Dave from Dayton

I can see the fans of the other teams chanting: "Let's go Bison!" Or something similar...

Nicely done there, cowboy!

I thought that Lee Corso was the mascot. And Priller...

I had wondered where Coach Woodson had been during the period 2021 - 25. Just saying...

Oh, I wouldn't refer to it as 'great' if we are ranked near 20 at year's end. I would be pleasantly surprised....pleased, yes. It is CDD's first year here. And the team as a team has a long way to go. It will take some getting over some bumps (not humps)...and taking some lumps. Great would be in the Sweet 16 with a good showing there. Great would include the team playing their hearts out routinely. Great would be CDD showing his mettle and BB IQ. Great would be the guards playing like they belonged in the competition for the top of the B1G. Great would-be recruiting improvements for 2026 being experienced during the basketball season. ..and really building something towards another banner. (Great would be a serious upgrade in referees and fairly calling games consistently home and away and in the first half and second half. But I dream. Never mind.) I understand why some would say it is great. Things are relative. To me, great is competing with the best routinely, and bringing it all home once in a while. I am not going to accept all of the hype. But I am intrigued. And I will cheer the team. My expectations are a little lower than others on this site. I hate to admit that. I usually am a positive...cup is half-full of BS..kind of guy. I just do not think that we will get even a sight of that rabbit on the first try this season.

I am so very happy and optimistic about having a coach that knows college basketball. He seems smart, has a plan, gets shooters and ballers that are willing to work. That, plus, he is willing to do the work to build a team. It is his first year. And the cupboard was dry. I am very interested in and concerned with the performance of the guards. But what do I know? I've only loved IU basketball since the mid '60s.

If the guards get the ball into the offense early and we have a halfway decent defense, then this will be a fun year. Wondering about the non-P5 players and shooters and that translating into competing for the top of the B1G. Reflecting on some guard imports last season from the left coast. Not knowing, yet, what to make of CDD and his staff and almost all of the players all being new to each other and to him causes me pause...and lots of hope for the future. Yeah, we all know these new players are all smart IQ ballers that are gym rats and hungry to practice and perform well. And we know that CDD is experienced and successful building a competitive team in other places. Right? (Winning the offseason is where we have been for years.) We all live in interesting times. (Heard that could be taken as a curse.)

Did you get flowers and a kiss? Yeah? And a box of chocolates?

I would be more interested in UK when... What. Am. I. Saying??? (Let me know when they get academically accredited.)

I perceive that the coach knows how to build a program. Does he really try to get ballers and shooters that think that the team is more important than individual players? Does he think that basketball IQ and effort means and sharing the ball is more important than a 41" vertical jump? Are guards going to get the ball in play and steal more balls than a front court? Do the number of stars mean more than everything else? Well, I don't know but he may be on to something. I wondered about Archie stepping up. But he did very well in Dayton. I knew that Crean was full of hype and was unsure about him winning without Wade. Sampson is a winner but was risky and IU didn't handle it well at all. No comment on Mike Davis who was too unseasoned. And IU, again didn't handle RMK's last decade. What a fiasco. I will give CDD the benefit of the doubt. But, I just don't know. I like the guards and the shooters and those that try harder.

The top of the Power 5 conferences may have gazillions to throw at 500 ballers. And the rest of the crowd of athletes from less advantaged universities get a trickle. Kind of like those millionaires that are born with a silver spoon in their mouths. They are entitled and 'deserve' it. The rest of us may struggle getting a living wage. And certainly those with disadvantages get less. But hey...that's it. The NCAA definitely blew it. But the NCAA is the power universities who were in charge. Somehow, someway...there has to be a sense of fairness or of morals or...social empathy. I used to be rather conservative. But the older I get...the more...I want to listen and respond with empathy.

Sad but true. Unlimited money and unchecked power will ruin everything. Some things never change. Read Sartre.

Any word on the recruit visiting today? Josh Harris...

