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Please let him go to KU. Best case scenario for us if he takes their last scholly... wish he would commit there ASAP lol

Wow, that came out of nowhere. Good for him, wish him well. Not thrilled to play him 2x next year assuming he has somewhat of an expanded role... but don't think anyone of us is losing sleep about this transfer within the conference

As a Jersey kid, I am sure NYC holds some appeal to Mgbako. I hope he realizes that NYers won't recognize him as if he is a star just because he plays at St. Johns. Literally nobody cares about them. If he were to be playing for the Knicks or Nets, sure, he'd get recognized by a few dedicated fans. So much of the appeal in Duke is being on national TV, a huge brand, rabid fan base. IU and Kansas are certainly closest in that regard.

NIL, playing time/role in offense, NBA preparedness are the determining factors here, it seems. Facilities/winning/where he can see himself fitting best culturally for a year on and off campus probably play a lesser role as well. I'm hoping NIL is a wash between the Adidas schools and St. Johns is almost tapped out already. Because from a playing time/role in the offense and NBA readiness perspective, I think IU stacks up just as well as Kansas and Louisville if not slightly better. Hopefully Kansas fills up scholly wise and it becomes a much clearer picture. Purely speculation but can't envision a top 10 recruit going to St. Johns knowing what those facilities and program is like right now, just for Pitino's first year, especially when that recruit was previously committed to Duke. Something tells me he likes the attention and fanfare as most kids do. You'll get a lot more of that at IU than you would at St. Johns. Unless Pitino has them playing almost every home game in MSG, St. Johns is a really tough sell, even with him as the coach.

Yeah, that is more or less what I mean by very selfless teammates trusting they'd be taken care of. + NIL. Still, super rare and unlikely scenario to see I think

Lol I mean, I wasn't aware of that "rule" I guess? If Reneau progresses in the same sense that Galloway has, I don't think his fouling will be a huge concern chronically next year. A few games here and there, sure, like all big men. If he progresses like Geronimo/Bates, we're in trouble and going to need Walker/Banks to step up in a big way. Don't mean to make an argument out of it though

Andre Drummond walked onto UConn because he decided that's where he wanted to go, even though they didn't have a scholarship for him. That was before NIL too. I think it would be exceedingly rare/require some very, very selfless teammates trusting they'll be taken care of, but not implausible.

Are you assuming no progression from year 1 to year 2?

... wow, I miss a few hours in this thread and the floodgates have burst open with new recruits and new back and forth bickering lol. RE: adding a backup big before we add 2 more stud rotation players. We obviously don't control the timing of recruits committing... What if Mgbako is dead set on being a wing but weary of playing backup 4 minutes? Then adding Walker is a huge benefit. We don't have any idea what the situations are and we can't change the outcome. I'm trusting Woody to get it done. We'll learn a lot about the staff/program by the end of offseason, before the season even starts, but there is no reason to be so pessimistic right now IMO. Give me Mgbako, Walker and Dingle and let's get on the court!

Plus, their coach is good and all (sure, maybe) but if you're trying to play in the league next year, are any of these coaches going to really be better able to help you navigate that process than Mike Woodson?

We need JHS glued to this kid's side during his visit the whole time/pitching him hard. Mgbako comes here, Woodson will give him the keys. In other words - next year, X & Mgbako are the equivalent of JHS & TJD this year. Hope we end up needing to learn how to pronounce his name... or that we come up with a cool nickname, lol. Kansas obviously scares me the most here. Really curious when he is making his visit to Bloomington!

Kind of surprised we're not hearing about JG to SHU. Shaheen has not been super successful in recruiting thus far at SHU, and Geronimo is originally from Newark I believe, so would be a homecoming for him. Though, that could be just as much reason to NOT go to SHU as it is, if you're at all aware about Newark, NJ lol

Its scary to think about this team without XJ next year

Could not agree with you any more, same exact views on all fronts over here. We'll see if things heat up! Would make a lot of sense

Wonder if Ware could go to work for us here... like the tape!

I mean, if selling program success is the angle Woody and staff are taking, that explains the miss... IU in the current landscape of NCAA basketball has, IMO, 3 very compelling selling points for recruits: NIL NBA connection/relationships via Woody The campus/student body Point #3 can be matched by a lot of places, so very geography/personal preference specific. There are minutes to be had here. Play on national television plenty and in front of some of the best fans in basketball. If program prestige is a major part of our pitch, that seems like a miscalculation. Being able to win a lot of basketball games is a different pitch, but I suppose someone could argue they're one and the same. Or that prestige is a byproduct of winning a lot of games. We don't exactly have a great track record the past few decades, but Woody made progress from year 1 to year 2. Not being able to sell that to top recruits, suggests to me, we're either casting too small of a net or focusing on the wrong things. That said - we'll see where things stand at the end of portal season. Sucks to miss on Ledlum, but good luck to him. We'll be okay. Hope Banks and Gunn are living in Cook Hall!

Not to start drama (not sure if this has already become a debated saga on the board) but... With Ledlum and Knecht both visiting UT, and UT's scholly situation, the odds they get/take both seems kind of improbable? I'd take a 50/50 split in this situation, but I'd rather have both.

Loyer as their lead scorer, lol. Sign me up for that please. They'd be lucky to win 10 games

Never too early for media to push clickbait for views lol

I wouldn't go that far just yet, but I do think when its all said and done, we will have that kind of roster. The backcourt is still pretty thin and wings still unproven. We will be in great shape if Banks and/or Gunn take a big leap forward. Add Ledlum and I'd say yes we can compete with anyone on any given night. Add Knecht or a similar quality guard/wing, and I'd say we could be consistently competitive. If we have mental toughness too, could be pretty scary for our opponents!

I am just making a projection

I'm ecstatic about adding Ware. This height and length is something I haven't seen on an Indiana team in my time following the program, I don't think (loosely in the DJ White era and more closely in the Zeller/Dipo era). XJ - 6'3 TG - 6'4 Ledlum - 6'6 Reneau - 6'9 Ware - 7' Could add Knecht and Banks and CJ Gunn, three more 6'6 guys. If we play the perimeter-centric offense many anticipate Woody prefers next season, I wouldn't be surprised if our rebounding is actually improved a bit. More threes/perimeter shots could lead to longer rebounds and if we're active without the ball could see us getting our fair share of second chance opportunities. I think/hope Reneau takes a big jump next year on his rebounding numbers.

Xavier Johnson to Kel'el Ware lobs are going to have Assembly Hall rocking next season.

We can't replace TJD. But adding Ware to the frontcourt is about as good as you could ask for. This is another huge get for Woody!

Amazing! Game changer for next year. Let's lock up Ledlum and Knecht or another guard/wing and call it a roster. Welcome aboard Kel'el - you've made a great choice!