In the ever-changing landscape of the college basketball transfer portal, being able to stay disciplined with addressing key needs and not swinging for the fence is an important aspect in building a team. And this offseason, that’s what the Indiana basketball program is doing.
With four starters and seven total players moving on from last year’s roster, Indiana has key spots to fill — and an excess of minutes to be allocated.
After finishing up the season with a Round of 32 loss in the NCAA Tournament and a 23-12 record, Indiana head coach knew he was in for an entirely different team next season.
“I’ll sleep on this tonight and get up tomorrow and start a fresh day, start trying to figure out how we can get better for next season,” IU head coach Mike Woodson said following the loss to Miami. ” … We made a step forward based on where we were a year ago, but it’s not good enough as far as I’m concerned. It’s not. We’ve got to get better from a personnel standpoint, and I’ve got to get better as a coach. I mean, it’s just that simple.”
One of the key areas Indiana went into the offseason needing to address was depth and talent to its front court. With the losses of Trayce Jackson-Davis, Race Thompson, Jordan Geronimo and Logan Duncomb, Indiana returned just one true forward.
The other area was perimeter shooting.
Just one month since the portal officially opened, Indiana has landed Ball State forward transfer Payton Sparks and former 5-star and Oregon transfer center Kel’el Ware. So, step one of the roster rebuild has begun. Sparks brings a big body and a very nice depth piece. For Ware, the former projected lottery pick comes to Indiana looking to expand his game while stepping into a starting role.
Now, Indiana must turn its full attention to the perimeter.
Indiana shot 36.8 percent from three this season but ranked 353rd nationally in attempted 3s per game (15.5) and 334th in made 3s per game (5.7). Those numbers translated into the fourth best percentage in the Big Ten, but the least amount of made 3s on the season.
In order for this program to ‘get over the hump’, it starts and ends now with high-volume shooters. Indiana not only needs to find guys who can make shots, but more importantly, guys who will take shots.
Look no further than what UConn was able to do this season, with a dominant big man nonetheless. Six players attempted more than 2.5 3s per game while four attempted at least three a game, led by projected lottery pick Jordan Hawkins (7.6 a game). On the season, Indiana actually shot a slightly better percent but would be outscored by UConn by nearly 12 points per game just on 3s.
In two games in conference play against Penn State, Indiana was outscored 78-18 on made 3s.
“Again, when you’ve got good looks — last year we were in the top five in the country in getting wide open threes, and we didn’t make them. We had some good … It’s a part of the game,” Woodson said after IU’s loss in the Big Ten Tournament to PSU. “I don’t try to put a lot or read a lot into it when we go through a stretch like this.”
Indiana made more than five 3s in just 16 games. It also attempted more than 15 3s just 13 times. In those 13 games where Indiana shot more than its season average of 15.5 attempts per game, the Hoosiers shot 38.7 percent (108-of-279).
Interesting enough, Indiana had the second (Trey Galloway) and third (Miller Kopp) best shooters in the Big Ten based on percentage. But when it came to made 3s on the season, Kopp ranked 25th and Galloway ranked 63rd.
The answer for Indiana is high-volume shooters on the wing. It’s a necessity with how the college game has developed. Until Indiana gets high-volume perimeter shooters, the ceiling of this team will never raise.
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