Let's get the elephants out of the room before we delve deeper into things later this week.
Perimeter Shooting
Only one NCAA at-large team shot worse from behind the arc than Indiana (VCU). Big Ten opponents made 42 more threes than IU in conference play, where the Hoosiers made only 27.5 percent of its three-point attempts.
So is there a reason for concern or have the shooting woes been largely overblown?
Devonte Green is the fourth-best three-point shooter returning in the conference (41%), and there’s reason to believe that number could go higher.
Aljami Durham was hitting at a 40.6 percent clip until February 19. He made just 26 percent over his final 46 tries to finish at 34.5 percent on the season.
Rob Phinisee had made good on 45.6 percent of his 25 three-point attempts until he was concussed on December 19. He, too, made just 26 percent after that. He was a 35 percent shooter on almost 500 tries in high school. I anticipate the sophomore to be closer to 40 percent than the 30 percent he turned in last season now that he's healthy.
Jerome Hunter's "condition" kept perhaps Indiana's best shooter off the floor. He is expected back and will greatly help the shooting corp.
Juwan Morgan and Romeo Langford were Indiana’s two best players last season, but neither helped the team's shooting numbers. The two combined for 28 percent on 213 threes.
Justin Smith remains the wildcard.
So what's your level of concern regarding the shooting?
Health
Imagine an alternate universe where it was Michigan and not Indiana who was ravaged by injury.
Zavier Simpson plays the role of 'Rob Phinisee' and is concussed before Christmas. Isaiah Livers, a 42.6 percent three-point shooter last season, plays 'Jerome Hunter' and never sees the floor. Ignas Brazdeikis stars as 'Romeo Langford' and injures his thumb on his shooting hand early, cratering his season numbers. Jon Teske plays 'De'Ron Davis' coming back from Achilles tendon surgery, and is forced to trade in his 28 minutes a night for Davis' productive albeit limited 13 minutes per game.
Would Michigan still have earned a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament, won 30 games or finished anywhere near third place in the B1G in that alternate universe? It’s hard to imagine.
That was the reality last season for the Hoosiers. All this without mentioning Green's absence for seven games, including hard-to-swallow losses on the road at Rutgers, Northwestern and Arkansas.
How much credence do you place on the role of injuries last season?
Perimeter Shooting
Only one NCAA at-large team shot worse from behind the arc than Indiana (VCU). Big Ten opponents made 42 more threes than IU in conference play, where the Hoosiers made only 27.5 percent of its three-point attempts.
So is there a reason for concern or have the shooting woes been largely overblown?
Devonte Green is the fourth-best three-point shooter returning in the conference (41%), and there’s reason to believe that number could go higher.
Aljami Durham was hitting at a 40.6 percent clip until February 19. He made just 26 percent over his final 46 tries to finish at 34.5 percent on the season.
Rob Phinisee had made good on 45.6 percent of his 25 three-point attempts until he was concussed on December 19. He, too, made just 26 percent after that. He was a 35 percent shooter on almost 500 tries in high school. I anticipate the sophomore to be closer to 40 percent than the 30 percent he turned in last season now that he's healthy.
Jerome Hunter's "condition" kept perhaps Indiana's best shooter off the floor. He is expected back and will greatly help the shooting corp.
Juwan Morgan and Romeo Langford were Indiana’s two best players last season, but neither helped the team's shooting numbers. The two combined for 28 percent on 213 threes.
Justin Smith remains the wildcard.
So what's your level of concern regarding the shooting?
Health
Imagine an alternate universe where it was Michigan and not Indiana who was ravaged by injury.
Zavier Simpson plays the role of 'Rob Phinisee' and is concussed before Christmas. Isaiah Livers, a 42.6 percent three-point shooter last season, plays 'Jerome Hunter' and never sees the floor. Ignas Brazdeikis stars as 'Romeo Langford' and injures his thumb on his shooting hand early, cratering his season numbers. Jon Teske plays 'De'Ron Davis' coming back from Achilles tendon surgery, and is forced to trade in his 28 minutes a night for Davis' productive albeit limited 13 minutes per game.
Would Michigan still have earned a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament, won 30 games or finished anywhere near third place in the B1G in that alternate universe? It’s hard to imagine.
That was the reality last season for the Hoosiers. All this without mentioning Green's absence for seven games, including hard-to-swallow losses on the road at Rutgers, Northwestern and Arkansas.
How much credence do you place on the role of injuries last season?
