Player decisions

[Loaded Chicken Sandwich 8,623]

If the last two haven't already committed, then they really don't want to be at Indiana. 

[LamarCheeks 18,192]

2 minutes ago, ap2345 said:

There's a rumor going around that Armaan had told Bennett that he was coming to UVA but now he's torn. Unpopular opinion by some but if he still can't decide by now he probably needs to go ahead and transfer. 

Don't want to see him leave, but I'd rather him go to U.Va. than Louisville or Illinois. 

[BleedCubbieBlue 1,395]

7 minutes ago, LamarCheeks said:

I wonder if CMW and staff by now have told Race and Armaan -- if you're not ready to make a decision, that's fine, but we're gonna hit the transfer portal and if we can get a commitment from someone we think can help us, we're moving on. 

I was wondering the same thing.  Does anyone know if they were given a deadline?

[T White 299]

1 hour ago, Trish said:

Archie Miller landed the biggest recruit in Indiana Basketball history (or damn near close) and that didn't turn out so well sadly for some reasons.

 

I think your history book is missing quite a few chapters.

[rcbowla 7,035]

I think your history book is missing quite a few chapters.

Chapter 1. The guy that Romeo couldn't reach for the all-time scoring record

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[Jim IV22 33]

Heard the UVA rumor too which makes zero sense to me...his skill set would be better featured in Woodson's system IMO. 

Edited April 7, 2021 by Jim IV22

[Golfman25 5,051]

10 hours ago, brumdog45 said:

What makes it bad advice?  Because he hasn't recommitted to the school that we want him to?

It's not that simple.

  

Armaan was a key player on a bad IU team.  Either it was bad because the players where bad (and if so, don't let the door hit you on the way out) or they had a HOF asshat for a coach.  I'll take the latter.  IU is on the upside.  Restoring the traditions that made it great and putting pieces into place to have a great run and future success. 

The programs he's looking at are on the downside and all have their issues.  Louisville is potentially in trouble.  ND hasn't been relevant, ever.  U of I, well they made their run, got bounced, and their best player is gone -- as is typical for U of I, they'll be back to mediocrity soon.  

Second, if Armaan has any desire to play at the next level, show me a college coach with a better NBA resume of working with NBA level players.  Granted, we don't know how Woodson's in game coaching and style is going to translate to the college game and result in wins.  What we do know is he spent 30 some years of his life working in the NBA and knows what it takes to get there and stay there.  A couple of years with Woodson could be worth millions.  

[8bucks 6,353]

hard to really draw conclusions regarding AF.  While he may be looking for a team where he can showcase his skills or perhaps he wants to go to teams that have shown they can win.  Illinois, unfortunately, has shown that for at least one year and certainly VA is a regularly strong national team.  If AF goes to VA what a great opportunity for him. Hopefully, his feelings of being torn are that he was 100% sold on leaving but the more he sees what is happening at IU the more he reconsiders.

Unless you have a legit better, or even close to better, player ready to commit if he leaves then I think it is fine for Woody to slow play this to some extent.  Let him participate in team activities and hopefully that is a selling factor.  

I would not wait on Race though.  While a key player this year AF is almost as key a get as TJD.  

[Trish 11,506]

21 minutes ago, T White said:

I think your history book is missing quite a few chapters.

It's a picture book thank you very much! 

[HoosierCoop 3,889]

I wonder if Armaan reached out to Justin Smith for advice seeing how he transferred, flourished, and never looked back.  You know, that's great for a Justin Smith that it worked out.  Looking at our coach, our offense, and a deflated team morale/cohesiveness, that may have made sense if Miller was still on as Coach.  That advice wouldn't fit the current uptrend we are seeing and the upgraded outlook on this team.  IMO, he doesn't have any better options of self improvement than he would at IU.

[Chris007 43,567]

25 minutes ago, LamarCheeks said:

Don't want to see him leave, but I'd rather him go to U.Va. than Louisville or Illinois. 

I'm not sure he can guard well enough to play at UVA. Maybe he was slowed with injuries but he got beat off the ball a lot last year

[Silat Player 281]

1 hour ago, IUCrazy2 said:

And I would say people keeping moving the goal posts.  After he was hired, people said his #1 job was getting players back.  So far, 1 guy is officially gone and that guy was gone when Miller was here.  He is currently undefeated in retaining players with a few still to be played.  Jury still out on the transfer market.

My initial point still stands though, the media is right about some of this fanbase.  Never happy.  Never content.  Rarely upbeat.  Mostly negative.

Totally agree. If you really want to talk about recruiting, then be honest about it. To expect CMW to come in and pursuade every one of the holdover players to remain is a bit unrealistic. After all, recruiting is done over a long period of time (usually) and involves creating and fostering a relationship with the player being recruited. 

