Former IU basketball star Randy Wittman has been a contract advisor to the program since Mike Woodson took over in 2021.
Wittman doesn’t live in Bloomington full time, but he’s been around the team plenty since his friend Woodson was hired.
You likely don’t need Wittman to tell you Indiana’s guard play has been inadequate of late.
But you’d probably like to know the former NBA head coach left recent viewings of IU practices enthusiastic about the upgrades to the roster on the perimeter.
“Talking to Randy Wittman, who was down there (Bloomington) a couple weeks ago and had a chance to watch them play, he was really, really happy,” former IU basketball star Ted Kitchel said in a radio interview this week.
“It’s pretty difficult making myself, and Witt and Woody happy, but Randy was very happy with their guard play. He said that they played well together, they get great leadership, and most importantly, they can knock down the three.”
Kitchel calls himself, Woodson and Wittman good friends who are “very tight.”
So any commentary coming from that circle is well intended. They all want to see IU basketball back on top. And Kitchel and Wittman want Woodson to be the reason why.
All three played for Bob Knight when the program was in its prime, and that helps Kitchel see another missing ingredient.
“He (Woodson) needs to work on getting them a little tougher,” Kitchel said. “When you go on the road, knowing what to expect, and how difficult it is to win on the road no matter who you’re playing.”
Kitchel said part of being tough is being able to go on the road and make shots.
Indiana only had two players on last year’s team who attempted more than 50 threes, and neither player shot better than 33% from long range.
So putting a lineup on the floor with good spacing was a challenge — much like it was in 2021-22, when the Hoosiers shot 33.3% as a team from long range.
It’s no coincidence Woodson’s best IU team was 2022-23, when they shot 36.8% from distance. Even that came on low volume, but it was enough to pose a threat, and create space for consensus first team All-American Trayce Jackson-Davis to operate.
“In today’s world you need to have three guys on the floor who can knock down the three. If you don’t, it’s going to be very difficult,” Kitchel said.
“That’s been the trouble the last few years, the guards haven’t been able to knock down the threes.”
To be sure, Indiana still doesn’t have a murderers’ row of shooters — at least not a group with a proven track record.
Ranked by career attempts, here are the players expected to attempt threes this season for IU:
- Trey Galloway (30.1% on 226 attempts)
- Luke Goode (38.8% on 219 attempts)
- Mackenzie Mgbako (32.7% on 153 attempts)
- Myles Rice (27.5% on 131 attempts)
- Kanaan Carlyle (32% on 100 attempts)
- Anthony Leal (35.2% on 71 attempts)
- Langdon Hatton (34% on 53 attempts)
- Malik Reneau (32.1% on 53 attempts)
- Gabe Cupps (35.9% on 39 attempts)
- Jakai Newton (no attempts)
- Bryson Tucker (no attempts)
Of those 11 players, Mgbako, Rice and Carlyle are the three you circle and expect they’ll shoot better in their respective second seasons of college basketball. And overall, there’s enough potential there to reasonably believe Indiana can take a step forward this season when it comes to perimeter shooting.
Wittman’s report from practice gives Kitchel hope that progress is coming.
“Hopefully we’ll have something to cheer about. It’s about time,” Kitchel said.
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