skhoosier2

Agree with this. Prices seem much higher than last year. How many of the guys we are after use us to drive the price up for places they are more interested in? I really hope the staff can get it done on some of these guys. We really need to make the tournament this year to repair our name/reputation and build. My concern has always been yes we have money and playing time, but what else draws guys here? Like you said, better first year would have gone a long way. Hopefully this year with a full staff we can get it done.

We hired Carr to evaluate talent and manage a budget. Let him earn his money. Iowa did more with less $$. We will have to spend wisely considering we need an entire starting 5 plus a few bench pieces. I really think many may be disappointed with the roster we end up with again. My hope is that Carr identifies the guys we can afford that are team buy in guys that can compete in the B1G and make the tournament. This portal can’t open up fast enough.

Definitely. Good bench player but not starting center 30+ mins a night.

I really thought Sam turned into a nice player at the end. He may not have been highly ranked, but he gave good effort and battled. Your post is spot on. Hopefully with Carr we scout well and get what is needed this year.

Woody got TJD to the league. Big guys saw that and wanted to ride that coattail. There is nothing this program has done recently that would suggest high major talent will come for money alone and if those are the players we are getting just for money then there's a possibility they will not establish the culture needed to sustain success. Just my opinion. Don't be disappointed with the team we assemble with higher expectations than we get. I will be ecstatic if I'm wrong. Wilkerson was a great get. We got lucky there for sure. Without him, we really struggle to win.

I am aware. He was just an example of someone that did it with less money and coached his players/developed his culture. He put a foundation in place his first year to attract the players he wants to compete with. I believe that's what we need to do this season in order to get to where we want to go. Last year was a disappointment and a waste in regards to program building. The narrative that CDD had no time/no staff is an excuse. Other programs hired their coaches later and did more. That's fully on CDD for dragging his feet on staff(yes I know he was waiting on higher level assistants he ultimately did not get) and not knowing what kind of roster he needed to compete in the B1G. I am not giving up on the guy, but I am calling it what it is. He's got a GM now to help with talent evaluation. My expectations are tournament or bust. Roster construction is key to program building and taking the program in an upward trajectory. If he cannot get to the tournament next season, he will deserve to be on the hot seat. I am not expecting high major talent. I am expecting a better roster construction, better coaching, and an upward trajectory to see a path to getting better talent where we can be at the top of the conference again. That doesn't happen if we cannot make the tournament yearly and win games we should win to get there.

While I understand what you are saying, players of top caliber can get money and stage almost anywhere. Until we get this thing rolling (assuming CDD is the guy), I really don't see the highest of talent coming to IU just for money especially if they want to go to the NBA (granted Carr has that bridge now but we have to have a coach that can coach/develop them to get there). Some may be interested in solely money and like I said are those the guys we really want to build this thing with? Ben McCollum doesn't have the money IU has and still got a team to buy in and coached them to the elite 8. Personally, i think the first step is going to be to assemble a team that can get to the tournament safely and win games we are supposed to (see NW). Once he can do that yearly, then I believe the talent will come and we can start to compete at the top of the conference again. But IMO the best we can hope for at this point is a yearly tournament team to start attracting more talent. Even in the NIL era, I just don't see how this will be a fast fix even with money to spend given the state of our program. I completely agree with your take and our needs. I just think a realistic view of what we want vs what we can get are two different things. I hope we get there. I hope they swing for the fences and get a couple guys. I just do not see that as the realistic possibility so if we get a starter from UL that fits what we need it's a start and hopefully an upgrade to what we saw last season.

Generally, I agree with you on most of what you post but I am curious...why do you think we are attractive to high major more talented players? What do we have to offer besides money and playing time? While I really want to see us build a competitive roster with better players, I just don't see what is better about IU if they can go to UK, UL, Texas, Arkansas, UT, etc. Those were tournament teams. We had a meltdown and couldn't beat NW twice. Being a tournament team seeded 6-10 would be a feat for this program right now IMO. We are not the IUBB of old. We cannot just attract any players we want unfortunately. Money isn't the only thing that attracts these high major players especially when other programs have the SAME money to offer and a more attractive winning program. I am not saying CDD/Carr shouldnt go after the big fish. I am saying I don't think there is anything at this point to believe we can get those players over others save for money (and those that are purely after money aren't going to create the right culture that is needed to build this program).

Wonder how long that will last?

Anyone know who the poster is? I don’t follow him but he shows up a lot on my feed and always seems to know about recruiting for basketball and football.

Great coach. Very smart and his game plans were excellent in the tournament. He will be a force in the B1G and tournament for years to come.

Great win for Iowa. Had to turn off Purdue. The refs let their bigs get away with murder all game.

What do we have besides money to offer is my question? I don't know what looks enticing to a prospect unless it's money and playing time. Most of the better ones want to go to an established program where they can at least know they should be able to showcase their talents in the NCAAs after regular season. We are starting from scratch again... Hope he can do it. Even if Carr identifies good talent, we still have to be able to convince them to come...

Brad watch again? How many horse farms will he see before he backs out of the job this time?

I wasn’t a fan of McCollum style but he’s very smart and damn good coach. His players play hard and it appears they have a buy in to the culture. Do not have top NIL and still assembled a team that competes. Obviously bringing Stirtz was key to their success. But I would think with Stirtz heading to the NBA he will likely be able to draw some talent there he can develop.

He is a coach I really wanted at IU although I pretty much assumed he wasn’t attainable. Good halftime adjustments and their defense was terrific. Jefferson was a big loss. Impressed with them today.

Purdue may get by Texas but I don’t think they beat Arizona. That’s who I think wins it all.

SLU obliterating Georgia was not on my bingo card for tonight.

SLU plays hard and fast. Enjoyable to watch.

How do you not know the rule when missing a free throw?

Nobody wants to win this game.

Good comeback by VCU only to squander the last possession. UNC likely takes it in OT.

Definitely need improvements before the next search so we can land Billy or Brad LOL

Not surprised. At this point, UM is a better program with a better coach. I don't blame Sisley at all. IMO, Sisley leaving will really hurt our Indiana recruiting. This kid came to Indiana because it was Indiana regardless of the coach. Bad look... CDD deserves more time however he didn't show all that much this year especially in the end run where we lost all of those games. Concerning things with coaching especially adjustments. I get the roster construction was poor, he took too long to get assistants, etc. But we still should be able to beat NW with that roster. He was outcoached twice and the players were defeated when they got down. All of it doesn't invoke much confidence for next year. Although we have Carr now, CDD/staff still have to be able to sell these guys on why they should come to IU. We have money and playing time but not much else. Time will tell. I hope we find the players we need in the portal, but I can't say I am very optimistic about next season being much different from this one. I very much hope I am wrong.

I also read his dad is taking visits currently? Could be a rumor but if that's true, it likely means the dad is looking for $$ too.