The Indiana Hoosiers can finally turn the page. They were an always-interesting and always-erratic team under former head coach Tom Crean. The program was a mess when Crean came aboard following the scandal-plagued tenure of Kelvin Sampson, who set the program back several years with NCAA violations which sidetracked the Hoosiers. Crean created a team which played extremely hard in his first years on the job, winning a lot of respect from Hoosier fans. His program grew and improved to the point that Indiana reached the Sweet 16 in 2012 before losing to eventual national champion Kentucky in a high-level game. The 2013 team built off that performance and got a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but a flat performance in the Sweet 16 against Syracuse represented a massive disappointment for a team expected to make the Final Four.
Crean lost hold of the program after that moment. He didn’t sustain the kind of expectations he had generated with the 2012 and 2013 teams. The recruiting wobbled. Players got into trouble off the court. Crean did not handle the spotlight well. The program buckled. Indiana made one more good run in the 2016 season, making the Sweet 16, but the next season the Hoosiers failed to make the NCAA Tournament. The highs were moderately high, but the lows were extremely low, and Indiana fans can’t live with a coach or a program who bottoms out as often as Crean did. His tenure at Indiana was not a total bust, but it clearly wasn’t sustainable in the long run.
The Hoosiers decided to move on, and now they can begin anew.
Offseason Changes
Archie Miller led the Dayton Flyers for many seasons, often staying put in spite of so many changes to the coaching carousel. Coaches who hold down mid-major jobs sometimes leave for modest power conference programs, but the best of the best wait for an elite coaching job to open up. That’s exactly what Miller did when Indiana finally became available and Gregg Marshall of Wichita State remained in place at his current post. Miller is an exciting new hire who feels like a home run for the Hoosiers. He will be given time to build the program, so he is not under immense pressure this season. The hope is that by his third year, he will have a giant program which can reach the Final Four summit Crean could not attain.
On the court, the changes are also substantial for IU. Thomas Bryant, James Blackmon, Jr., and O.G. Anunoby all left for the pros, removing a large amount of talent from Miller’s arsenal. This does mean that Miller gets a roster he can mold – more removed from Crean’s habits and coaching methods – but depth will certainly be a problem this season, and Miller will have to find a way to work around it.
Will Succeed If…
Freshmen Al Durham plus Dustin Smith and Clifton Moore are all able to respond to Miller’s coaching. For a team which cannot count on depth and ample resources over the course of a full season, getting injections of both production and defensive energy from three different players can enable Miller to plug some gaps in his roster and create a lineup rotation which works. Miller needs to have more options as he finds solutions for this year’s team. The more people who play well – or at least well enough to merit reasonable playing time – the better Miller can tinker with the resources at his disposal.
Won’t Succeed If…
Josh Newkirk isn’t up to par. The guard gets the keys to the Hoosiers’ offense and, under Miller’s direction, has a chance to make a very large impact on IU this season. If the new coach and his main option in the backcourt can blend well together, this Indiana season can take off. If not, it could crash and burn.
Roster
Curtis Jones
Aljami Durham
Josh Newkirk
Justin Smith
Robert Johnson
Quentin Taylor
Johnny Jager
Devonte Green
Ethan Lasko
Juwan Morgan
Zach McRoberts
De’Ron Davis
Freddie McSwain Jr.
Clifton Moore
Vijay Blackmon
Race Thompson
Collin Hartman
Tim Priller
Schedule & Outlook
The non-conference slate features Duke, Louisville, and Notre Dame. Indiana is unlikely to win any of those games, but they should test this team and shape it into a group which can make its way into the top 10 of the Big Ten. An NCAA berth is too ambitious a project this season, but an NIT appearance and multiple wins in that postseason tournament would set the table for a strong 2019 season and an upward trajectory for Miller, who is likely to succeed in the fullness of time.
The 2018 March Madness futures are out. There has been plenty of news to keep up with in the offseason but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest college basketball betting lines right here.
