Hoosiers ZERO size upfront after transfers
- Thread starter edub72
- Start date
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM . . . you say ZERO size up front then you name DD and JD. I guess, (like me) you slept through math class. . .
For all of the criticisms that JSmith has endured as a soph, he is IUs second leading rebounder. He will continue to improve. I do remember how harsh some of our fans were towards Troy Williams as a soph, and he turned into a pretty good junior.
Define ZERO. I'm trying to understand your position.
I worry about guard play next year far more than size. DD, TJD, and hopefully Brunk will at the very least be serviceable. That being said, our guard play and shooting cost us this year, and I don't see it(on paper at least) getting a whole lot better next year. If you watch the tournament our guard play is highly inferior to most of the top teams.
It won’t hurt them next year, especially if they land Brunk. In two years if Jackson Davis leaves early is when it might hurt them.
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If you are evaluating our roster by a measuring tape, we have TJD replacing Morgan and Davis hasn't gotten smaller. It you are concerned about losing Fitzner, Forrester, and Moore, you didn't follow the team very closely.
The possibility of getting Brunk as a direct replacement for Moore with the same 2 years of eligibility is exciting. Watford may be a long shot, but there is now a spot for him.
Archie has options including using an open scholarship for a very good transfer that will sit out.
Justin Smith does not have the basketball skills of Troy Williams. I don't see Smith improving. Smith's skills are so raw that it would take a total rebuild/reconstruction of his shot.
Happ, Haarms, Cook, Garza, Fernando, Omoruyi, Teske, etc all killed Indiana inside. Smith can't guard anybody. Davis and Jackson Davis are hopefully decent. Nobody knows about Hunter. Who said Brunk was coming? I'm telling you IU is very very thin upfront. This current roster will not win 20 games
Troy had a better handle although it was still loose and affected by the space between his ears.
There was a game against OSU and other games at the end of his freshman year that Smith looked like OG on the court. That gave me a false hope that the light had come on for him. He had a few glimmers of success, but nothing OG-like. His junior year could be much improved or exactly like this year. The difference is he will be on the bench if he doesn't improve. He knows that and he will need to decide if that is an acceptable risk.
Hunter being 100% is very important to our program. I might upset some on here, but go ahead and pray for him.
I was really hopeful for Forrester. I thought Jake brought a lot of energy while he was on the floor. Man!!! My Pennsylvania fellas are letting me down.
Maybe St. Francis will want him. I thought he had potential, but there were a lot of people between him on the bench and those in the game. With TJD and possibly more coming in, it wouldn't get easier.
because god loves indiana basketball that's why we've been so good for so long
shaping up to be a looooong off season on this board. We're in dire need of some good news around here....
That's a dumb take. Smith could just start taking care of the basketball and improve his shot selection and hed be worlds better. Those are skills that can be developed and improved upon. If the game slows down for him and he makes better decisions, he will be a real asset to the team. It still might not happen, but we arent talking about turning scary Larry Richardson into aj guyton here.
Scary Larry out-hustled Smith. Taking care of the basketball and not shooting 3s when they leave Smith open are lack of BB IQ. Smith can't shoot. Go rebound the ball and dunk it. There's your range.
I liked Larry too. He HAD to show more hustle that what we're seeing from Smith. If Smith had played for Larry's college coach (some tall white haired guy in a red sweater...name slips my mind at the moment)....Smith would have never made it through this season. Actually he probably would have never wound up in Bloomington.
Fear is a great Motivator (-John Treacey).
The obvious question is "what good is size if they can't get off the bench?" I think getting Brunk makes us better next year than what Moore and Forrester were likely to bring. A healthy Davis backed by Brunk could actually be one of the better 5 rotations in the league. Add to that TJD and Race and then IF Hunter were to return, size and post depth might not be the problem it appears to right now. I recognize that's a lot of "ifs" but we're certainly due for some good luck. Feels like Schleprock has been a Hoosier Bball fan for the last few decades. I'll let you younger pups google schleprock and make me feel older!
when there's a thread with multiple Larry Richardson posts, you know things are near rock bottom!
Especially when present players are being unfavorably compared to Larry................
Are we now pretending that Knight never had players similar to Justin Smith? Having raw players isn't something unique to Archie and isn't something that Knight was immune to.
I like Larry, too, but that is some revisionist history on his play. Smith as a sophomore has much better stats than Larry did as a senior.
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not talking about stats. Smith should have better stats, he played more and is 10x the natural athlete. Point was about the appearance of Smith's lack of hustle. I saw him slow roll it back on defense many, many times.
But I'm also not in the camp of wanting Smith to leave this year. I think that will hurt and a bad overall sign (can/ will hurt recruiting as other coaches can point to the mass exodus in Btown). Would just like like to see him play with a little sense or urgency. Especially when many think next season may be a make-it/break it season for his coach.
