IU basketball needed shooting and found it in Luke Goode — ‘He’s shown he can make shots’

Throughout Mike Woodson’s coaching tenure in the NBA, his teams were always among the league’s best shooting teams. So, when things didn’t translate to his first three years at IU basketball, questions had to be asked if his style of play was suitable for the currently landscape of basketball and specifically college basketball.

The new brand of basketball is based on playmaking guards and strong perimeter play around a good big man, not the other way around — much like Indiana has built its system under Woodson.

In his first season, Indiana was outscored by 177 points on 3s, hitting just 33.3 percent on the year. It ranked 321st in three-point rate and 324th in percent of points from three. In 2022-23, IU basketball shot 36.8 percent from three but ranked 345th in total percent of points from three — getting outscored by 189 points.

But last year was a different story for Indiana — in a bad way. IU shot 32.4 percent from three, ranking 273rd in the country. Even worse, it ranked 351st overall in three-point rate and 355th in total points from three. The Hoosiers finished the season getting outscored by 354 points on 3s.

Only one player on the team made above one three per game and that was Mackenzie Mgbako, who shot just 32.7 percent on the year. He made 50 3s on the season, with Trey Galloway the only other Hoosier with more than 20 makes (26 percent overall).

Related: Mike Woodson learned you ‘win with good guards’. He emphasized that this offseason so Indiana basketball ‘didn’t get caught’ in similar situations again

So it was no surprise Mike Woodson went out and addressed that skill in the transfer portal this spring, landing Illinois transfer wing Luke Goode. Goode, a career 38.8 percent three-point shooter, led Illinois in three-point percentage (38.9) and was second in made 3s (61) while coming off the bench last season.

The biggest question was not if Goode could shoot, it was whether or not he would have the same knockdown ability this year as the past three seasons.

The answer is yes so far. His addition has paid dividends through two weeks of summer workouts.

“He fits that bill. He can shoot the basketball,” Woodson said of Goode at an event for the Boys and Girls Club in Fort Wayne last week.  “We’ve been together for two weeks for summer work and he’s shown he can make shots. That was a big reason why he was high on our board when we started the portal process. I’m just happy that he decided to come home and wear an Indiana uniform this season.”

Luke Goode a strong fit for IU basketball and Mike Woodson’s system

(Photo: Indiana Athletics)

Goode’s 61 made 3s ranked 15th in the Big Ten this past season. 87.7 percent of his shot attempts this season came from three. He only attempted 22 twos.

He ranked in the 77th percentile this year with a 56 percent effective field goal rate on catch and shoot 3s. He also ranked in the 83rd percentile in off the dribble shooting, with a 58 percent effective field goal rate.

“Luke is a knockdown 3-point shooter that provides length and rebounding ability from the wing position,” Woodson said when Goode signed with IU. “He comes from a very athletic background with deep family ties to this University. He has competed at the highest level of the Big Ten and is a player we will count on to help us stretch the floor.”

More: Mike Woodson shares insight into approach Indiana basketball took this offseason

Now with the expected potential of multiple shooters on the wing and additional floor spacing, Mike Woodson can get back to his ‘New York’ days with how he wants to play.

During his two full seasons in New York, Mike Woodson had the Knicks among the top shooting teams in the league, ranking first in the NBA in made 3s in 2012-13 and seventh in 2013-14. They also were among the top-5 in the NBA in three-point attempts both seasons and in the top-2 in assists per game in his two full years.

“We can play smaller a little bit with Mack (Mgbako) and Goode probably some four,” Woodson said last month.

While the system won’t be anywhere near identical to what it looked like in New York, there’s no questioning the up-tempo pace and success he had at the offensive end of the floor with the Knicks.

Mike Woodson caught flack near the end of last season when he said, “I still think the college game is played inside-out.” While that isn’t entirely incorrect, the skillsets Indiana had, and has had for the first three years, hasn’t allowed for that.

Goode’s addition, along with others, will allow IU basketball to do just that this season.

SEE ALSO: Indiana Basketball Mailbag — Offseason takeaways ahead of a season full of expectations

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