Juwan Moye

Year 1 they’d get some leniency, year 2 would be expected to be progress and a tourney team, and year 3 should be where we have our new floor set as a consistent top 25 team moving forward. 10 years ago I’d have said we need patience with a new coach, it takes time to get your guys, build our culture, etc etc. But in todays game with the transfer portal and NIL, and the absolutely massive advantage that IU has in that arena, the timeline is, and should be, condensed considerably.

I want us to win, to not get consistently embarrassed, and to see modern winning basketball on the court. This didn’t happen last year, and hasn’t happened consistently for the last 3 years, thus the existence of this thread. Apparently those 3 things are too much to ask of a coach who is paid as one of the top 15 guys in the sport.

You forgot about Taco Bell.

I hadn’t heard that before, where did you hear it? The only point I recall hearing is something about Mgbakos mom asking Woodson to recruit her son after he decommited from Duke. Obviously our team last year is much worse without him, but he’s clearly a guy who should be playing at the 4.

Yeah, bringing in an NK type makes sense. But bringing in a guy who is likely even worse than NK, to sit at the end of the bench just in case of injury, could be fine I guess but is far from important. In that scenario I’d have to think we’re better with Malik at the 5 and then trying to hide his weaknesses, probably by playing some zone, or by ensuring the guys manning the 3 and 4 are better defending and rebounding options.

I’m confused as to what caliber of player you think we’d be able to get in here for that role.

Yes. I could say the same thing a number of our players. Id MUCH rather have Malik play the 5 than some random guy we could get from the portal who is willing to come in as a third stringer. We’re not getting top tier talent for that spot, just a body.

You’re worried about sliding a guy to the 4 who was 6’8” 217lbs as a Freshman? He shouldn’t be “sliding” there, he should be playing there by default. Everyone but our coach seems to know he’s a PF.

lol, hang a banner!

To be fair, that may be the same issue with Woodsons defense as well. It’s absolutely something I’m worried about, especially our ability to defend the 3. Early in the season, all teams has to do was take a dribble towards the nail defender then make the easy pass to the wing for a wide open 3.

Yeah, there seems to be less value in trying to develop guys immediately when you can spend a couple hundred grand to get someone proven and then build up them up from there.

One dude saying he wouldn’t want to see Goode as a small ball 5 isn’t conclusive here. I’d have some worries about Goode at the 4 but would vastly prefer it over seeing the Malik/Ballo pairing. I still firmly believe our best lineups will be with Mgabko at the 4 and Ballo at the 5.

If Ballo were hurt for a game or two I wouldn’t be sad about a Rice, Carlyle, Goode, Mgbako, Reneau lineup. May need to see some zone to protect Malik but good luck guarding us.

We should be trying to play Mack at the 4 as much as possible. He’s a true modern 4, has the size to do it. He doesn’t have the quickness to play the 3 on the defensive end.

We should expect the success of other actual blue bloods if fans are going to act like we’re one. I’d define that as almost always a top-25 team and at least a couple of times a decade having a team that’s a legit threat to make the final four. This would align with the likes of Duke, UNC, Kentucky, Kansas, UConn, etc. although some of them may have even higher bars.

Since you like numbers, what numbers suggest our coach did a good job last season?

That’s good to hear, thanks for sharing.

I also didn’t mind the “true fans” comment as much, just thought it was tone deaf and unnecessary given the results on the court and the frustration within the fan base due to said results. He lost me when he kept ducking anything resembling accountability and blaming anything other than himself for what was happening. People attributed it to him being stubborn but I think it’s worse than that, it’s hubris.

To be fair to Woodson it looks like he has adjusted with regards to the roster. But beyond that, I fully agree that he’s been steadfast that there’s nothing wrong with his coaching, his system, etc. Last year was all on the players in his mind, and he said that publicly. (I don’t make the shots, need more talent in here, etc etc)

Yeah, people hoping for failure are taking it too far IMO.

As a non-Woodson fan, I agree with this. He has to get SOME credit for the portal haul. Now whether or not that translates into reasonable results remains to be seen but, at least on the surface, it looks like he’s learned from his roster construction mistakes last season.

Is making the tournament the goal? Could’ve sworn it was B1G and National titles. But if you’re content with a coach who is paid as a top-15 coach, with a top-5 NIL budget, squeaking into the tournament to get blown out by the likes of St Mary’s then we’ve got your guy!

Last year we were tested by KenPom 300+ teams who had reasonable shooting so we should at least know very early on if we’re at least better than last year. If we squeak by an Army or FGCU type, or almost lose to a Morehead St, it’s going to be a LONG year. I still remember people trying to convince others that those teams were underrated and the metrics were wrong. Delusional.

John Smith has done his job. No one knows basketball or wants to win more than John Smith.

This is the prudent point that people for some reason ignore. If Woodson were fired, what high level basketball program is considering him for their coaching position? The answer is zero. If you look at B1G coaches objectively you quickly see he’s in the bottom half, if not the bottom third, of head coaches in the conference. Still going to cheer for our team this year, as I do every year, but my only trepidation about the season at this point has nothing to do with the roster and everything to do with our coach.