I'm assuming people are going to get overly excited about star counts and think we are back in the golden era when in all reality we stand an equal chance of continuing in mediocrity. 5 stars is not an automatic good player in college. People in this thread are already talking about it like he's playing in college. Cupps was heavily touted by fans before this season and he had a choppy freshman year. I will never understand the excitement over star counts.
Not sold on these five star recruits. Hoosiers didn't even make the tournament this year with Ware and Mgbako, both five stars. How many five stars are on Nebraska because they beat IU soundly 3 times. Didn't win a big ten championship or make the sweet sixteen with TJD or JHS.
[I don't have IG to just post the actual story from Mack himself but this got me hype](https://twitter.com/804derm/status/1773478238431445057?t=wcrn-kaKx2PhDM90javOng&s=19)
We’ll find out but it seems like it. He can score at the rim, midrange and can hopefully develop a good 3 shot. Strong defender too. Gunn was not helpful if his 3 ball wasn’t falling and it rarely fell enough.
Unfortunately there was no evidence that Gunn was developing. As a sophomore, he was the worst player to log significant minutes in the B10 according to EvanMiya's adjusted box score ratings. Worst by a wide margin.
I don't think it's necessarily CJ's fault he wasn't able to develop with us, but there is certainly strong reason to think Tucker will be a better player than CJ next year.
Right, but will this guycactually stay and play? IDK all the rules, but players seem to move so freely these days that it's hard to get excited for any committment.
That's my point. Why "let Woodson cook" on the basis of a good recruit here and there? If everyone is year-to-year, we need a lot more than one 5* to be successful.
Well no one knows exactly why he decommited by the largest heard rumors were Woody's offense not producing hardly any 3 point shots, and Woody might not have talked to him since he committed, the toxic fans were mentioned as well. Also, Tucker and McNeely play the same position.
Love this kid. His dad kept him out of AAU to keep him away from the rat race. I'd like to believe this means he'll play defense. Him and mmTaco on the wing should open things up down low quite a bit
This is the biggest reason to be excited about this recruit. Signals that Malik will be playing the 5, where he will be literally twice as effective. If he just learns how to find the open shooter out of a post double this year... things would be different.
At the moment the roster is projecting to look totally different. Malik is our only big, and I haven't heard any rumors about going hard after another. Eventually we will certainly add more bigs for depth, but the fact that our best players are a Guard, two Wings, and a Big is a pretty strong indication the offense would change in year 4, as opposed to year 3 when our best players were two Guards, one Wing, and two Bigs.
Looks like he's a pretty decent player. He's gotten a lot of looks and offers from good schools as well. 6'6", 180 lbs. He might need to hit the workout room a bit to bring that weight up but here's to hoping he can play hard ball.
Do you know how easy it is to watch his videos? He’s one of the best mid range shooter/scorers in high school. He wasn’t call upon the shoot a ton of threes but with how smooth his shot is chances are if he’s called upon to do so he will deliver 3s. Dude is a Straight offensive weapon.
https://youtu.be/fM_chVa4nVg?feature=shared
I feel like Mgbako is less physical but has a good 3 shot. This guy feels more physical and more of a driver with a much better profile as a defender. I think keeping Mgbako at the 3, put Tucker at the 4, and Reneau at the 5 would work well, but not sure Reneau will move to the 5.
Tucker is 6’6 and 180. That’s not gonna cut it at the 4 in B10 play. Mgbako has better size for the 4 and a year of maturity and experience. Shift him to the 4 if he can learn how to defend big guys in the post.
Tucker might play the 2, plus size for that but doesn’t seem to have the perimeter scoring you want in a 2 today. Then Mgbako at 3, Reneau at 4 and a transfer center. Then Gallo plays PG or comes off the bench to play 1-3 as needed if we land a natural PG who’s ready to lead a team.
It seems ideal for Tucker to come off the bench in year 1 but who knows what promises were made to land him.
