2014 Indiana Basketball Recruiting Board

The 2014 Indiana Basketball Recruiting Board, inspired by the Football Recruiting Board on mgoblog and the Hotboard on UMHoops, is a collection of information on recruits that Indiana is believed to be recruiting for its 2014 class.

Information that appears on school lists is collected from public recruit profiles on ESPN, Rivals, Scout, 247Sports and various news outlets. School lists only denote reported interest, not offers. The board should not be considered a complete list of prospects being recruited and is not endorsed by Indiana University.

If there is a prospect we should consider adding, please drop us an email at insidethehall@gmail.com.

Last Updated: 5/9/2013

Projected Class Size: 4

James Blackmon Jr. (Committed on September 3, 2010)

Guard, 6-1, 175-pounds, Marion (IN), Spiece Indy Heat
ESPN: 4-star (47); Rivals: 4-star (48); Scout: 4-star (68)

Notes: Blackmon Jr., the son of former Kentucky standout and McDonald’s All-American James Blackmon, gave a verbal pledge to the Hoosiers a little over two months prior to playing his first varsity game at Luers. Known as one of the best shooters nationally in his class, he’s capable of connecting from well beyond the 3-point line, has an efficient release and nice mechanics. With his father, James Sr., recently accepting the head coaching job at Marion, Blackmon Jr. will finish his high school career there.

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Theo Pinson

Forward, 6-6, 180-pounds, Wesleyan Christian Academy (NC), CP3 All-Stars
ESPN: 5-star (13); Rivals: 5-star (11); Scout: 5-star (18)
Schools: Duke, Florida State, Georgetown, Indiana, Louisville, Kentucky, North Carolina, North Carolina State and Wake Forest

Notes: Pinson took an official visit to Indiana for the Hoosiers’ 81-73 win over No. 1 Michigan and the IU staff has tracked him closely this winter, including stops on Feb. 21 and 22 and also this spring. The official visit was Pinson’s second stop in Bloomington following an unofficial last summer.

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Dante Exum

Guard, 6-5, 185-pounds, Canberra, Australia, Australian Institute of Sport
ESPN: NR; Rivals: 5-star (17); Scout: 4-star (NR)
Schools: Boise State, Indiana, Louisville, LSU, Southern Methodist

Notes: Indiana was the first school to host Exum for an official visit in early January and following the trip, he spoke highly of his time in Bloomington: “The facilities are great and Assembly Hall on Saturday was on another level. I have never seen anything like it before and enjoyed it very much.” Exum was a standout in the Nike Hoop Summit in April, scoring 16 points as the World team prevailed over the U.S.

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Goodluck Okonoboh

Center, 6-9, 220-pounds, Wilbraham & Monson Academy (MA), Mass Rivals
ESPN: 5-star (20); Rivals: 4-star (71); Scout: 4-star (37)
Schools: Connecticut, Gonzaga, Indiana, Marquette, Minnesota, Missouri, Pittsburgh, Providence, Seton Hall, Syracuse, UCLA

Notes: One of the top shotblockers in the country, Okonoboh has the attention of a lengthy list of high-major schools and was offered by Indiana on April 11.

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Phil Booth

Guard, 6-4, 180-pounds, Mount St. Joseph’s (MD), Team Takeover
ESPN: 4-star (35); Rivals: 4-star (84); Scout: 4-star (55)
Schools: Duke, Georgetown, Indiana, Maryland, Miami (Fl), North Carolina State, Ohio State, Rutgers, Seton Hall, South Florida, St. Joseph’s, SMU, Syracuse, Villanova, Virginia, Xavier

Notes: Booth, another talented guard from the Maryland area, has an offer from the Hoosiers and took an unofficial visit for IU’s 81-73 win over Michigan. IU is expected to receive an official visit from Booth in the fall. His father, Phil Sr., is a former standout at Coppin State.

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Dion Wiley

Guard, 6-4, 195-pounds, Potomac (MD), Team Takeover
ESPN: 5-star (22); Rivals: 4-star (49); Scout: 4-star (42)
Schools: Cincinnati, Georgetown, Indiana, Maryland, Miami (FL), North Carolina State, Rutgers, Villanova, Virginia, Virginia Tech

Notes: Indiana is the latest school to offer Wiley, who has raised his national profile with strong play this spring in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League. He’s from Oxon Hill, Maryland, also the home town of Maurice Creek and assistant coach Kenny Johnson.

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Ahmed Hill

Guard, 6-4, 180-pounds, Aquinas (GA), Southern Stampede
ESPN: 4-star (25); Rivals: 4-star (25); Scout: 4-star (26)
Schools: Alabama, Cincinnati, Clemson, Connecticut, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas, Marquette, Miami (FL), Mississippi, Mississippi State, North Carolina State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Villanova, VCU, Virginia Tech

Notes: Hill, who picked up an IU offer in early May of 2012, has more than 15 scholarship offers. The Hoosiers traveled to watch Hill workout on Monday, September 10 and Hill says he is “very interested” in the IU program.

