Honkyman

There were some that made that argument. I wasn't one of them.

There is no evidence either Beard or Underwood would have taken the IU job. They both went where the fit was right at that time.

Archie was arguably the best coach available if IU was intent on going the traditional route of hiring a young coach who appeared to be on the way up. Archie had a very good reputation when IU hired him and it seemed like a very good hire. But, as it turned out, he was too aloof for IU. He didn't seem to connect well with the IU community or even his players. He recruited Indiana's top two players--Romeo Langford and Trayce Jackson Davis--in successive years. But his inability to land other top players hurt performance as did his coaching style. Once Indiana started losing more than the fan base was willing to accept, he wasn't going to survive.

Perhaps. The problem is IU is likely to lose out on the shooters it has targeted--Kaiser and Power. Carr seems a lot like Jordan Geronimo. Teams find a way to productively use players like them.

I think IU will come to regret not sticking with Coen Carr. I predict he will become another Draymond Green.

Kaiser isn't going to visit Maryland to tell them he's going to IU. Maryland probably invited Kaiser back after hearing that the Indiana visit went especially well. It is likely more a sign that Kaiser came out of the IU visit leaning IU. He was leaning Maryland before the IU visit and perhaps feels obligated to go back. Maryland wants one last shot at him before he decides. They may be able to get a commitment out of him with this additional visit. Who knows? As someone who lives nearby the University of Maryland, I don't know why any top recruit would go there. It's been a mess there and the facilities are not anywhere nearly as good as IU's.

This all began with the ridiculous statement that Victor Oladipo could barely dribble when he arrived at IU. No one disputes that he greatly improved over his three years in college--arguably as much as any IU player in memory. But the initial statement that he could barely dribble is a ridiculous point for anyone to try to defend. It would have been better to admit that it was a gross exaggeration meant to underscore the point that he improved rather than to try to defend the indefensible.

Dad seems a great deal more enthusiastic about IU than the recruit.

I don't dispute that Oladipo improved greatly in college. Obviously, to be the number #2 pick in the draft and then become an NBA all-star given he was ranked no better than #136 coming out of high school showed enormous progress. To say Oladipo could barely dribble as a freshman in college is a ridiculous statement.

I saw Victor Oladipo in high school when played on a a great DeMatha team that included Quinn Cook and Jerami Grant. He was a defensive specialist. Most of his points came from layups and dunks. But to say Oladipo could barely dribble his freshman year of college is wildly inaccurate.

Dakich is awful but so is Doyle.

Kaufman went to Purdue for the same reason Brooks went to Kentucky. Both saw IU struggling under Miller and they wanted to go to what they thought are better programs.

I have heard nothing about a suspension. Generally, the school pays the penalty for violations even if a coach is to blame.

Of the 4 teams, 3 (UNC, KU, and Arizona) are currently ranked above IU in pre-season polls. The other team (Xavier) is a top 30 team IU plays on the road. Just as a matter of probability, IU is not likely to win more than 1 game. If IU shows strong improvement in its 3-point shooting, however, winning more than 1 game is definitely a possibility. Without that improvement in outside shooting, one win out of the four seems more likely.

1-3

Morgan will get cut by the Pacers and then re-sign with the Celtics.

Beating the Number #1 team in the country never loses its excitement level and its impact on the college basketball community. IU beat Kansas in 2016 so it's not like we've never beaten them.

Pre-season polls have IU ranked behind two of the four (UNC & Kansas) but barely ahead of Arizona which would make that game a toss up (unless IU beats UNC). It is more likely that we lose all three of those than win all three. Xavier is ranked a bit lower but still a top 30 team by most pre-season polls. Since we play Xavier on the road, that game is likely a tossup. I'm just saying let's keep our expectations in check. These will all be tough but hopefully winnable games.

I disagree. Beating number #1 is always a bigger deal than beating number 8 or whatever Kansas is. Besides, Indiana plays North Carolina before they play Kansas (IU also plays Arizona before they play Kansas). If IU beats UNC and Arizona, they likely will go into Allen Field House as even odds to win. If IU loses to UNC and beats Kansas, it is a big deal except IU has already lost to Number One at home.

First, of all, IU could easily lose all four of these pre-conference games so it might be prudent to temper expectations. Even if we do, we will likely still be very good and among the top 4-5 in the Big Ten Conference. Secondly, a win at Kansas would be news but hardly "shock the college basketball world to its core." Beating North Carolina, even at home, would be a much bigger story since North Carolina is ranked number one. BTW, I saw IU beat Kansas in Allen Field House. Different era. Bobby Knight was IU's coach. IU's star player was center Steve Downing and its starting point guard was a freshman named Quinn Buckner. IU went to the Final Four and Kansas wasn't very good (8-18) that season.

They will probably schedule Notre Dame against IU since the Crossroads has ended. Seriously, I don't think it matters whether IU plays North Carolina, Virginia, or Duke. It will be a good game and IU will be tested.

What's wrong with Loyola? It is a good school. The campus is on Lake Michigan. They are in Chicago which offers all kinds of great amenities--1st class museums, great music, parks, restaurants. I've known people who have gone to Loyola and loved it. The only downside imo is Chicago winters--they can be brutal.

The presumption is that this coming season IU will have a good team that can win some of those games against marquee names. Obviously, playing top competition is a risk. It is what Michigan State has done for some time. And some years Michigan State has emerged from their non-conference season with several losses only to be a better team and finish near the top in conference play. It appears there will be 3 or 4 marquee opponents in this year's non-conference play. Hopefully, IU will beat all of the easier teams and win at least 1 or 2 against the tougher teams. If not, so be it.

1. IU 2. Illinois 3. Michigan 4. Michigan State 5. Ohio State 6. Purdue 7. Iowa 8. Rutgers 9. Minnesota 10. Wisconsin 11. Maryland 12. Penn State 13. Nebraska 14. Northwestern

Archie was reacting to what the IU fan base criticized Crean for--losing out on some of the best Indiana players. Archie pledged at his first press event that he would recruit "inside out" meaning make sure IU gets the top in-state players and he was widely praised at the time for saying it. He successfully recruited three straight Indiana Mr. Basketballs, two of whom are still playing for IU plus Trey Galloway who has been an impactful player. Archie targeted several top out-of-state players but struck out with most, e.g., Darius Garland, Dawson Garcia. But there are a couple of really good out-of-state Archie recruits still on the team--Race Thompson, Jordan Geronimo. One of Archie's problems in recruiting is he didn't have much to sell because IU was underperforming on the basketball court. That ended up hurting him even with some top in-state players, e.g., Trey Kaufman.