It was an eventful week for news around Indiana Athletics and we’re here to give our thoughts on everything from Mark Cuban’s NIL moves to Indiana men’s basketball’s upcoming trip to Peru.
Have thoughts of your own? Feel free to share them in the comments below!
What do you make of Mark Cuban’s revelation that he helped fund the NIL package that brought Fernando Mendoza to Indiana?
- LCN: Eh, it’s not necessarily huge news that the most visibly wealthy Indiana alumnus contributed funding for athletics. Moves like that happen all the time, it’s just a bit different because it’s Cuban. He’s made his love of Indiana and Bloomington clear and was on hand for Indiana’s appearance in 2024 and the national title game this past January. His connection with Alberto Mendoza over a shared love of NBA basketball is absolutely real, he chatted with him on the field whenever he attended a game this postseason.
- Colin: Honestly I’m disappointed that his connection to Indiana is that limited. I know he donates to the school and is involved with other parts of athletics generally, but I imagined him to be a little more involved. Especially now that he’s done with his Mavericks ownership. In an ideal world, all IU coaches are hitting him up when they encounter potential money issues. Obviously other donors help and deserve their credit, but Cuban only being somewhat affiliated with our athletic department feels like a missed opportunity. I want recruits with entrepreneurial aspirations to have the idea that Cuban will help them network when their playing days are over.
The IHSAA failed to pass a shot clock rule in a vote that wasn’t all that close. What do you make of the powers that be
electing to keep the rules as they are?
- LCN: Most teams around the state don’t typically run some garbage that leverages the clock and when it does happen it becomes big, rather shameful news. I remember budgets for shot clocks at smaller schools being mentioned as an issue previously between acquisition, maintenance and operation. It’d probably give the sport a jolt locally, especially with some top prospects electing to attend prep schools.
- Colin: As L.C. mentioned, the possibility that elite prospects would be swayed to prep schools over their home town public schools over this kind of thing is a bummer. I think the sport as a whole would benefit from guys being able to be recruited from the actual high school ranks rather than needing to transfer or land on an elite AAU team to show off their talent. If a shot clock would help that, it should be implemented.
Joel Klatt recently compared new QB Josh Hoover to Fernando Mendoza. Thoughts?
- LCN: I see it in that they both ran plenty of RPOs in college and have a bit of mobility. He’ll be able to run a bit more of the offense than most other transfer quarterbacks.
- Colin: I think we need a moratorium on national football personalities talking about literally any aspect of Indiana football.
The men’s basketball program is reportedly set to travel to Peru in the second international trip in as many years under DeVries. What are your thoughts?
- LCN: It’s a good idea and the program deserves props for putting it together. Indiana could’ve sat on its hands but was proactive in tracking the upcoming NCAA rule change and making the move to give itself a few more practices and live games.
- Colin: I like the move because it adds more practices but it seems like a little bit of a silly rule to have to exploit to get the extra time together as a team. You’d think the NCAA, a money-hungry organization, would want to prioritize getting these types of things in front of crowds who are familiar with teams, willing to pay for tickets, or at least tune into the games. Cool for the players who get to travel though.
Join the conversation!
Sign up for a user account and get:
- Improved notifications system!
- Fewer ads
- Create community posts
- Comment on articles, community posts
- Rec comments, community posts
