Jordan Geronimo--The Sky is the Limit

[Stuhoo 75,564]

 

Jordan Geronimo seems to have become a true rarity on any board--a big fan favorite with no one expressing real reservations--no if's, and's, or but's.

For me, I am shocked at how well this supposedly inexperienced freshman sees the court, and understands offensive spacing and help defense. I'm also intrigued by what appears to be a good-form jump shot.

So let's open a discussion:

• Do we foresee him as a 25+ minutes per game starter anytime soon?
• If the sky is the limit, what do we think is the sky for Jordan G?

A happy thread! Have at it:

 

[Hardwood83 4,499]

A couple of thoughts come to mind. Hustle covers up a lot of other short-comings. He seems like he wants it and is a team-first guy. That will earn him play, which can speed development. 

His long-term impact may be largely impacted by the roster around him. If he is asked to play PF & even cover C at times then I think he'll be under-utilized. If he plays his natural position, then he could be a fan-favorite for sure. In other words if Duncomb and Thompson are the only bigs on the roster next year that really hurts JG IMO. He'll get stuck playing out of position a la Collin Hartman :( 

He very much seems like exactly the type of guy IU fans will adore. Enthusiasm! 

[lillurk 3,668]

I’d agree. If his ball-handling comes along I’d love to see him start at the 3 next year. It’s nice that he can slide up and hold his own defensively but Hardwood’s right, that’s not the best full-time deployment.

[Stuhoo 75,564]

 

The last guy we had at IU that could legit guard all positions 1-5 was OG. I think by next year Jordan is that guy. Allows us to switch him on any screen--great for defense generally and especially great for late game and in-bounds possessions.

 

[Stuhoo 75,564]

3 minutes ago, lillurk said:

I’d agree. If his ball-handling comes along I’d love to see him start at the 3 next year. It’s nice that he can slide up and hold his own defensively but Hardwood’s right, that’s not the best full-time deployment.

TJD Race Jordan, Armaan, Khristian? Not too shabby. Of course, I'm fully aware that Rob, Parker, etc also consider themselves 25-30 mpg material.

[Hardwood83 4,499]

Just now, Stuhoo said:

 

The last guy we had at IU that could legit guard all positions 1-5 was OG. I think by next year Jordan is that guy. Allows us to switch him on any screen--great for defense generally and especially great for late game and in-bounds possessions.

 

"Paging out of control expectations, wild expectations to the courtesy phone, please!" 

J/K, I can see that. But still believe he'll be wasted in the post ALL the time. IU needs roster balance for everyone's benefit. At least that is my hobby horse. 

[HoosierAloha 29,892]

The two biggest things he has going right now is his hustle and not being afraid to screw up.  In the first half against Iowa, he caught the ball near the basket and just went straight up.  He wasn't afraid to get blocked, he just put it in the basket.  He's a quick jumper so that definitely helps.  I disagree about position.  I believe in college he'll lean more towards a 4 with the ability to play the 3.  He can get stronger and plays with a low center of gravity when defending in the post.  There are very few 4s in the Big Ten he won't be able to defend, if any at all.

[Alford Bailey 12,250]

Great athlete who seems to have some court awareness. Id put him behind on Lander on freshman potential.

[HoosierHoopster 6,040]

A couple thoughts to add here --

A good friend of mine out East watched/scouted both Oladipo (at DeMatha) and Geronimo. During Vic's recruitment and commitment he told me Vic was going to be a stud in college, that he was then a double-guy with boards as a guard, that his D was way ahead of his O which was still developing, but that he was exceptional and would do really well at IU. Couldn't have been more right. Around when Geronimo committed he told me Geronimo was better at the same age as Vic, further along, also better defensively at his current development but better than Vic was at that age. That's seriously high praise. Then coming into this season there were several comments from inside the program that Geronimo was wowing guys in practice. 

I think he's farther along already than his court time is indicating. His stroke looks smooth to me, fwiw. Back on the Adidas Gauntlet he was shooting around 36% from deep, Jerry Meyer scouted him and tabbed him a good spot-up 3-point shooter, his limitations were his handle/straight-line drives. I remember reading somewhere that he shot close to 40% his junior year (not sure if that's right but that's what I remember). He was the 2019 NH Gatorade POY, and with that he had a GPA just under 4.0. The kid is good, smart and a hard worker, he's just going to get better, great work ethic. Not calling him Vic, but I think he'll develop into an exceptional player and should start by next season, imo.

[Demo 17,350]

2 hours ago, Stuhoo said:

 

Jordan Geronimo seems to have become a true rarity on any board--a big fan favorite with no one expressing real reservations--no if's, and's, or but's.

For me, I am shocked at how well this supposedly inexperienced freshman sees the court, and understands offensive spacing and help defense. I'm also intrigued by what appears to be a good-form jump shot.

So let's open a discussion:

• Do we foresee him as a 25+ minutes per game starter anytime soon?
• If the sky is the limit, what do we think is the sky for Jordan G?

