Despite missing out on one of their key targets, IU basketball has a “legitimate shot” to land these prospects and build a top 2025 recruiting class

IU basketball witnessed their first real miss when it comes to recruiting the 2025 high school class after one of their key targets opted to go elsewhere with four-star center Malachi Moreno committing to Kentucky on Friday. Despite missing out on Moreno, IU basketball is still well in play with multiple targets in the 2025 class, however.

It has been no secret, Mike Woodson and his IU basketball staff have been heavily involved with multiple prospects when it comes to the 2025 class for quite sometime now. It has truly been the first class that Mike Woodson could really sink his teeth in and build a relationship with since he took over as head coach of the Hoosiers.

Along with the amount of offers that Mike Woodson and his IU basketball staff have extended to 2025 prospects, there is still a strong group of those players that are considered a priority for the Hoosiers. Because of Indiana singling out the players they desperately want in the 2025 class and building a strong relationship, they have put themselves in the driver seat for a solid amount of them.

“I truly believe Indiana has a legitimate shot to land Braylon Mullins, Jalen Haralson, and Bryson Tiller if the ship appears to be righting itself this season,” said Rivals Basketball Recruiting Director Rob Cassidy. “If not, the conversation about what’s next will become difficult to say the least. It certainly feels like the next year of Indiana recruiting is all about the program staying out of its own way. Nobody is expecting a national title in 2025. Instead, simple marked improvement could yield major spoils on the trail.”

One of strongest parts of Mike Woodson as the IU basketball head coach has been his ability to recruit and put the Hoosiers in position of landing some of the top talent in the country whether that be in the high school level or the transfer portal. However, his ability to recruit the right talent was questioned just a little bit with the lackluster 2023-24 season, which included missing out on the NCAA Tournament.

Then of course, there was 2024 decommitment of 2024 five-star wing Liam McNeeley that really poured gas on the fire. They did bounce back from that with earning a late pledge from fellow 2024 five-star wing Bryson Tucker last in the spring. However, at least at the high school level, the Hoosiers only had one true freshman coming in.

“The 2024 cycle obviously didn’t end the way Indiana fans wanted, but I know a lot of programs that would take the “embarrassing” haul Mike Woodson managed to collect this offseason. That said, the answer to your question depends almost entirely on how this season shakes out,” Cassidy added.

“Losing five-star commit Liam McNeeley toUConn  late in the cycle last year was a direct result of the hit Mike Woodson’s public perception and job security took by his limp to the finish last year. It was also a microcosm of the biggest issue that faces Indiana recruiting today. In talking to prospects, it’s clear they are impressed by Woodson’s NBA pedigree and ability to put players in the draft. They also seem to enjoy being around him.”

IU basketball could potential have a top-5 2025 class, if all the pieces fall together

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Yes, IU basketball has positioned themselves well with the likes of Jalen Haralson, Braylon Mullins, and Bryson Tiller. That does not even include other highy-touted 2025 players such Trent Sisley and Eric Reibe, who just recently confirmed an official visit to Bloomington for the fall.

If you dig into that priority list just a little bit deeper, three of those prospects in Haralson, Mullins, and Sisley are all in-state prospects. Yes, Mike Woodson and IU basketball sit pretty well with them in each of their recruitments, it still adds a ton of pressure for the four-year head coach of the Hoosiers to land those three.

The state of Indiana is the best state in the country when it comes to basketball, but even with that said, not very many players like those three mentioned come in the same class together like that. IU basketball has a chance to land a top recruiting class without even having to travel that far with each of Haralson, Mullins, and Sisley being groomed in Indiana’s backyard over the past few years.

With guys like Tiller and Reibe, the connections of Tiller being from the the Atlanta area and Reibe being a big man that is interested in what Woodson has done in developing bigs and getting them to the next helps a ton. You pair those with in-state guys mentioned above, that is a lot of talent Indiana could land.

In reality, for those players to commit to IU basketball, it is all about how well Mike Woodson does as a coach the 2024-25 season. On paper, Indiana has put together a championship level team and they must live up that hype. If they do not, the likelihood of Mike Woodson and IU basketball landing these top players they are after in the 2025 class becomes harder and harder.

“The catch these days is his short leash at IU,” said Cassidy. “Everyone that has paid even a shred of attention to Indiana basketball knows how hot Woodson’s seat will become if he manages to miss the NCAA tournament for a second consecutive year.”

“Conversely, Woodson starts to look pretty good if this season goes as planned and the Hoosiers qualify for the NCAA tournament for the third time in four seasons, a feat the program has accomplished just once since 2008.”

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