Darian DeVries provides IU basketball injury updates: “We’re going to be a little limited on our depth right now”

IU basketball will be short-handed when it opens exhibition play on Friday night against Marian University at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

In a Thursday afternoon meeting with the media, first-year coach Darian DeVries provided updates on Nick Dorn, Aleksa Ristic and Jason Drake, who are all currently out with injuries.

DeVries did not address Josh Harris’s status, but the North Florida transfer is not expected to be available on Friday.

Here’s the latest on Dorn, Drake, Ristic and IU’s depth early in the season:

On Dorn:

“He’s starting to work his way back into some action. We don’t anticipate him playing any tomorrow night. The Baylor game, I would probably say is doubtful as well. We’ll see where that leads.

“We’re certainly getting closer to getting him to full practice-type of stuff. We still got a little bit of time to go there yet.”

On Drake and Ristic:

“Unfortunately, both of those guys are probably going to be out for a little while yet. Certainly not going to have them for the start of the season and probably a few weeks into it for sure, which does it make it challenging.

“Those are two guys that we are counting on to hopefully give us some minutes and some depth. We gotta be a little bit creative until one or two of those guys come back and give us a little more flexibility with our lineups.”

On the rotation and what it might look like in terms of the number of guys who will play:

“It’s going to be challenging early just with Nick making his way back. How quickly he can kind of get back into that game conditioning and also for us to just get a little feel for where to best utilize him and plug him in.

“The other two guys, they’re going to be a while. So, how quickly can they just get thrown in there and find their roles and be able to fit?

“So those are things that we don’t know yet. Because of injuries, we’re going to be a little limited on our depth right now. I anticipate it being seven to eight guys here early and then as those guys start to come back, get more into that 8, 9 or maybe even 10 on certain nights from a depth standpoint.”

(Photo credit: IU Athletics)

See More: Media, Aleksa Ristic, Jason Drake, Nick Dorn