Mike Woodson has been trying to emulate his Knicks style of play with Indiana basketball and thinks ‘we can this year’

The biggest question facing Mike Woodson and the Indiana basketball program this offseason was around style of play and how IU’s roster would look after an offseason that would result in a major roster turnover. The first step of the offseason was complete after Indiana landed a consensus top-5 transfer class. The next step? Making sure all of the pieces work together so Mike Woodson can play the style of basketball he’s wanted since arriving in Bloomington .

Ever since Mike Woodson arrived three years ago, he’s been looking to play a certain style and brand of basketball that yielded success before, albeit at a different level.

After six years with the Atlanta Hawks, Woodson took on his next challenge with the New York Knicks — a three-year stint that was short-lived but effective. Now, he’s looking to emulate the same with this year’s Indiana roster.

“Absolutely, just like I played in New York,” Woodson said last week as he referenced the Knicks. “I just haven’t been able to get there, and I think we can this year.”

That starts and ends with consistent guard play, something he hasn’t had in any of his previous seasons in Bloomington — partially due to roster construction and partially due to injuries.

The key to his previous success was multiple ball handlers and playmakers on the floor at all times. That is with their ability to shoot and make plays off of the dribble. He addressed that head on on this offseason with the addition of two dynamic playmaking guards in Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle. Both players showcased a tremendous ability last year to play on and off the ball and will be spearheading the new IU offense.

“I tried to build our team around how I played a little bit in New York,” Woodson said. “We had guys like Jason Kidd and Raymond Felton, (Pablo) Prigioni. Guys that can create, make plays not only for themselves, but for their teammates. That was one of the things when we (the staff) sat down after the season in terms of evaluating players that entered the portal — that was going to be an emphasis on players that we brought back here from a perimeter standpoint.

“And these two guys (Rice and Carlyle) are capable of making plays off the bounce. They’re capable of making plays for their teammates. And, they’re capable of putting the ball in the hole.”

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

That duo will be playing alongside another terrific playmaker in Trey Galloway. Galloway had big time scoring games last year — 28 against Kansas, 25 against Ohio State and 17 against Purdue — and also become one of just four Indiana basketball players in program history to have at least three 11-assist games. So, there’s no question that trio will be able to play alongside each other, all with or without the ball in their hands.

So, you can check that box. But, the biggest one is shooting the ball. 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.

The Indiana basketball program, however, has been anything but a threat from the perimeter. Indiana shot 32.4 percent from three last year, 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.

Looking at the trio of guards for IU, Carlyle shot 32 percent from three last year, Rice shot 27.5 percent — going 0-of-22 in the final seven regular season games — and Galloway shot 26 percent. While each player is better shooting the ball with elevated talent around them — like it’ll be this year — they still aren’t going to be effective with just themselves. Certainly not impactful enough from three to play the style Woodson ‘wants’.

That’s where Mackenzie Mgbako and transfer Luke Goode come into play. Mgbako shot 35 percent from three in the last 28 games of the season, leading the Hoosiers with 50 made 3s. While Mgbako came on strong late, IU needed a true, traditional shooter like Goode. He’s a career 38.8 percent three point shooter who made 61 3s last year in just 20.1 minutes per game.

Then, Indiana went out and finalized its front court with Langdon Hatton — a reserve big who can stretch the floor at times. He’s at a position that has struggled to produce effectively at Indiana since Mike Woodson’s arrival.

Hatton shot 33.3 percent from three (15-of-45) last year and has just 18 made 3s in his career. But, he has the ability to be effective in pick and pop scenarios as he had a 66 percent effective field goal rate on catch and shoot 3s, ranked in the 95th percentile last year.

“We can play smaller a little bit with Mack (Mgbako) and Goode probably some four, even the big fella (Langdon Hatton). I’m gonna try to play two bigs that we just test it and see. You just never know. With Hatton, I mean. He can make threes. So I just gotta wait and see. These eight weeks of summer play will kind of shape where we are as a ballclub and give me some kind of indication going into next season.”

Woodson built his New York roster’s around versatile wings who could stretch the floor — whether it was Carmelo Anthony, Chris Copeland, Steve Novak, JR Smith or others. He also had a stretch forward like Andrea Bargnani who could extend defensive bigs out to the perimeter at times playing alongside more inside-oriented players like Tyson Chandler and Amare Stoudemire.

While it’s not a perfect replica, you can start to see some of the similarities.

After three years of trying to get back to the style that he’s been longing to play, this offseason has given him the foundation to do so. Mike Woodson’s successful offseason is only successful, however, if the pieces come together and the system works.

SEE ALSO: 5 questions on Indiana basketball heading into summer workouts

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