After falling short of the NCAA Tournament in year one, Indiana men’s basketball head coach Darian DeVries knew that he’d have to make some adjustments.
One of the major issues with last year’s roster is that DeVries recruited too many guys from the lower levels of the sport, many of whom struggled to produce at levels consistent enough for to win in the Big Ten. This year, DeVries already has six commitments just over a week into the portal being open, all six of whom came from other high-major programs.
Most were major contributors at their previous programs.
DeVries’ current portal class also seems to address some of the other major issues with last year’s roster – positional balance and remaining eligibility.
Already in week one, with plenty of spots open, DeVries has added a taller player than he had all of last year and likely one of the tallest to ever don the cream and crimson in Samet Yigitoglu, who stands at 7’2”. With two years of eligibility, he’s the rare player with multiple seasons ahead of him and solid experience, having started over 60 games in his two seasons at SMU.
Then there’s Aiden Sherrell, a 6’10” power forward who spent most of his time at the center spot last season at Alabama. Another player with two years remaining, he started all 34 games at Bama last year, averaging 11.1 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in just over 20 minutes per contest.
Either one of these players would have started at center for Indiana last year, but both are capable of playing next to each other, meaning the Hoosiers won’t be shorthanded against the growing list of Big Ten teams that like to play two bigs together.
Assuming Markus Burton is granted a redshirt for last season (which, c’mon) every single one of these players comes to Bloomington with multiple years of eligibility remaining. This will help DeVries avoid being in a position like this again next year, and allow them to develop as a team, as well as individually.
With a few more spots to fill out, it’s hard to complain about what DeVries has done in the portal so far. It doesn’t guarantee success on the court, as Woodson’s last highly-touted portal class can attest to, but the ceiling appears to be much higher for next year’s team than it ended up being for last season’s group.
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