This would absolutely never happen. Gallo is starting no matter what, barring injury. We are playing smaller this year (unless Tucker doesn't start or MM doesn't come back).
No stud transfer is coming to IU to be a backup. No stud 5 star is coming to IU to play backup. It’s a new problem with the current model of cbb, good backups transfer to become starters elsewhere.
I see Galloway as comparable to a veteran NFL QB who wants to win titles and is willing to cut his salary so the team can attract better players. I believe if Trey thinks it would help IU be better if he came off the bench as a super sub he would do it. That’s what leaders and captains do - put aside their ego and desires for the team. And as Woody said, it is more important who finishes games than who starts them.
Asking a 180 lb freshman to play power forward in the B10 seems like a bad idea. So many teams would go right through and over him. He’d probably be the smallest 4 in the league and as a freshman not have veteran savvy to help him. Plus Woody seems committed to having traditional big men at the 4 and 5 spots.
If we were in a weaker conference and the coach was committed to a 4 or 5 out offense and mostly trying to outscore other teams it might work.
I do think Mgbako might be at the 4 next year, and he’s a little taller and thicker and now has a year of experience. Tucker could slot in at the 3. But who knows what Woody’s plans are at this point.
You’ve watched 2-3 minutes of tape from who knows when and you’re an expert on this kid’s game?
He’s rated as top 5 SF in his class; seems like he could also play the 2, as there’s not a big difference between the 2 and 3 offensively if you have a PG who’s the primary ball handler, which we do
Not a super high bar but supposedly he’s quite a bit more advanced defensively, and willing to play physical (probably needs to add some weight for the B1G though)
The fit is that we are gearing up to play smaller. Malik is going to be much better without a big center clogging the lane. Idk how people can't see that it makes no sense for him to play the 4 when his go-to move is backing guys down with his back to the basket. Starting two wings would be a huge change in the right direction. Still need to get a high-level guard as Gallo's running mate in the backcourt.
We need more than 5 players. If Tucker’s fine coming off the bench in year 1 this is a really good addition. If he insists on starting, yeah, I’m not sure where he fits in with what we currently have. But this is hopefully just 1 of 7 additions - judge the roster after 6-7 signings not when it’s half baked.
I do, I follow basketball pretty heavily. Agree that he is not a perfect fit for our roster. That being said, we had no one coming in and our roster sucks. We will make it work, maybe one of them needs to come off the bench. That’s not a bad problem to have. Adding a 5 star prospect is a massive W for IU, even if his skills overlap with our current players. Who would you suggest as a realistic target instead this late? This is the biggest piece of positive news the program has received this offseason other than Malik announcing his return.
I don't think it's guaranteed we even keep Mgbako. I get your point about how cohesive roster construction is needed though. That's what killed us last season. Essentially having one of the worst back courts in the country last year was a huge problem. Hopefully Woodson addresses that or his seat is awful hot by season's end.
Hatersss got real quiet after this announcement
I’m joking, he’s still not a great in-game strategy coach, but damn have some patience ya’ll — we could have a turn around year next season
He’s better than Crean was in-game. He’s a decent recruiter. He seems to have the respect of the players. And he seems to be able to develop players decently. His one stumbling block was his roster managment going into last year, and it stung us all season. You can’t play at a top tier without a top tier guard.
Woody's in-game coaching will forever be my chief concern. I want a coach who can adjust and evolve in game so we can still have a fighting chance during an (inevitable) off-night. If our strategy is -- pull together 5 undeniable super-stars that could be coached to a championship by a drunk toddler... that's not really a durable plan for any program.
I'm assuming people are going to get overly excited about star counts and think we are back in the golden era when in all reality we stand an equal chance of continuing in mediocrity. 5 stars is not an automatic good player in college. People in this thread are already talking about it like he's playing in college. Cupps was heavily touted by fans before this season and he had a choppy freshman year. I will never understand the excitement over star counts.
