• Aceman_Mujezinovic_07

    Kid seems to get up quick. Good athleticism and a lot of room to grow so I’ll Trust Archie on his rating and welcome him and his height to B’Town!

  • JethroTroll

    Looks like he could be a good 4 year program guy. Gets off the floor pretty well and has some touch around the basket. I like how he attacks the rim every time he touches the ball and looks to dunk everything. Would like to see him grow a couple of inches. 🙂

  • marcusgresham

    1. Love the way he moves.
    2. IU continues to recruit the kids with the best hair.
    3. At the 0:45 mark, why is there a huge banner hanging over the court with Adam Levine on it?

  • VOXAC30

    Love number 2

  • Arch Puddington

    While I can’t make sense of this from a scholarship standpoint, I do like the player. Long, energetic, and like all CM guys, can shoot at least a bit from outside. I am concerned about what this does to our options for 2019, both in terms of the number of scholarships available and in terms of the number of players we have at the 3/4 spots that might deter some of the elite players we have on the hook. I will say this: as much as I hope we land Keion Brooks, in some ways the more important piece is Trayce Jackson-Davis. We STILL need another 5, whether to backup or replace DD. Get that in place, and we’d be looking pretty strong.

  • Tod Brown

    Idk if you’re kidding or not haha. It’s Gordon Hayward..

  • I hate purdon’t

    Seems like he also likes to play defense. I know it’s a highlight reel but the fact that he is willing to play defense will bode well for Coach Miller.

  • pcantidote

    6 foot 9 is the key for me. You can never have enough long athletes.

  • Ole Man

    Yes, but he isn’t gone after this year.

  • N71

    Agree, and a transfer or two. Strangely, I’ve always thought Juwan was one of our best players but he’s been hurt the majority of his time here. If he’s truly healthy he could also be gone, off to the NBA. I thought Jake is exactly what we needed along with Race. Jake a springy rim protector in the making, Race a BigTen dump truck than can move people around.

  • HoosierDom

    I don’t understand why people think these guys are going to leave early. De’Ron was ranked around 40th coming out of high school – that does not suggest he’s leaving early: it suggests he won’t make it to the league at all. Certainly rankings aren’t perfect and players change, but in his first year he under-performed that ranking. On top of that he is undersized for an NBA big, doesn’t have NBA athleticism and hasn’t shown range. Certainly people have made it to the league with less, but that is not the norm.

    The most likely outcome is that no one on this year’s team ever plays in the NBA. We don’t have that kind of talent.

  • Ivan Renko

    i hope I’m wrong, but I think the only future NBAer (which means actually earning a steady roster spot somewhere) is only possibly De’Ron. And that’s still a huge “if.” He’s lost a lot of weight, but players of his physical size are many times more athletic and explosive at the next level. With the direction the NBA is going, De’Ron will be hard-pressed to even be able to carve out any sort of role playing spot if he can’t sprint up and down the floor without getting gassed and if he can’t shoot a mid-range or 3 with consistency.

    edit: I love Juwan and RoJo, but no chance they’re NBA caliber players. at least from what we’ve seen

  • TomJameson

    I agree. Maybe after his Junior year (2018-19 season). That will still open up a scholarship for the 2019-20 class, but DD has to have two really good seasons to go pro even then. Just my opinion.

  • TomJameson

    His dad says that he is a legit 6’10”. Emphasized the point … 6’10”. Sounds even better, yes?

  • pcantidote

    Yep. Does Dad count the hair?

  • Steve Morgan

    High motor guy on D, on the boards, and on the the break. Seems to have a 3-ball, but I think the touch on his fade away is more impressive. If these stretch 4s can hold their own on D and then are facing up on traditional 5s on the offensive end, we should have favorable matchup with the likes of CM and JF. Length rules in the college game as we see so often at Syracuse and Kentucky, so I love that CAM is putting skill and length together. Coach ’em up, Arch!

  • And One

    Nice to see him play some D and show some range, but mostly, wow, if he gets the pass in the right place he is going to score every time. Looking forward to a lot of RP to JF.

  • Stew

    That last video is a little raw.. Don’t think we need to hear the N word here that many times..

  • Ivan Renko

    I see. I wasn’t considering the incoming class. I agree one of the two will likely be a solid NBA prospect after several years. I think Clifton will need 2 or 3 years to grow and fill out his frame, then I think he can be a very scary player. Justin looks great physically, we’ll see how his game translates to the college level and beyond. Neither are even close to being on the 2018 or 2019 draft boards though.

  • ScoopGeoff

    That’s what I was thinking… and I feel weird saying it… I mean I was banging NWA as loud as I could out of my truck in HS, and still enjoy some hip-hop… but that’s a public video for a minor…

    That being said, it was by far the best package of highlights. The rest of the videos are worthless.