A happy thread! Have at it:

 

Don’t really care when or if he starts. I’m sure he will eventually. But when he starts consistently making shots, and I like his stroke a lot, with his energy and defensive versatility he’ll be really tough to take off the floor. I think his ceiling is gonna be tied to his ability to beat guys off the dribble and get to the rim. When he can do that, damn. Dating myself some here, but I can see him evolving into a Morris Peterson type of player. He can add value in any kind of lineup and in any kind of role.

[HoosierHoopster 6,040]

15 minutes ago, Demo said:

Don’t really care when or if he starts. I’m sure he will eventually. But when he starts consistently making shots, and I like his stroke a lot, with his energy and defensive versatility he’ll be really tough to take off the floor. I think his ceiling is gonna be tied to his ability to beat guys off the dribble and get to the rim. When he can do that, damn. Dating myself some here, but I can see him evolving into a Morris Peterson type of player. He can add value in any kind of lineup and in any kind of role.

Mo Pete! Nice reference

[Demo 17,350]

2 minutes ago, HoosierHoopster said:

Mo Pete! Nice reference

Always loved that dude. He could guard anyone, he competed his a** off and he just made every kind of winning play. Geronimo’s got some of those traits.

[Stuhoo 75,564]

42 minutes ago, HoosierHoopster said:

A couple thoughts to add here --

A good friend of mine out East watched/scouted both Oladipo (at DeMatha) and Geronimo. During Vic's recruitment and commitment he told me Vic was going to be a stud in college, that he was then a double-guy with boards as a guard, that his D was way ahead of his O which was still developing, but that he was exceptional and would do really well at IU. Couldn't have been more right. Around when Geronimo committed he told me Geronimo was better at the same age as Vic, further along, also better defensively at his current development but better than Vic was at that age. That's seriously high praise. Then coming into this season there were several comments from inside the program that Geronimo was wowing guys in practice. 

I think he's farther along already than his court time is indicating. His stroke looks smooth to me, fwiw. Back on the Adidas Gauntlet he was shooting around 36% from deep, Jerry Meyer scouted him and tabbed him a good spot-up 3-point shooter, his limitations were his handle/straight-line drives. I remember reading somewhere that he shot close to 40% his junior year (not sure if that's right but that's what I remember). He was the 2019 NH Gatorade POY, and with that he had a GPA just under 4.0. The kid is good, smart and a hard worker, he's just going to get better, great work ethic. Not calling him Vic, but I think he'll develop into an exceptional player and should start by next season, imo.

 

Great stuff HH. 'Bout time you contributed some substance around here instead of just @$$-kissing everyone with kindness.

;)

[RaceToTheTop 23,611]

2 hours ago, HoosierAloha said:

The two biggest things he has going right now is his hustle and not being afraid to screw up.  In the first half against Iowa, he caught the ball near the basket and just went straight up.  He wasn't afraid to get blocked, he just put it in the basket.  He's a quick jumper so that definitely helps.  I disagree about position.  I believe in college he'll lean more towards a 4 with the ability to play the 3.  He can get stronger and plays with a low center of gravity when defending in the post.  There are very few 4s in the Big Ten he won't be able to defend, if any at all.

I'd compare him to a guy like Daryl Thomas in terms of being able to defend the 3, 4, and 5.

[Hovadipo 52,951]

For being a bit of a newborn deer at times, his 3 point stroke really stands out. It’s pretty smooth. If he dials that in and continues to guard at a high level, he’ll be an absolute weapon for the next few years.

 

I also don’t think it’s crazy to think of a reality where he has an OG-like meteoric rise up draft boards with his physicality in the next year+. 

[Brass Cannon 24,064]

I honestly think him and Lander will be starters next year.  He’s too versatile to keep off the floor.  
 

If TJD does return. Question is who is our second Guard. At this point gotta say Franklin. 
 

Lander, Franklin, Geronimo, Race and TJD would be a starting line up I would be excited for. 

 

[lillurk 3,668]

2 hours ago, Brass Cannon said:

I honestly think him and Lander will be starters next year.  He’s too versatile to keep off the floor.  
 

If TJD does return. Question is who is our second Guard. At this point gotta say Franklin. 
 

Lander, Franklin, Geronimo, Race and TJD would be a starting line up I would be excited for. 

 

Yeah, I agree. The best-case scenario is probably that lineup backed up by Rob/Parker/Leal/Trey, Hunter, Duncomb.

Off topic but if that’s the squad, you could really use another sturdy 6’8” 4 man grad transfer....

[RaceToTheTop 23,611]

Small sample size, but going to need to start hitting free throws.

[cthomas 5,917]

16 hours ago, Demo said:

I can see him evolving into a Morris Peterson type of player. He can add value in any kind of lineup and in any kind of role.

If he turns into someone like that, we have really got something. His progression, as well as the other freshmen, gives me some hope that better days are coming. This class is developing much faster than I expected. Now if a few of our upperclassmen would just follow their lead, we might yet get something out of this season. After he committed, I remember him saying he just wanted to do whatever coaches asked him to do. I feel like we stole one with JG.