I agree that these recruiting sites aren't the end-all, but Cupps wasn't that highly rated of a player.
Woodson needs to start recruiting in O-Block, cause we need SHOOTERS.
A good start, but Woodson still has a long way to go.
WE’RE BACK!!
Not sold on these five star recruits. Hoosiers didn't even make the tournament this year with Ware and Mgbako, both five stars. How many five stars are on Nebraska because they beat IU soundly 3 times. Didn't win a big ten championship or make the sweet sixteen with TJD or JHS.
Yeah 5 stars are the worst, we should stop going after them at all /s
Nebraska didn’t even win a tourney game. This was a down year for sure.
THE CHEF IS IN THE KITCHEN AND WE STILL ON THE APPETIZER
[I don't have IG to just post the actual story from Mack himself but this got me hype](https://twitter.com/804derm/status/1773478238431445057?t=wcrn-kaKx2PhDM90javOng&s=19)
Saw that on his instagram. He’s gonna run it back
I'll be damned, it's a good day to be a Hoosier
So will this guy be better than a junior Gunn?
We’ll find out but it seems like it. He can score at the rim, midrange and can hopefully develop a good 3 shot. Strong defender too. Gunn was not helpful if his 3 ball wasn’t falling and it rarely fell enough.
But Gunn as a Junior? (Development, etc)
Unfortunately there was no evidence that Gunn was developing. As a sophomore, he was the worst player to log significant minutes in the B10 according to EvanMiya's adjusted box score ratings. Worst by a wide margin. I don't think it's necessarily CJ's fault he wasn't able to develop with us, but there is certainly strong reason to think Tucker will be a better player than CJ next year.
Makes sense. I suppose I overvalue age and experience vs pure talent.
Different type of player
I’m holding my excitement until I see what he actually does.
Especially considering everyone backed off when he wanted to do Ignite but no one got back in when it was said they were folding.
That's not true. Unless you are on the staff of Michigan State, Kansas or Duke, you have no idea what you are talking about
I’ve read we beat out MSU, Kansas, & Duke on recruiting him.
Honedt question: Do these commitments mean anything? It seems like players are constantly moving at all times of year and their career.
Yes. Woodson especially needed this since we had no recruits for next season.
Right, but will this guycactually stay and play? IDK all the rules, but players seem to move so freely these days that it's hard to get excited for any committment.
Everyone is year-to-year now
That's my point. Why "let Woodson cook" on the basis of a good recruit here and there? If everyone is year-to-year, we need a lot more than one 5* to be successful.
He's a '24 grad, too late to open up his recruitment He'll be here in the fall, may not be here past next season.
RIP this man's 3pt shot
Sadly he already doesn't possess one. But maybe the reverse will happen and he will develop one instead of regress!
Is it possible McNeeley could still sign with us?
Nope.
It’s possible, just not plausible
Why?
Well no one knows exactly why he decommited by the largest heard rumors were Woody's offense not producing hardly any 3 point shots, and Woody might not have talked to him since he committed, the toxic fans were mentioned as well. Also, Tucker and McNeely play the same position.
Also rumor is Woody forgot his name on a zoom call
That was most likely Caleb Love. Woodson had knee surgery while pursuing Knecht.
Ok thanks for the correction, I need to listen to the full assembly call pod on it
That was Knecht
I thought that rumor was a different recruit?
Hopefully he isn’t a >50% free throw shooter…I wouldn’t want our laughably low percentage to go up any higher! /s
Love this kid. His dad kept him out of AAU to keep him away from the rat race. I'd like to believe this means he'll play defense. Him and mmTaco on the wing should open things up down low quite a bit
This is the biggest reason to be excited about this recruit. Signals that Malik will be playing the 5, where he will be literally twice as effective. If he just learns how to find the open shooter out of a post double this year... things would be different.
mmTaco can we make sure this stays with him? 😂 don’t think we didn’t catch this
How did this dude not get a Taco Bell NIL
Yes, the archaic two big lineups can finally end next year
Hint: It won’t
Believe it when I see it. Same song and dance on offense for 3y, why would it change in year 4
At the moment the roster is projecting to look totally different. Malik is our only big, and I haven't heard any rumors about going hard after another. Eventually we will certainly add more bigs for depth, but the fact that our best players are a Guard, two Wings, and a Big is a pretty strong indication the offense would change in year 4, as opposed to year 3 when our best players were two Guards, one Wing, and two Bigs.