  • Arch Puddington

    Naturally I hope you are right, but my view is that he isn’t close, and isn’t likely to be after this year. As HoosierDom notes, not explosive enough, not good enough on the perimeter. Kennedy Meeks is bigger, stronger, and far more accomplished, especially as a rebounder, but didn’t get drafted this year. Same with Przemek Karnowski. The big guys who did get drafted this year – Zach Collins, Justin Patton, Lauri Markkanen – are all much more modern players than guys like DD, Meeks, or Karnowski. He may make it someday, but as a non-shooting, non-leaping traditional center, it is unlikely to happen after his sophomore year.

  • Outoftheloop

    Counter argument: DeRon was late to get to Bloomington; he was injured and out of shape early in the season; he was not allowed by the Coach’s plan to move away from the basket let alone out to the 3-point line for his offense last season; he is a good FT shooter (shows a nice touch); he is now in terrific shape and the focus of the offense with Robert and Juwan. This is a very different year for DeRon!

  • Outoftheloop

    Robert has been a 3 year starter with solid point production while playing with 2 NBA guards (Yogi and James) and Juwan will be huge for IU this season! If Juwan can hit his open 3-point and 2-point shots while getting his FT’s up to 80%, his versitality will command an NBA roster spot.

  • I think that’s precisely why Archie said DD needs to fix his body over the summer — which he’s done. And that’s the key, I think. DD’s conditioning is dramatically better from everything we’ve seen and judging him by last year’s performance is likely a big mistake.

  • marcusgresham

    I get what you’re saying, but I’ll withhold predictions based on your physical description until I see how he reacts on the court after his “body transformation,” from this off season (especially considering he really didn’t have that leading up to his freshman year because of the academic stuff.)

  • Ivan Renko

    i understand and completely agree with you. but you don’t become an NBA caliber athlete after a 3 month conditioning regimen. I was trying to make the point that DD will likely not be NBA ready after this season, which feeds into the scholly discussion to start this thread. I love a true back to the basket player like DD on IU’s team, but it’s an outdated position in the modern NBA

  • marcusgresham

    I was kidding, but I didn’t realize it was Hayward. Sure as hell looks like Adam Levine, though.

  • I hear you. I think overall there’s a tendency to look at last season and draw conclusions, and I think we’re all going to be pleasantly surprised at some of these players after a year with Archie as coach. But of course, that remains to be seen.

  • N71

    I see Juwan as a poor-man’s Dreymond, I think he’s that good. For him its a matter of health as we all know. No knock against OG or Thomas but I’d put Juwan right there with both of them talent wise.

  • Ivan Renko

    i definitely hope archie displays strong progression with our younger players once the upcoming season starts. I’m kind of ready though for an up-and-down year because of a relative lack of talent and playmakers that we’ve usually enjoyed. I’m really rooting on our seniors to lead us through the rougher games when things aren’t going our way. and with trying to keep a realistic outlook, it’s always more fun to be surprised than disappointed!

  • VOXAC30

    @And_One:disqus – Good to see you back you have been scarce sighting as of late.

  • IdahoHoosier

    Opposing teams had to focus on Yogi, Troy, and Blackmon the last couple years, leaving RJ to hit those open 3’s. I wonder if RJ is able to continue or increase production now that he probably becomes target #1 of opposing defenses?

  • Arch Puddington

    “What about Fletch? He’s actually 6’5″, 6’9″ with the afro, pretty good dribbler….”

  • John D Murphy

    Don’t disagree with anything you said but leaving early isn’t synonymous with the nba anymore. Just ask jbj. There are plenty of non-NBA viable professional options these days and there will be more every year.

  • John D Murphy

    There are still plenty of those outdated guys on NBA rosters, they just aren’t on the floor in the playoffs.

  • John D Murphy

    Not in agreement. We’re going to be an old team. And old teams can win with less talent. We’re not hanging a banner but we could really make some noise in a conference that isn’t very good. With the right breaks we could be sweet 16 team (we’ll need those breaks).

  • Ivan Renko

    you could make that same argument for any team in the RPI 50-150 with 3 or 4 + seniors.

  • TomJameson

    That would probably make Jake around 7’4″. lol

  • VanPastorMan

    I like this kid a lot. If he is a legit 6′ 10″ dude then I think he has a good chance to be a very good player. He has good hands, pursues the ball, plays D, and finishes with authority. What is there not to like?

  • John D Murphy

    I follow what you are saying but I’m a big believer in the coach switch sweet spot. If you have talent in the cupboard, then I think you get a boost (the best of both worlds) during the first two years of having a new coach. Only works if you have enough talent and I think we do.

  • Outoftheloop

    Good question, but I like Robert’s game. I think that Robert is as good as James.

  • Outoftheloop

    Did you think that Wilson of MI would be drafted as a first round pick in 2017 at the beginning of the season in November 2016? No! The pros want them young. You have to go after your 2nd year of college (OG) unless you come out of nowhere (Victor)!