Been to Puerto Rico twice. Once in the U.S.Navy and once on our honeymoon. Down there in September and wondered why there were so many vacancies. (Spoiler alert: hot and elevated chance of a serious storm...Hurricane season is June through November.) Like other places down there, they have been rocked by multiple hurricanes. Still having issues with electrical power grid outages, rebuilding and disparity in opportunities for people. Although it did not stop us from hitting the beaches, checking out old San Juan, visiting the impressive fort, getting to the rain forest and immersing in the countryside and some culture. Did not go to the Bacardi Rum Distillery/factory. Just go out early and siesta afternoon, then go out late. I was reflecting on the goodwill that IU had because of RMK and the referees and the police. Also, politics are not really favorable. If anyone is really wanting to learn about Puerto Rico and the other islands/countries and their relations with the USA...read something about the sugar cane plantations and importing slaves from elsewhere. The islands still have not fully recovered from the sugar companies' exploitation economy, human rights and politics. My daughter and SIL are down there for 5 days at a business conference. Will get a report about their impressions, very soon. Even thinking of going down for our 50th wedding anniversary family trip. Regardless, it will likely be an education for the athletes and a positive growth opportunity for the team.

Being both an engineer and a finance guy...I get a kick out of statistics....and comparisons of the same. I also know that it is a snapshot and not reality. Thank you for putting this together and sharing. Having said all of that...now for the big question. What do you make of this? And how much time did you take putting it together? Can't wait for the season to start to evaluate if the coach was successful in meshing gym rats with a hungry chip on their shoulders with sharing the ball with good basketball IQs. Feeling it a little...

While that may be correct, Alexis missed the last 7 regular season games because of an ankle injury. And then suffered another ankle injury just before the SEC Tournament. He suffered the injury at Mississippi State on Feb. 11 and had his left foot in a walking boot. Golden said Alexis returned to practice on March 3 and was progressing well... per Sam Alexis injury update: When will the Florida forward be back?

I just do not know what to expect beyond better shooting, better offense from the guards and wings, better outside ball movement, better outside defense, better plays, better competitiveness, more wins. What I do not know is about the front court and overall team performances. Also I do not know who will start in the B1G. The coach is also a big unknown with all the variables he and his staff and the team have to deal with. Finally, I do not know about the competition. The head coach DeVries and his staff obviously will be a serious upgrade in many areas with experience in college basketball coaching. I just hope that the team performs well and meshes. Glad that it is happening, finally. If they compete very well in the B1G and get into the top 6 then that is decent. Of course we want them to compete for the top of the B1G but as of yet they do not have the experience playing together, in a new system, with upperclassmen that are well seasoned, and we are missing 5 players. And I hope that everyone stays healthy and grows in a positive manner. Things could be worse...The Purdue Boilermaker Special just had an accident on US 52...crossed the centerline and hit a car head on...one fatality...this is no joke: One dead after crash with Boilermaker Special on U.S. 52

I have been yearning for a great guard or guard combo. Got to have them to get the offense moving and to stop the other team from doing the same. I know that other team members are vitally important too. But we have had guards that just did not compete or execute at the highest levels. They have to have talent. They have to be floor generals. They have to be smart. And they need some other elite asset. We shall see. But since the coach wants the ball in the hoop quickly...that means he needs guards that create. I feel he is trying to accomplish that. I have hope and by the time they toss that first ball in the air...I am going to be sky high with optimism. Yeah...we win the off season yearly. But this coach is an experienced and smart college coach. There are a lot of positive intangibles there.

I don't know about all of that...but there is a Donut Fairy that lives on the north side of Lake Wawasee. I had heard the stories from years back from my wife and her sister that worked at the donut shop there for a couple of summers. Some guy would come in on Sunday mornings and buy a couple of dozen donuts. And the word was that he would take them and deliver them to friends' houses and leave them at dawn on front porches...sneaking away. Years later some found out who he was. My family did not know. But the guy kept coming in on Sundays for years...buying dozens. A few years ago, at a reunion of our wedding party...my wife was telling the story to the bridesmaids. One perked up and grabbed the group hustling to her father's house next door. He is/was the Donut Fairy. Friends even had engraved a plaque with that on it.

Okay, Nostradamus, who's next?

Is that you, Dr. Seuss?

A shout out of thanks to all that support and post on BtownBanners! Thank you! You all help Hoosier fans get though the lean years. Get ready to hang another banner! Right?!

And self-disciplined and willing to work hard. Goes well with being very smart. Interpersonal skills, which are clearly there, puts him a cut above. Wondering about connections...to up and comers and college preps/academies.

Does Indiana's coaching staff need a Secretary of Defense? /s

You're saying that the sky is falling??