Indiana’s staff has proven they can significantly enhance the roster in the transfer portal.
With 11 scholarship players currently slated to be on next year’s squad, the Hoosiers have gone from a team ranked outside the top-80 according to all of the analytical outlets, to a newly constructed group who most believe is a national top-20 squad.
And that’s despite losing Kel’el Ware to the NBA Draft.
But while things look promising, the Hoosiers now find themselves in what is perhaps the trickiest part of roster reconstruction via the portal.
For every Luke Goode, who is willing to come to a place like IU and potentially come off the bench and play a role, there are hundreds still looking for a starting spot. That’s not something Indiana can clearly offer at this point.
With Indiana, we’ve reached the stage in roster construction where it would appear to be much easier to have filled the last two spots with a couple freshman who were willing to take on a developmental season with limited minutes.
But with just one incoming freshman, IU will ostensibly try to round out their team with two more players from the portal who would arrive knowing they are facing an uphill battle to see significant minutes.
Where does IU still have the most need? Let’s take a look:
(Need rating: 1 — low need, 10 – high need)
POINT GUARD
Who can play the role — Myles Rice, Kanaan Carlyle, Trey Galloway, Gabe Cupps
Need rating — 1. Indiana has two players returning from last year’s team who played significant minutes in the role, including Galloway, who nearly set the program’s all-time record for assists in Big Ten games. They’re joined by two Pac-12 starters, including a first team all-league performer in Rice, while Carlyle earned honorable mention — both as freshman. Any additions beyond these four would just be an embarrassment of riches.
SHOOTING GUARD
Who can play the role — Kanaan Carlyle, Trey Galloway, Bryson Tucker, Luke Goode, Anthony Leal, Gabe Cupps, Jakai Newton.
Need rating — 5. The sheer numbers say IU has no real need here, but there are still some questions. Namely, can Carlyle, Galloway and Cupps improve their shooting percentage? Will Newton and Tucker be ready? Can Goode and Leal guard this spot? If you wonder why Indiana would still be trying to land a player like Clemson’s Alex Hemenway (and his career 42.9% rate from three), it’s because none of these guys, save perhaps for Goode — who’s natural position is the three — has proven to be a consistent shooter. That’s not to say they can’t become better shooters. They probably will. But there’s a case for adding a proven sniper.
SMALL FORWARD
Who can play the role — Mackenzie Mgbako, Luke Goode, Bryson Tucker, Trey Galloway, Anthony Leal, Jakai Newton.
Need rating — 3. With Mgbako back and coming off a Big Ten Freshman of the Year campaign, Goode with three years in the league under his belt, and Tucker a 5-star McDonald’s All-American, it’s hard to see a real need at this spot. Especially with three more listed here who can all provide quality minutes. The one nit would be whether Mgbako’s optimal position is truly at the three rather than the four, especially on the defensive end. If Indiana was willing to bump him to the four, then the need opens up a bit here. Mgbako looked more like a stretch-four last season, but obviously has a year to develop.
POWER FORWARD
Who can play the role — Malik Reneau, Mackenzie Mgbako, Luke Goode
Need rating — 5. With the three mentioned here, Indiana has three unique options, all with proven experience. It would be difficult to imagine IU landing anyone out of the portal who could compete for minutes with this trio. It seems clear some of the portal targets they coveted (Cade Tyson, Ben Humrichous, et al) saw that writing on the wall. With that said, Reneau might optimally be a small-ball five, and Goode as we mentioned is best utilized as a three, so one could argue the Hoosiers only have one true power forward on this team, and he was last year’s starting three. That dynamic, and just a sheer lack of numbers in the front court suggests there’s still a need.
CENTER
Who can play the role — Oumar Ballo, Malik Reneau
Need rating — 10. Trayce Jackson-Davis’ development was slowed during his sophomore year when Joey Brunk was injured and TJD had no one with any size to compete against in practice. Fortunately for IU, Ballo has loads of experience, but he could still use someone to battle in practice. With Ballo and Reneau in the mix, IU doesn’t have a lot of minutes to offer at the five. But they are clearly an injury or foul-trouble away from facing some real challenges. A young player willing to develop for a year would likely be the best fit, but anyone with legit Big Ten size would be beneficial.
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