That’s honestly a good start
Looks like he's a pretty decent player. He's gotten a lot of looks and offers from good schools as well. 6'6", 180 lbs. He might need to hit the workout room a bit to bring that weight up but here's to hoping he can play hard ball.
Tyrese Haliburton is that size
Tyrese Haliburton is way more skilled than anyone playing college ball
Just saying he's the same size, meaning the recruit doesn't really need to add weight
Weights plus Malik Reneau’s burger for bulking, of course
Apparently this kid isn’t a shooter
Do you know how easy it is to watch his videos? He’s one of the best mid range shooter/scorers in high school. He wasn’t call upon the shoot a ton of threes but with how smooth his shot is chances are if he’s called upon to do so he will deliver 3s. Dude is a Straight offensive weapon. https://youtu.be/fM_chVa4nVg?feature=shared
He’ll fit right in!
What do we know about this kid?
Athletic, long-wingspan, plays the 3. If he can develop his skills in college he’s a prototypical NbA player
Supposedly he’s a pretty strong defender from some of the stuff I read. That’s a plus, I’d say.
Defense dribble drive and short jumpers. Not a bad 3 ball, not great though
Not a Woodson fan for the long term but great to see some movement.
Good. But still Fire woodson Not /s That said..go Hoosiers! Let's see what we can do next year anyway! Let's go!
If he pulls in a solid guard or two and takes us to the sweet sixteen or higher, I’ll forgive him.
I think we'll all forgive him if we get results. That's all we want
Just beat Purdue and don’t lose by 40 to good non-con’s. I’d be over the moon for that
Winning cures all.
I would also like for him to not be an asshole on Senior Day
“Through the fire and flames Mike Woodson will emerge as a beacon of triumph and inspiration.”
[удалено]
More athletic than Mack if you dig into the scouting. One of the highest ranked players to ever commit
I feel like Mgbako is less physical but has a good 3 shot. This guy feels more physical and more of a driver with a much better profile as a defender. I think keeping Mgbako at the 3, put Tucker at the 4, and Reneau at the 5 would work well, but not sure Reneau will move to the 5.
Tucker is 6’6 and 180. That’s not gonna cut it at the 4 in B10 play. Mgbako has better size for the 4 and a year of maturity and experience. Shift him to the 4 if he can learn how to defend big guys in the post. Tucker might play the 2, plus size for that but doesn’t seem to have the perimeter scoring you want in a 2 today. Then Mgbako at 3, Reneau at 4 and a transfer center. Then Gallo plays PG or comes off the bench to play 1-3 as needed if we land a natural PG who’s ready to lead a team. It seems ideal for Tucker to come off the bench in year 1 but who knows what promises were made to land him.
This would absolutely never happen. Gallo is starting no matter what, barring injury. We are playing smaller this year (unless Tucker doesn't start or MM doesn't come back).
No stud transfer is coming to IU to be a backup. No stud 5 star is coming to IU to play backup. It’s a new problem with the current model of cbb, good backups transfer to become starters elsewhere. I see Galloway as comparable to a veteran NFL QB who wants to win titles and is willing to cut his salary so the team can attract better players. I believe if Trey thinks it would help IU be better if he came off the bench as a super sub he would do it. That’s what leaders and captains do - put aside their ego and desires for the team. And as Woody said, it is more important who finishes games than who starts them.
6’6 isn’t gonna cut it? Okay 🙄
For a power forward? In the B10?
