Indiana men’s basketball has fully entered its first full offseason under head coach Darian DeVries. The program has been in offseason mode for a few weeks now with roster movement and a new assistant coaching hire, but the transfer portal opening up gives the Hoosiers the chance to rebuild the roster ahead of year two.
Last year, DeVries was focused on assembling both a staff and roster with just a few staffers and one player following him from West Virginia. The resulting roster came with several
flaws that ultimately helped keep the Hoosiers out of the NCAA Tournament. Now DeVries has a fully assembled staff of assistants and staffers to focus solely on roster construction.
With this in mind, we’re going to be taking a look at the transfer portal in the coming days to see which players Indiana could go after. With a near-total roster rebuild underway, the program won’t have a shortage of need.
Potential Indiana transfer portal targets
- Guards
- Forwards (coming soon)
- Wings (coming soon)
Centers
Indiana, as a program, has been searching for a long-term answer at the center position since Trayce Jackson-Davis left in 2023. The Hoosiers have played transfers as starters and bench options at this spot ever since.
DeVries and the current staff went after a few centers in the high school recruiting class of 2026 but came away empty handed. With both of Sam Alexis and Reed Bailey out of eligibility, Josh Harris in the transfer portal and no centers signed from high school, the Hoosiers will likely turn to the portal barring an unforeseen international signing.
Indiana was really, really, really missing adequate size in the frontcourt last season and it suffered mightily in Big Ten play. This offseason offers a chance to remedy that.
Here’s options for starters, with the caveat that none of this is based on any insider knowledge at all and these are just guys in the portal who we think could be options based on the kind of player they are:
Moustapha Thiam, Cincinnati
Thiam is in the portal after one season at Cincinnati following the program parting ways with head coach Wes Miller. He joined the Bearcats last offseason after transferring in from UCF and averaged 12.8 points, 7.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists while shooting 52.5% from the field and 28.8% from 3-point range on limited volume in 27.2 minutes per game. Additionally, he posted strong rebounding rates and a block rate of 4.8.
He wouldn’t be a floor spacer, but neither were Bailey or Alexis. He’d provide the size and substantial high-major experience Indiana was lacking this past season. Also it’s probably just the lighting/photo but what’s with these TCU jerseys. The color makes the side look like Funky Gonzaga.
JP Estrella, Tennessee
Estrella is more of an interesting case given his connection to Indiana assistant Rod Clark, who the Hoosiers hired away from the same role at Tennessee. How much of a role that could play remains to be seen.
As for Estrella as a player, he averaged 10 points, 5.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists while shooting 59.6% from the field in 18.3 minutes per game this past season. He was a strong offensive rebounder, but was limited on defense. He returned for the Volunteers this past season after undergoing season-ending surgery after just three games as a true sophomore in 2024-25.
Estrella would likely need to take a step forward defensively should he commit to Indiana, but there’s a path to him being a strong starter.
Andrew McKeever, Saint Mary’s
It’s likely that several of Saint Mary’s portal entries are set to follow Randy Bennett to Arizona State, but it’s probably worth checking in at the very least.
McKeever would bring the length and rebounding presence Indiana sorely missed last season. He averaged 8.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while shooting 5o% from the field in his sophomore season with the Gaels in 2025-26. His rebounding rates were strong, especially on the offensive glass, with only slight dips against stronger competition. The worry would be that his offense suffers mightily against stronger competition.
Aiden Sherrell, Alabama
If Sherrell is looking for a new environment that values pace and the 3-point shot, he can find it at Indiana. He averaged 11.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting 53.9% from the field and 33.8% from 3-point range while playing 23.9 minutes per game for the Crimson Tide this past season.
He posted strong numbers on the offensive glass and a block rate of 6.6 this past season. He’ll have plenty of programs lining up, but you could see the fit at Indiana.
Sananda Fru, Louisville
Fru has a bit of a similar case playing in another 3-point heavy offense at Louisville. There’s a prior connection with Indiana having hired assistant coach Thomas Carr away from the same role with the Cardinals.
Fru averaged 9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists while shooting 75.3% from the field in 22 minutes per game in 2024-25, his first and to this point only season of college basketball after playing in Germany. He posted solid rebounding numbers, particularly on the offensive glass, and a strong block rate of 7.8.
The things to consider are his limited minutes at Louisville and the fact that he’d likely be pretty far down on the options list as a scorer. You can make a complimentary center work, but it may be more difficult in a league like the Big Ten.
