Most improved
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It’s obviously either Al or Justin. Who else can reasonably be considered? I’ll give the nod to Al through 4 games. Lots of season left
I agree with the other posters...clearly Durham and Smith...I hope at the end of the year we're adding to list (and only including sophomores and above): Damezi and Race.
Justin Smith - most improved by far, Smith went from a transfer candidate to a major contributer. Now signing autographs like Romeo after the game. Smith gets it now, and Smith is one of the most articulate players on the IU team on after game interviews. I went from seeing Smith as a huge disappointment, to I am now a major fan of Smith the player and person. I am shocked actually on Justin Smith's entire turnaround as his on court BB IQ, shooting, playing with fire, and after game poise and courtesy with media and fans.
Damezi Anderson - also very much improved, Anderson is making shots now, he may have the best mid-range game on the team.
Al Durham -was decent last year but was inconsistent shooter, making a higher % of 3pt shots this season.
Race Thompson - healthy and contributing on both ends of the court. A major cog for Coach Miller. Race has a physical resemblence to Daryl Thomas.
Damezi Anderson - also very much improved, Anderson is making shots now, he may have the best mid-range game on the team.
Al Durham -was decent last year but was inconsistent shooter, making a higher % of 3pt shots this season.
Race Thompson - healthy and contributing on both ends of the court. A major cog for Coach Miller. Race has a physical resemblence to Daryl Thomas.
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Not the most improved player, but I have enjoyed watching Race this year. He seems to always be in the mix and around the ball. He is going to be a real pain in the @$$ for opponents.
Tough choice if we can only pick one. D Anderson looked pretty gawd awful last year. And he has been night and day better so far this year. I think, right now it’s DA. Towards the end of the year, the offense.
Go watch video of DAnderson last year. Kid was completely lost and couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. I couldn’t understand how he might ever contribute. At least Smith had clear potential and AD was pretty friggin good last year.
Smith missed 80% of his 3pt shots, and 50% of his FT. Smith could NOT shoot last season, or dribble, or hang onto the ball in traffic.
Anderson was a prolific scorer in HS, but last season he looked lost on D, and looked like he lost his confidence in his offense.
Both are now contributing to the team in a very positive way.
It is Al. He is the leader of this team. I love watching a guy come in with not much skill and just grind grind grind. He will be an All Big Ten player next year. Hard work pays off, Al works his tail off.
He's the one guy that I could see making a VO type leap in terms of performance - has the motor if not the raw athleticism, but the thing that Vic developed that he absolutely didn't have to begin was the 'handles' - taught himself to work the ball like it was on a string. Could see Aljami doing the same, already so much better with the ball than last year. I don't think he'll ever be as explosive as VO, but he has a better stroke and could get to the point where he can get his shot off almost anytime from anywhere.
The good news is, we can have this conversation and make arguments for both of them. Which means they have both made large positive strides. Good news!
Small sample size but...Indiana is currently tied for 53rd nationally in FT percentage, the Hoosiers ranked 319th last year. This year there are currently only 4 power five teams that are shooting better, and of the 52 teams that are shooting at a better rate, only four have attempted as many as the Hoosiers have made.
