Ten (or 11, in this case) games into a new head coach’s tenure is no time to rush to conclusive judgments about a coach or their strategies. Especially not in the case of somebody like Darian DeVries, who was tasked with a roster overhaul that would have been inconceivable pre-NIL and transfer portal.
That doesn’t mean that you can’t make any conclusions about what will and won’t work over the course of a season, and adjusting to the successes and failures of a season is one of the main things DeVries
will be evaluated on come season’s end.
Through the first 11 games of this year, a number of patterns have emerged, some good, some bad. Some can be fixed this year, while others will have to be addressed in the offseason. DeVries future at Indiana depends on his ability to recognize and act on both.
Here are the 3 main takeaways from the season so far:
Recruiting
Part of why Indiana football has become the national success story that is has is the staff’s ability to identify and develop talent from the lower levels of the sport. That has proven harder for the basketball program.
DeVries and his staff deserve some leeway for having to build an entire 13-man roster from scratch, but the shortcomings of the 2025-26 roster look like they could end up being hard ceilings on what this group can accomplish over the course of the year.
First is the lack of size. This wasn’t an issue against lesser teams, but high major opponents have dominated Indiana on the glass, hurting the Hoosiers on both ends of the ball.
Next is the lack of high-major experience. Of Indiana’s healthy players, Reed Bailey is the tallest, but in his first full season at this level of the sport, he’s taken some time to adjust. Sam Alexis, despite not playing a huge role for Florida last year, has been more reliable in comparable minutes, especially against other high-major teams.
Experience is hard to nab in the portal, as contributors from winning teams don’t tend to transfer as often, but there will be opportunities. High school recruits like Trent Sisley who came from the most competitive academies nationwide have also looked ready for bench minutes, being more accustomed to seeing other elite players.
Most importantly, DeVries has to learn that shooting cannot replace athleticism completely. If you don’t have enough guys who can beat somebody off the dribble, your shooters won’t get good looks. You can’t scheme around that.
Expectations
For better or worse, it’s become apparent that coaches nationwide are given much shorter grace periods than they’re used to.
Archie Miller got four years, mostly to “get his guys,” while Woodson eked out four years – barely – on the strength of his two NCAA Tournament appearances on the heels of a long drought. DeVries may not be granted even that much leniency in the current environment, where money can make talented rosters come together quickly.
This isn’t unique to Indiana or DeVries. Mark Pope, who just beat DeVries, felt his seat heating up early this season for failing to meet preseason expectations just ten games into the season. The same happened to Hubert Davis after an underwhelming second season at North Carolina.
Shooting Variance
However much I’ve loved to watch Indiana basketball embrace the 3-pointer again, I’ve also been reminded of why Tom Crean was fired despite his shooting-heavy offenses. Sometimes the shots don’t fall.
DeVries’ defense has been quietly good this season, making the offense’s over-reliance on the three ball even more frustrating when the shots aren’t falling. This team has simply failed to demonstrate that it can generate looks inside in the halfcourt.
Some of this may be due to the roster construction, but even with seemingly favorable matchups inside, DeVries hasn’t drawn up a ton of plays for the post.
It doesn’t have to be the centerpiece of the offense that it was for Woodson and Miller, but DeVries is going to have to show that he can consistently get good looks inside the painted area, whether its from guards or bigs. It’s the only failsafe for the nights when the threes aren’t hitting.