CMW has literally spent only 2 weeks on the job, not enough time to truly develop a relationship. Yet, in spite of that, he's kept the majority of our players who entered the portal. That's a tremendous job on his part. 

Let's see how he does with the 2022 recruiting class, but it's probably not until the 2023 class that will really show how he can recruit, as he will have had a couple of years to cultivate a relationship with players, AAU coaches, high school coaches and parents.The one advantage that he has is having a couple of coaches on staff who were already recruiting players, and of course, Thad Matta, who already has relationships with AAU & high school coaches. 

People need to calm the f*** down. Rome wasn't built in a day...

[Silat Player 281]

1 hour ago, reconmkd said:

Probably some truth to how some see it. I think that our roster was plagued from the start with AMs need to be in control. If you don't think that is the case, just go back and look at nearly every offensive possession and you will see who ever is bringing the ball up the court hesitate while looking at the bench to see what to run. I know a lot of people have been hard on Rob, but you can't tell me any other reason for an experienced PG would need to look at the bench to see what to run. It is mind boggling.

Yep. Nothing like wasting 10-15 seconds on the shot clock slowly bringing the ball upcourt and pounding the ball at the top of the 3-pt line. 

What was baffling was that IU wasn't a good shooting team. One of the ways to remedy that is to push the ball quickly up court after a made basket and try to get a quick shot before the defense is set. 

[NashvilleHoosier 3,688]

1 hour ago, IUCrazy2 said:

So kind of thinking the last two guys might be out based on that.  Would stink to lose some guys but on to the next if that is the case.

Yeah I'd be more surprised if they did come back now vs. transferring. There isn't anything else they're going to hear at this point that will swing them toward staying. Remember they are still students in the spring semester for a couple more months. It's not like if Armaan commits to Illinois, he can pack up and go now. Same for Race. Once they do announce, do they get to use the team facilities still? I'd imagine the delay is just to buy as much time as possible to avoid awkwardness. Though surely it can't go on much longer. 

[Trish 11,506]

19 minutes ago, Jim IV22 said:

Heard the UVA rumor too which makes zero sense to me...his skill set would be better featured in Woodson's system IMO. 

Honestly, I'm thinking he would be great in the UV system. He seems like that type of player that could fit right in.

I would love for Frank to come back but if he's going to be playing in this new 4-1 offense, he's going to have to improve his play making ability and ball handling. He struggles with those two things imo. 

[Ghost of Rick Majerus 817]

3 minutes ago, NashvilleHoosier said:

Yeah I'd be more surprised if they did come back now vs. transferring. There isn't anything else they're going to hear at this point that will swing them toward staying. Remember they are still students in the spring semester for a couple more months. It's not like if Armaan commits to Illinois, he can pack up and go now. Same for Race. Once they do announce, do they get to use the team facilities still? I'd imagine the delay is just to buy as much time as possible to avoid awkwardness. Though surely it can't go on much longer. 

I'm sure they want to know who the next assistant will be. So that could play a factor. Plus, they probably haven't got much of a chance to talk to Coach Fife since he just got in Bloomington last night. So they could still be gathering information. It's a big step, give them time. The coaching staff they committed to was wiped out and they are starting fresh. Nothing wrong with them taking their time. I know I would. 

[NashvilleHoosier 3,688]

2 minutes ago, Ghost of Rick Majerus said:

I'm sure they want to know who the next assistant will be. So that could play a factor. Plus, they probably haven't got much of a chance to talk to Coach Fife since he just got in Bloomington last night. So they could still be gathering information. It's a big step, give them time. The coaching staff they committed to was wiped out and they are starting fresh. Nothing wrong with them taking their time. I know I would. 

Yeah that's true, wanting to maybe talk to the assistants. And yeah, I'm fine with them taking their time and exploring options. Hopefully a nice chat with Coach Fife will have an impact. 

[323SGrant 1,176]

Or you could mix some 5*s in with the 3* and 4* players, and coach the elite talent up too.

I like some 5* star players if they are team players like a Cody Zeller, Eric Gordon or Isaiah because they can help get you to the next level in the tournament. EJ unfortunately was hampered by injuries.


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[iu eyedoc 1,861]

I see no reason to act like a spurned 16 yr that got told by his prom ask that she would have to think about it.  Let Armaan take the time he needs, just don't hold a spot.

If CMW finds a guy that fits his position fine, fill it, but if no one of quality elects to fill that roll, I am not going to begrudge AF for making sure he is at the right fit to finish his last 2 seasons of college basketball.

The sour taste of 2 seasons of being shackled to CAM's offense may be easier to wash out of one's mouth by some than others.

[Hoosierfan2017 20,935]

The good thing about the portal is that we don't have to wait on a player to make their decision. Woody should be out looking for guards to bring in. If one of them wants to commit before Franklin decides then sorry Armaan, but you had your chance. This other guy didn't have to think as hard about whether he wanted to be a Hoosier.