Honkyman

I live in the Washington, DC area where there is extensive coverage of UVA sports. There have been periodic rumors of Bennett leaving Virginia, including to the NBA (also to UCLA when Alford was fired). He didn't turn down IU because he didn't want to coach in a fishbowl. He turned down IU because IU was a mess at that time which is why IU had difficulty attracting a top coach in 2008. The best IU could get after Sampson was Tom Crean.

IU is the favorite. Indiana State seems like an unlikely choice. Otherwise, it should not be surprising if Trey decides to go to any of the other schools. Good arguments can be made for each one. Virginia has a great program though there have been rumors about Tony Bennett leaving. North Carolina has as storied a history as IU including more recent successes. However, Roy Williams is 70 years old and it is unclear how much longer he stays (although Mike Krzyzewski is even older). Williams is probably hoping to win one more championship before he retires. Kids make decisions for all sorts of reasons and fans shouldn't be judgmental. There are plenty of reasons to go to IU but plenty of reasons to go out-of-state.

Not surprised he seems to have some interest in academics. ____ I am a proud IU graduate, but I will point out that both University of North Carolina (#29) and University of Virginia (#28) are ranked higher academically than IU (#79) in the 2020 edition of Best Colleges. One can make a good argument that all three are excellent academic institutions and that Trey can't go wrong if he chooses any of the three in terms of academics. But I don't think you can make a credible argument that North Carolina is a poor choice academically. There is opportunity to receive an excellent education for any student whether an athlete or not who has "interest in academics."

Georgetown's John Thompson and IU's Bobby Knight had many similarities as college coaches. Knight began coaching at IU in 1971, Thompson at Georgetown in 1972. Neither suffered fools or had patience with the media. Both were exceptionally smart, old school and coached as disciplinarians. Both were imposing figures physically though Thompson at 6'10'' more so. Thompson unlike Knight took on "problem" players like Allen Iverson and Michael Graham and they thrived under him. Thompson was also a father figure to many of his players who came from fatherless households. Thompson unlike Knight quit coaching when he realized he could no longer put in the same energy and effort that he did when he started. But both were great coaches who had enormous impact on the institutions where they worked and the communities where they lived.

Good statement by the Commissioner. Get involved, protest injustice, and vote to affective change.

Excellent hire! Hard to believe he hasn't had a shot at a head coaching job.

This is total speculation. It is speculation there will be an opening on Cal's staff. Speculation that he would hire Bruiser (just because they worked together and are supposedly "close" doesn't mean Cal--who will have the ability to hire almost anyone--will hire Bruiser, who would be an average hire at best for Cal), and speculation that Bruiser would leave IU. We should probably wait until the first domino falls before we worry about who IU might hire to replace Bruiser.

It won't be a failure if Trayce Jackson Davis returns for a 3rd. But likely it will be because he hasn't demonstrated he is 1st round material. If the 2020-21 college basketball season is canceled or drastically curtailed he could be back because there was insufficient opportunity for him to show his NBA value.

It is fun to fantasize about the best scenario case. But it unlikely that Trayce Jackson Davis is in staying in college for a 3rd year (unless the entire season is cancelled). Also, if Mohammed comes to IU one of our guards is likely to transfer due to projected lack of playing time.

Victor will go to the team that offers him the most money. Who can blame him?

IU will continue to have trouble attracting highly ranked out-of-state players like Patterson and Aminu until we start winning more and are consistently ranked among the top teams in the country and conference.

In terms of talent, George McGinnis, Walt Bellamy, and Isiah Thomas are in a category by themselves. There are other players who had great IU careers (e.g., Calbert Channey, Scott May, Steve Alford) but none come close to their talent. And, all three had great seasons for the Hoosiers. McGinnis, who led the Big Ten in scoring in 1971 with 30 points a game and 15 rebounds a game and was named a 3rd team All American, was hardly underrated at that time. But fans tend to favor players who played four years and those from more recent years. In McGinnis' time, freshmen were ineligible to play varsity. IU's 1970-71 front line of George McGinnis, Joby Wright and Steve Downing is probably school's best ever. I agree that McGinnis was the most talented to play for IU.

The question with Leal is whether he is quick enough to get his shot off. He seems a bit slow in his high school videos.

Leal has great form on his shot.

Musselman had a decent first year with Arkansas last season (20-12) with not much talent left by his predecessor (better than Archie's first year at IU). He turned Nevada into a winning program before moving to Arkansas. More important for Justin Smith is Musselman's style of play which as I say is a better fit for Justin. We'll see. I'm rooting for a good year for both IU and Justin.