Transfer Portal w/IU Interest

[HoosierHoopster]

5 hours ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said:

https://247sports.com/college/indiana/article/indiana-basketball-recruiting-transfer-portal-junjie-wang-a-6-9-forward-from-san-franciso-university-is-on-an-official-visit-to-indiana-this-weekend-283166319/

75% from the stripe and he can step out some, 34% from the arc? Yes please 

[moyemayhem]

6 hours ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said:

https://247sports.com/college/indiana/article/indiana-basketball-recruiting-transfer-portal-junjie-wang-a-6-9-forward-from-san-franciso-university-is-on-an-official-visit-to-indiana-this-weekend-283166319/

Wang is not a Big Ten level athlete.  His best skill is his shooting, and his stats show that he’s not particularly good at that.  I don’t get the interest, unless we are out of money or he wants to be a walk on.

[Demo]

5 hours ago, moyemayhem said:

Wang is not a Big Ten level athlete.  His best skill is his shooting, and his stats show that he’s not particularly good at that.  I don’t get the interest, unless we are out of money or he wants to be a walk on.

Feels like probably a function of the available role they're offering. Wang’s not a 3rd big. He’s a 4th big and if the staff believes Sisley can give you 10 mins a night as a 4 then he’s barely that and you’re getting into niche territory. Now, if they don’t bring in a better 3rd big than him that would be a sketchy situation. 

[WayneFleekHoosier]

I feel like this is more proof of the hints Rabjohns gave us last week. They used Rabjohns to lower the fanbase’s expectations on who we add 11-13. I don’t love it.  But at least we got some proven talent on this roster.  I think it’s risky in the sense we need players to hit that might not. 

[Dave from Dayton]

Will there be an announcement next week?

  Indiana Welcomes Big Barry Wing Wang!               

'Barry' Wang Junjie...

Couldn't find a recent analysis of this prospect.  A March 2025 analysis is linked.  While dated, there are some interesting points.  His first step is slow.  He has a high motor.  Defense is not as bad as his statistics may show. Not a lot of verticality and blocking shots isn't great. {Since this was written, his shot is reportedly better, and he has added some muscle and experience.}  

 https://floorandceiling.substack.com/p/junjie-wang-scouting-report-china

Based on the 2024-25 West Coast Conference season, the University of San Francisco (USF) men's basketball team finished 3rd in the WCC standings with a 13-5 conference record. The Dons concluded that regular season strongly, trailing only Saint Mary's and Gonzaga, and were a top contender in the conference.

[BA47591]

Leon Phelps: I can understand you bein' angry, but you can't blame the Wang!

 

 

[Pagoda]

Well, it seems IUBB is running into the headwind of not being a good, stable program.  This is not surprising.  Good news is this can be overcome.

As we know, our roster construction was a mess and we had one returning guy who averaged 4ppg.  It's hard to fix so many roster issues in one portal, because the portal is so darn expensive.  If we had more contributors returning this season, we wouldn't have to spend so much on the roster.  Returning players are cheaper.

We've spent a boatload of money, but given all the spots we had to fill via the pricey portal, we don't have much money left for these last three roster openings.  As a result there will probably be more uncertainty with our rotation next year than we would like.

Our staff is going to have to show some old fashioned scout and develop skills to make it work.  To be fair that's true of every team.  I didn't see much of that last year, so it better start now...

We're still the #1 portal class on On3 and #3 on 24/7.  That's a very good accomplishment.  This roster now has the on paper talent and multi-year eligibility to be a strong base to grow from.  Obviously, the huge question is how well we scouted and if the staff can maximize this roster.  I found last season unsettling, but I guess the optimistic view would be this roster is thoroughly upgraded and perhaps it all comes together.  Who knows.  It's IUBB so it's hard not to expect the worst.  But, we'll see.

[moyemayhem]

To be clear, I’m very happy with what DeVries and Carr have done in the portal.  With a limited budget the smart thing to do is spend the vast majority on your top players who will be getting big minutes, and then hope to find value with the rest of the roster.  Of course I’d prefer a deeper roster with more proven players, but given the status of the program we’ve done very well this offseason.

Just being honest with my assessment that I don’t think Wang is a Big Ten level player.  It probably says something about what we have left in the budget.  If this is where we are at, I’m still happy with the results, especially compared to the roster assembly last year.

[BA47591]

I think we're all pretty lock step on our opinions, with a group of us that thinks we still have a stash for the right guy. 

[WayneFleekHoosier]

16 minutes ago, BA47591 said:

I think we're all pretty lock step on our opinions, with a group of us that thinks we still have a stash for the right guy. 

lol. Never going to waiver. I admire it. 

[Uspshoosier]

IU a program that has been down forever just brought in 5 power 5 starters ( 3 from teams that made the ncaa tourney).  Also brought in a power 5 former top 40 kid that has tons of potential.  IU might have money but they don’t have unlimited money.  Bringing 6 power 5 players to a program that been down wasn’t going to be cheap.  Don’t need to be rabjohns to see they spent most their funds on the first wave of players.  Roster is and probably has been set since the staff aggressively went after the first wave of players.    Only thing that’s left is to see if the on court results change.   Time will tell 

[Brass Cannon]

24 minutes ago, Uspshoosier said:

IU a program that has been down forever just brought in 5 power 5 starters ( 3 from teams that made the ncaa tourney).  Also brought in a power 5 former top 40 kid that has tons of potential.  IU might have money but they don’t have unlimited money.  Bringing 6 power 5 players to a program that been down wasn’t going to be cheap.  Don’t need to be rabjohns to see they spent most their funds on the first wave of players.  Roster is and probably has been set since the staff aggressively went after the first wave of players.    Only thing that’s left is to see if the on court results change.   Time will tell 

If we can use what we have gotten to get this program back to some level of success their will be more donor money and things were stack. 
 

If we don’t have major injuries we have the players we need.  
 

In the modern era it’s going to be very difficult for any teams to stack enough talent to survive major injuries.  Barring a surprise diamond in the rough. The days of Kentucky and Duke having 10 future NBA players on the roster are almost certainly over. 

[Henryville Hoosier]

 

[ronzo4IU]

1 minute ago, Henryville Hoosier said:

 

Maybe he comes in and lights it up like that kid from Nebraska a few years back..one can hope!

[Brass Cannon]

Just now, ronzo4IU said:

Maybe he comes in and lights it up like that kid from Nebraska a few years back..one can hope!

Hopefully he comes in and only play 10 minutes a game because our studs are staying on the court 

[ronzo4IU]

1 minute ago, Brass Cannon said:

Hopefully he comes in and only play 10 minutes a game because our studs are staying on the court 

If you look at his highlights, he hits every 3 he puts up.  But yes, that would be best case..

[HoosierHoopster]

Personally I like Wang for depth, we’re not getting another starter power 5 player, he’s depth and one who can hit free throws at 75% and pull a big out as he hits at 34% from the arc, it’s a solid insurance move imo and more importantly I get to sing the wang Chung song when he hits the floor 

[HoosierHoopster]

2 minutes ago, ronzo4IU said:

If you look at his highlights, he hits every 3 he puts up.  But yes, that would be best case..

34% on average 

[ronzo4IU]

Just now, HoosierHoopster said:

34% on average 

Lol

[Brass Cannon]

24 minutes ago, ronzo4IU said:

Lol

34% of the time. He hits it everytime