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Trevon Bluiett

Forward, 6-5, 185-pounds, Park Tudor (IN), Spiece Indy Heat
ESPN: 4-star (45); Rivals: 4-star (46); Scout: 4-star (49)
Schools: Butler, DePaul, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, IUPUI, Kansas State, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Texas, UCLA, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Xavier

Notes: Indiana was the first school to offer a scholarship to Bluiett, who helped lead Park Tudor to back-to-back 2A state titles. Bluiett is a strong wing that can knock down shots from the perimeter and possesses a knack for being in the right place at the right time.

Jaquan Lyle

Guard, 6-4, 187-pounds, Evansville Bosse (IN), Spiece Indy Heat
ESPN: 5-star (16); Rivals: 5-star (16); Scout: 5-star (12)
Schools: Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisville, Ohio State, Tennessee, UCLA

Notes: Lyle is streaky at times from the perimeter, but can get into the lane at will and is one of the country’s best passers. He was recently suspended from the team at Bosse, but has since returned. Indiana had an in-home visit with Lyle on April 24.

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Brandone Francis

Guard, 6-5, 200-pounds, Arlington Country Day (FL), Florida Elite
ESPN: NR; Rivals: 3-star (NR); Scout: 3-star (NR)
Schools: Cincinnati, Florida, Florida State, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas State, Minnesota, Mississippi, South Carolina, Southern Methodist, USC, Washington, West Virginia

Notes: After an MVP performance at the adidas Exclusive Run in Dallas in April, Francis picked up several high major offers, including Indiana.

Cliff Alexander

Forward, 6-9, 240-pounds, Chicago Curie (IL), Mac Irvin Fire
ESPN: 5-star (8); Rivals: 5-star (4); Scout: 5-star (5)
Schools: DePaul, Florida State, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Ohio State, Tennessee, Wisconsin

Notes: Alexander is regarded as one of the top big men in the country in his class. The Hoosiers have offered a scholarship and hosted him on an unofficial visit last offseason, but Illinois, Kentucky and Michigan State are considered the top three schools.

D’Angelo Russell

Guard, 6-3, 175-pounds, Montverde Academy (FL), E1T1
ESPN: 4-star (24); Rivals: 5-star (11); Scout: 5-star (11)
Schools: Cincinnati, Florida, Indiana, Louisville, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Purdue, Xavier, Virginia, Virginia Tech

Notes: Russell’s list is long at this point, but Indiana was among his early offers and has already hosted him for an unofficial visit and then visited him at his school on April 23.

Others to keep an eye on: B.J. Taylor (Orlando, Fla.), Dante Buford (Jacksonville, Fla.), Jordan McLaughlin (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.), Lourawls Nairn (Bel Air, Kan.), Therence Mayimba (Montrose Christian, Md.).

Arie

I think the #1 priority for this class is locking (re-locking?) up Trey and Jaquan. Those two plus James is a great core with known chemistry.
The next step IMO would be to get a SF-ish player, and I like Blueitt or Pinson for that spot.

I like D’Angelo Russell and Phil Booth as Lyle alternatives, and I love Vonleh as well if Lyles doesn’t work out.

No reason not to throw our hat in the Tyus Jones + Jahlil Okafor sweepstakes as well.
Arie

I kind of see Jones, Russell, and Lyle as all playing the same position. I’m not sure if we could justify more than one of them with a veteran Yogi + Stan, and possible 2015 bluechip guards like Hyron Edwards or Jalen Coleman.

But those three are definitely marquee players and I agree, we need to keep on them.
http://www.facebook.com/brian.perry.7524 Brian Perry

What’s the deal with Lyles reopening his recruiting?
SCHoosier

Lot of talent on this board..IU could miss on a couple and still come out very well.
Kelin Blab

At some point Trey Lyles will not be on the 2014 IU recruiting board….I will give it a week.
Cpfohl

Big10 network
ace132

im getting the same feeling
IUMIKE1

Might as well do it right now. Looks like CTC has and it looks more and more every day like it’s the right move to make.

What a shame………
Geoff_85

Ugh…I remember being so excited about seeing this kid in Indiana uniform. Oh well. If he doesn’t want to be there, then I don’t want him to be there. It does hurt that he decommitted, though. Still, he’s a one and done player and those are nice to have once in awhile, but IU doesn’t NEED them. Indiana is not pUKe, and the program will succeed without one and dones.
Geoff_85

Well your coach is going to oversign, so you might want to get used to it.
http://twitter.com/TimMcGuire628 Tim McGuire

Has Trey Lyles publically said he is not considering IU anymore? I know it is a long shot to land him but just wondering if that ship has sailed. I’m assuming he won’t be attending Hoosier Hysteria correct?
iufan8

how about everyone start thinking realistically here, jones is off the board. I also notice the lack of big men on this board because alexander is not hoosier bound, pUKe or MSU is his college. Also McCollugh justs seems like a long shot right now and Trey Lyles is not interested anymore in indiana, at least that is what i am hearing but blackmon seems like he will stay committed. With the lack of big men in this class, I have a feeling that Zeller is a 4 year guy, which i though he would be all along. I think Crean is going for 2 or 3 other guys that are going to come in and contribute good minutes. Besides blackmon, i see blueitt, lyle, and morgan as the guys crean will go after the hardest. I would love to get russell, pinson, hill, or booth but blueitt, lyle, and morgan will be the class of 2014 with blackmon, you heard it here first
Evansville Hoosier

