Sam Alexis announced Sunday afternoon his intent to return to the IU basketball program for the 2026-27 season.
What does this mean for the Hoosiers in coach Darian DeVries’ second year at the helm?
INDIANA HAS SERIOUS SIZE AND EXPERIENCED FRONTCOURT DEPTH
With the addition of Alexis, IU has a three-man rotation at the power forward and center positions measuring 7-foot-2 (Samet Yigitoglu), 6-foot-11 (Aiden Sherrell) and 6-foot-9 (Alexis).
It’s no coincidence that three of top seven teams (out of 365) in KenPom average height (measuring the average height of the players on the court) were Elite Eight teams in 2026 (Illinois, Duke and Arizona). National champion Michigan ranked No. 27.
All three have experience as high major starters — Yigitoglu has 66 high major starts, Sherrell 34, and Alexis 23. That’s a relatively rare luxury in the transfer portal age.
With 80 minutes to allocate among the three, none should get worn down due to extensive minutes, matchups can be exploited, and foul trouble can be managed. It isn’t clear how much DeVries would want to play Alexis and Yigitoglu together, since neither has a reputation as a shooter, so that scenario would have to be navigated to avoid poor spacing. But when Sherrell’s on the floor, he can now almost always play power forward, which is what he wanted at IU, and he has the skills to be effective there.
The addition of Alexis also provides injury insurance. The Hoosiers were very thin up front were anything to happen to either Sherrell or Yigitoglu. They’ll be able to get through short-term bumps and bruises now.
ALEXIS IS PRODUCTIVE
Although he’s only 6-foot-9, Alexis has a big impact inside. He’s strong, physical, skilled, and knows how to attack angles.
He ranked No. 6 in the Big Ten in offensive rebounding rate in 2025-26, and No. 10 in blocked shots rate. He’s also a very efficient inside scorer. His 72.4% make rate on twos ranked No. 2 in the Big Ten. In all games he ranked No. 17 nationally in two-point field goal percentage.
On a per-40 minute basis, Alexis averaged 16.4 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game in 2025-26.
A TEAM PLAYER
Alexis’ unselfishness shines through in his decision to return to Indiana. Big men have demanded a premium in the transfer portal this offseason. He could have entered the portal and sought top dollar. And he could have sought a roster where his path to start was more clear.
And the fact that the staff wanted him back — that speaks volumes as well.
MORE CONTINUITY
It’s still not a major theme on this team, but IU now has two returning players from DeVries’ first IU team as Alexis rejoins Trent Sisley. With their extensive experience in the program, and everyone afforded the opportunity to play five summer games and practice on an unlimited basis, this is a team that should have some cohesion and chemistry out of the gate, despite their relative lack of familiarity with each other.
AN ELEVATED TEAM OUTLOOK
When this roster was constructed in the spring, two primary shortcomings stood out, both involving a lack of depth.
Both seem to have been addressed.
Alexis shores up the inside, while freshman Prince-Alexander Moody has emerged as someone DeVries believes can provide primary ball handling depth and overall backcourt depth.
With Alexis, Sherrell, Yigitoglu, Sisley, Moody, Markus Burton, Bryce Lindsay, Darren Harris and Jaeden Mustaf, IU appears to have a formidable nine-man rotation with both depth and lineup versatility.
With the addition of Alexis and emergence of Moody, it’s not unreasonable to start thinking about this team as top-third in the Big Ten, and a potential second weekend NCAA Tournament squad.
A CAVEAT
Alexis is eligible to return because he obtained an injunction via a Tennessee court. The NCAA is likely to appeal the injunction and if successful, Alexis’ status would return to ineligible. IU fans saw a similar process play out last August and September when football safety Louis Moore obtained an extra year of eligibility via an injunction.
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