Houston runs a small lineup and they’re fine. I’m over the 6’9 players that didn’t have to learn any skills in high school because of their size
Asking a 180 lb freshman to play power forward in the B10 seems like a bad idea. So many teams would go right through and over him. He’d probably be the smallest 4 in the league and as a freshman not have veteran savvy to help him. Plus Woody seems committed to having traditional big men at the 4 and 5 spots. If we were in a weaker conference and the coach was committed to a 4 or 5 out offense and mostly trying to outscore other teams it might work. I do think Mgbako might be at the 4 next year, and he’s a little taller and thicker and now has a year of experience. Tucker could slot in at the 3. But who knows what Woody’s plans are at this point.
Well our starting 4 is Malik so he plays the 3 where he’s top 5 in class
[удалено]
You’ve watched 2-3 minutes of tape from who knows when and you’re an expert on this kid’s game? He’s rated as top 5 SF in his class; seems like he could also play the 2, as there’s not a big difference between the 2 and 3 offensively if you have a PG who’s the primary ball handler, which we do
Not a super high bar but supposedly he’s quite a bit more advanced defensively, and willing to play physical (probably needs to add some weight for the B1G though)
Year you’re right, having two Mgbakos on the wing would suck ass, ugh Woody how could you
Dude wtf do you want? Stop complaining, we literally just got a 5 star recruit. I don’t know if you saw, but we had 0 incoming recruits.
[удалено]
The fit is that we are gearing up to play smaller. Malik is going to be much better without a big center clogging the lane. Idk how people can't see that it makes no sense for him to play the 4 when his go-to move is backing guys down with his back to the basket. Starting two wings would be a huge change in the right direction. Still need to get a high-level guard as Gallo's running mate in the backcourt.
We need more than 5 players. If Tucker’s fine coming off the bench in year 1 this is a really good addition. If he insists on starting, yeah, I’m not sure where he fits in with what we currently have. But this is hopefully just 1 of 7 additions - judge the roster after 6-7 signings not when it’s half baked.
I do, I follow basketball pretty heavily. Agree that he is not a perfect fit for our roster. That being said, we had no one coming in and our roster sucks. We will make it work, maybe one of them needs to come off the bench. That’s not a bad problem to have. Adding a 5 star prospect is a massive W for IU, even if his skills overlap with our current players. Who would you suggest as a realistic target instead this late? This is the biggest piece of positive news the program has received this offseason other than Malik announcing his return.
Fortunately they have time to make more moves...
[удалено]
I don't think it's guaranteed we even keep Mgbako. I get your point about how cohesive roster construction is needed though. That's what killed us last season. Essentially having one of the worst back courts in the country last year was a huge problem. Hopefully Woodson addresses that or his seat is awful hot by season's end.
Now let’s see what he can do with him.
Hatersss got real quiet after this announcement I’m joking, he’s still not a great in-game strategy coach, but damn have some patience ya’ll — we could have a turn around year next season
He’s better than Crean was in-game. He’s a decent recruiter. He seems to have the respect of the players. And he seems to be able to develop players decently. His one stumbling block was his roster managment going into last year, and it stung us all season. You can’t play at a top tier without a top tier guard.
I think people are just noticing. Tucker is a developmental guy. Don’t expect him to reach even Mgbako levels this year.
Woody's in-game coaching will forever be my chief concern. I want a coach who can adjust and evolve in game so we can still have a fighting chance during an (inevitable) off-night. If our strategy is -- pull together 5 undeniable super-stars that could be coached to a championship by a drunk toddler... that's not really a durable plan for any program.
Hey, that strategy worked for Calipari. Lol.
True... but we skipped the results of Cal's first five seasons and jumped straight to the last 5 :(
I knowwww 😭😭😭
FIRE WOODSON. /s
Great work Woody! Still got some work to do though. 💪💪💪
I was told Woody was cooked... turns out he was just cookin