Dante Exum should probably be added, and should be a prime target in this class.
http://www.babytown.com/ OceanArcher

definitely don’t sleep on Exum. Great productivity in the FIBA World Championship. Impressive agility and court vision in his highlight videos.
Evansville Hoosier

I like it! Some draft sites have Exum as a lottery pick after his first year, seems like a special player.. I think he might prefer to play PG though, that might keep him from Bllomington with Yogi. But personally I’d like to add:
1. Dwayne Morgan
2. Dante Exum
and for the third spot, no preference! I know the staff will pick some great guys.
Hoosierfan88

Exum over Lyle? Probably a toss up at this point (just my opinion, respect your completely) and I completely agree that Morgan would be HUGE assuming we dont get Pinson
Evansville Hoosier

I like Lyle (and would LOVE to have him) but I was a senior in HS in Evansville when he was a sophomore, and I’m just not sure he has the best attitude. I’m sure some time with some veteran teammates and the coaching staff could change that though.
MPmike

What do you mean, he is already ranked?? ESPN: 4-star (48); Rivals: 4-star (47); Scout: 4-star (50)
The_Real_Assembly_Hall

Via twitter Lyle said to take Kentucky off his list. Very happy to see that.
The_Real_Assembly_Hall

Via twitter Lyle said to take Kentucky off his list. Very happy to see that.
DeeLyle

Isn’t that owned by the guy that wears the yellow hard hat at Pacer games?
Christopher

Trey Lyles is NOT coming to IU unless Tom Crean is offering Tom Lyles a “job.” Trey is going to Kentucky and Tom will soon be an employee of Nike.
joebull

no indiana connection other than struck up a friendship with Simon’s and therefore became big pacers fan
Miamihoosier

I love talking about this class. I think it will beat 2012, maybe be the best class we’ve ever assembled. As much as I’d love to get Cliff Alexander, he just looks like a Spartan. Yogi goes lottery after his Junior yr (IMO), so I think our starting PG spot is open. I’d love to see Jaquan Lyle running the show. Even though Blackmon is only 6″1, I think he plays off the ball in that scenario, and just guards the other team’s PG. If Jaquan bugs out and goes somewhere else, I think Blackmon goes back to the point, in which case, I’d love to see Dante Exum come in and push Stan Robinson for the SG spot. We NEED Dwayne Morgan! Because we have some scoring in Hollowell, Blackmon, and Stan Robinson, I think forwards are going to be the most critical piece of this recruiting class, and to me, he is the best available. If we get Morgan, I’m confident we stay put atop the Big Ten
WiscHoosier

Pinson Looks like a beast
Evansville Hoosier

Go get elite talents in Pinson and Exum. Develop Okonoboh. JBj is ready to come in and start shooting immediately.

But above all, I’m just gonna say Exum and Pinson are so much fun to watch, especially if they were together. Both are tremendous, long, all-around players, and both are really great passers.
Matt

I feel like I had a pretty good grasp on how the over-signing would go down the past two off-seasons, but I will be at a loss if we bring in four players to the 2014 class, how could that work out?
Andrew

No offense to you, but this is directed at the moderators. Every time I have EVER posted a personal opinion, especially something as loaded as this comment, it gets deleted. I made a post the other day saying I thought Creek would leave and it was deleted as “inappropriate behavior.” Sure enough, Creek is gone.

I love my Hoosiers and did love ITH, but the moderators on here seem to play favorites maybe, and exclude avid fans from the discussion. How does this allegation, with no “facts” or “sources” which the moderators insist they need in scenarios like this, make it to the board and stay on the board for 3 months. Very bizarre and interesting that the moderators allow such a loaded allegation towards the young man and his family with no source, rhyme, or reason.

Just sayin…and soon to be deleted probably
Benhyoung14

I’ll take Blackmon Jr, Exum, and Alexander.
http://www.facebook.com/melissa.fischer.9216 Melissa Fischer

Exactly!! What about other top 10 players????? Sellers has been top scorer for the last three years on a very unselfish team, probably the best FT percentage in the state, and is a real steal.
http://twitter.com/XLevelOnline J.T. @ XLevel

I know we only have one guy signed at this point, but this is going to be an amazing class. Sounds like Pinson is nearly a lock at this point. So far, I’m hoping for JBJr at 1, J Lyle at 2, Pinson at 4, Okonoboh at 5, and Exum or Bluiett at 3. It’s amazing that so many guys have IU so high on their list now. It’s a shame we didn’t take a shot at Grayson Allen. Duke got a good one there. You can quote me on that.
http://twitter.com/XLevelOnline J.T. @ XLevel

Does anyone know why Obi Enechionyia is not on this list? I believe he holds an offer from IU. Have we given up on him or vice versa?

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