Indiana Hoosiers Won't Win It All This Year

Let me tell you why the Indiana Hoosiers won’t win the title this year.

Junior-College transfers.

Or simply “Ju-Co’s.”  Indiana has four of these transfers that log significant minutes. Senior Lance Stemler and Junior Jamarcus Ellis are usual starters.  Mike White, who looks like a defensive-end playing a small forward, averages just over 14 minutes a game.

We can’t forget about DeAndre Thomas.  Known more as “Deeeee” to IU fans, the “295-pound” big-man comes off the bench when DJ White needs a blow. 

That’s right, I said 295 pounds. 

For some reason, former-coach Kelvin Sampson thought Thomas would somehow be a good addition to the team. 

I am missing something here? A “295-pound” small forward?  Shaq weighs 325, but he’s 7’1”! 

Rumor around campus is that Thomas actually lost quite a bit of weight before the season began.

Seriously, has anyone else seen this guy play?  Aside from being a big guy who can throw his body around under the basket and log some minutes when White is in foul trouble, this guy shouldn’t be on a basketball roster such as Indiana’s. 

Indiana is one of the more celebrated basketball programs in NCAA history.  Is this the best they can recruit?  Ju-Co’s with minimual basketball intelligence?  Thomas has absolutely NO low-post skills.  Unless he manages to get a rebound and is wide-open, he can’t score. 

Can’t shoot. Can’t rebound.  We won’t even mention conditioning.

Lance Stemler!  I thought all white boys in Indiana could shoot the lights out?  Uh, well….sometimes.

He gets more wide-open three-point looks than any other person playing the game of basketball.  I’m not kidding.  He’s made 26 of his 83 attempts from behind-the-arc this year for a brilliant 31 percent.  He’s bricked enough ugly shots to lay the flooring of his own gym. 

When he does manage to make a three, the fans in Bloomington cheer like they’ve just seen Kirk Haston beat No. 1 Michigan State again.

Ah, my boy “J.E.”  Ellis was the Junior College player-of-the-year last year. 

Against who?

Unlike Stemler and Thomas, Ellis does show signs of some athleticism.  He can jump and rebound, which help the team significantly.  Shooting can be a problem however.

Though he is making roughly 40 percent of his field-goal attempts this season, most of these are either dunks or lay-ups. 

I’m not saying that these players will amount to a colossal waste of rosters spots and scholarships, but with the resources and reputation that the Indiana basketball program has, it should be much easier to recruit players with more talent.

D.J. White and Eric Gordon lead the Big Ten in scoring.  They average nearly forty points a game combined.

 Is that going to be enough in late March?

Let me tell you the answer.

Not likely.