort of player who can take a beating in the post from Nick Ward on one possession and stay in front of Cassius Winston the next don’t grow on trees. He’s only a sophomore, maturity can still come. Of course I wish that and the offensive breakout had come this year, but I think it’s nuts to write him off.

I do vaguely recall something around that time — if not in the press conference then in an interview. I’m not trying to pester you, Brass, I see that repeated all over the place. Three years to ramp up to peak effectiveness as a team on defense is fair, and overall the defense isn’t the current problem, it’s 32nd in KenPom (though it has been picked apart in conference pla, which is worrying). That’s not where we all hope it will be, but it’s good. I think that’s what @ap2345 meant. By year three you have most of your own personnel, you have players with experience across the roster running it even if they’re not your personnel (think Smith and Durham), you sprinkle in some younger guys who have the ability to fit in, etc. This video covers a huge part of the scheme. If the most notable signature item is to prevent dribble penetration, I would say the way they guard screens and opt not to switch seems a close second.

I’d appreciate a citation where he said the system took three years to learn. Even if he said as much, the idea that the pack line — which is a relatively straightforward variant of man-to-man — takes three years to learn should seem suspicious to anyone who’s ever played basketball. Now, if he said or meant it might take three years for the whole basketball program change to pay dividends, that seems believable.

I assume you’ve omitted Damezi because he’s more of a wing/forward than a guard and not for the same reason you omitted someone else?

This may turn out to be true, but it seems less likely to me than either: 1. The staff prefers another guard/wing in 2020 AND doesn’t want 2 such players in the class, or 2. The staff would like some other roster shakeout(s) to happen before offering and feels the waiting is unlikely to jeopardize their chances. Almost no program in the country is too good for a hometown top 100 kid.

Genuinely curious what the delay in offering is about here.

Right, thus drive-based stats can be a better measure of defense quality, mich like tempo-free numbers in hoops.

Can someone unpack this a little more? Who’s MacFarland?

The lineups where shooting improvement will l be really critical are Davis/Morgan combos

It won’t be formally released, but someone may tweet a pic of the printout they’d give staffers afterwards. Check Jeff Goodman’s Twitter feed for box scores from other secret scrimmages.

I know we’re starved for basketball — I can’t be the only one who’s still hoping for a box score, right?

Last winter on the Mind Your Banners podcast, Snow told Osterman that the staff thought Hunter could play the 2 but Snow thought that was a long shot. I can see both sides: his size and skill makes him a tantalizing prospect there, but the speed, defense, and ball-handling may be challenges.

Vic played for Takeover.

The edit isn’t some secret message, but I can’t stop thinking about how funny it is that the OSU portion of the jersey is just some indistinguishable red?

From Derek Elston’s IG story

I have no inside scoop but I’ve been thinking as far as IU is concerned, he’s the kind of player who’s great to add in a larger class, but 2019 is likely a tight fit.

I’m not arguing they should take an international trip, but they are permitted much more coaching time for such trips per NCAA rules.

Sam Vecine made the point on Twitter that he (Sam) believed Fitzner was a nice addition for IU but also that ideally Fitzner was an insurance policy for IU’s younger players (Moore, Thompson, Forrester, etc.).

Y’all, I like this pickup, but he’s listed at like 215 pounds, or five pounds less than Moore was last year at the same height. Additionally, he has no history of rim protection. He’s not functionally a 5. Could he play alongside Juwan and Smith? Sure, but I doubt he’ll be the one asked to guard Ward or Wesson et al. in such a lineup. The guys asked to guard those bruisers before Fitzner will be, in some order dependent on health, availability, etc., Davis, Morgan, Thompson, Forrester, Moore, even Smith.

Trav is right. I’ll add: he’s in the right place at the right time on both ends. He’s thin, and he’s not a five. More of a 3/4. Now, it’ll still help insure against Davis coming along slowly; depth there makes it easier to slide another frontcourt player to five. Besides, even aside from Davis, Morgan and Smith do much of their best work near the hoop, so a spacing frontcourt player is a good thing. in this game specifically, he doesn’t start either half, but UW is playing a 2-3 zone, and he hardly comes out after entering. He plays at the foul line and makes good reads just about every time down. The recent Hoosier he most resembles is maybe 2014-2016 Collin Hartman. It’s not a perfect comparison, especially given their physical differences, but sophomore and junior Hartman was a really helpful player on a couple good teams.