This is a companion piece to the previous post on college basketball's blue blood programs and Indiana's status in that group.
There are few conversation topics among Indiana basketball fans that are discussed as frequently as roster management. Roster management encompasses areas such as recruiting, scholarship commitments, positional depth and transfers both in and out of the program.
It was recruiting that re-invigorated Indiana to bring the program out of the gutter in the aftermath of Kelvin Sampson's tenure in Bloomington but it has also led to several up-and-down seasons since, and ultimately leaving some fans wondering if the program has reached its ceiling under Indiana coach Tom Crean. For being included among college basketball's blue bloods, Indiana doesn't consistently recruit at the level of its so-called peers.
Here's a comparison of the annual recruiting rankings among college basketball's blue blood programs using 247Sports' Composite Team Rankings since 2009 (Tom Crean's first full recruiting cycle as Indiana's head coach):
Kentucky: #1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2 = 1.25 avg.
Duke: #24, 13, 2, 36, 9, 1, 2, 1 = 11 avg.
Kansas: #8, 44, 17, 14, 2, 9, 12, 17 = 15.37 avg.
North Carolina: #3, 4, 11, 5, 18, 10, 67, 14 = 16.5 avg.
UCLA: #9, 24, 69, 2, 12, 8, 24, 11 = 19.87 avg.
Indiana: #23, 64, 35, 8, 4, 22, 29, 22 = 25.87 avg.
According to those metrics, Indiana's recruiting class rankings peaked in 2012 and 2013. Of the 11 players who signed to play for Indiana from those two classes, five transferred, two decided to leave school early for the NBA, one exhausted his eligibility, one was dismissed from the team, one didn't qualify academically and one still remains with the program.
The Hoosiers' six-man 2014 recruiting class was another mixed bag as two players transferred after their freshman season (Max Hoetzel and Jeremiah April) and another was dismissed (Emmitt Holt). Guards James Blackmon Jr. and Robert Johnson have become mainstays in Indiana's starting lineup, while Tim Priller has developed into a cult hero among fans, while struggling to see the floor.
Using 247Sports' Composite Rankings, Crean has enrolled five 5-star recruits -- one per season from 2011 to 2015, bookended by Cody Zeller and Thomas Bryant. Few schools can recruit on the level of Kentucky, or Duke in recent years, but for comparison's sake, the Wildcats enrolled the same number of 5-star recruits last fall as Crean has enrolled during his tenure in Bloomington.
Of course recruiting rankings aren't the be-all and end-all in college basketball. Crean saw promise in three-star prospects like Victor Oladipo, Will Sheehey and OG Anunoby, with the former becoming the No. 2 pick in the 2013 NBA draft and the latter will likely be a first-round pick whenever he declares for the draft.
Even if recruiting rankings aren't an exact science for projecting a player's collegiate or professional success, they are a pretty good indicator of blue-chip recruits' professional futures. Gary Parrish of CBS Sports found that top-10 recruits are almost guaranteed to play in the NBA. But it's these prospects that have been elusive for Crean and Indiana's coaching staff.
Zeller was the highest-rated recruit of the Crean era, coming in at No. 10 nationally in the 247Sports Composite Rankings. Noah Vonleh was No. 11, Blackmon Jr. and Bryant were both No. 20, and Yogi Ferrell was No. 21. It's the lack of elite prospects combined with scholarship offers to fringe Power Five recruits that has limited Indiana's ceiling. For every diamond in the rough Crean has discovered and polished -- Oladipo, Anunoby, etc. -- there's at least one Jeremiah April or Tim Priller that winds up in Bloomington. ESPN lists 27 players in the 2014 recruiting class who reportedly received a scholarship offer from Indiana. The four lowest-rated players -- Hoetzel, April, Priller and Holt -- all enrolled at Indiana.
Indiana's coaching staff was desperate to add size to the team's roster for the 2014-15 season with 6-foot-8 Hanner Mosquera-Perea and 6-foot-7 Devin Davis being the biggest returning players on scholarship. So the Hoosiers offered the 6-foot-9 Priller and 6-foot-11 April, who both committed in April 2014, and Holt committed to Indiana in August. 247Sports lists that Priller's only other offers were from Albany, the University of Illinois-Chicago and Incarnate Word. April didn't have any other reported offers.
This is a long way of saying Indiana doesn't land enough elite recruits and has historically signed too many players who take up a valuable scholarship spot without contributing much on the court.
Here is a more detailed breakdown of the average recruiting class ranking of many of the top teams in the country since 2009 using 247Sports' Composite Rankings. It was worth noting that one or two poorly ranked recruiting classes can significantly affect a team's average but the numbers below consider both consistency and high-level recruiting.
TIER 1
Kentucky: #1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2 = 1.25 avg. (Eight top-10 classes)
TIER 2
Arizona: #12, 36, 4, 3, 11, 3, 3, 6 = 9.75 avg. (Five top-10 classes, seven top-20)
Duke: #24, 13, 2, 36, 9, 1, 2, 1 = 11 avg (Five top-10 classes, six top-20)
TIER 3
Kansas: #8, 44, 17, 14, 2, 9, 12, 17 = 15.37 avg. (Three top-10 classes, seven top-20)
North Carolina: #3, 4, 11, 5, 18, 10, 67, 14 = 16.5 avg. (Four top-10 classes, seven top-20)
Texas: #2, 23, 5, 9, 41, 45, 17, 5 = 18.37 avg. (Four top-10 classes, five top-20)
UCLA: #9, 24, 69, 2, 12, 8, 24, 11 = 19.87 avg. (Three top-10 classes, five top-20)
TIER 4
Indiana: #23, 64, 35, 8, 4, 22, 29, 22 = 25.87 avg. (Two top-10 classes)
Florida State: #4, 21, 44, 23, 42, 58, 11, 12 = 26.87 avg. (One top-10 class, three top-20)
Baylor: #19, 8, 22, 4, 23, 59, 41, 40 = 27 avg. (Two top-10 classes, three top-20)
Michigan State: #28, 10, 19, 12, 76, 48, 25, 3 = 27.62 avg. (Two top-10 classes, four top-20)
UConn: #11, 22, 33, 27, 40, 44, 39, 8 = 28 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Ohio State: *, 2, 6, 106, 36, 6, 5, 41 = 28.85 avg.* (Four top-10 classes)
N.C. State: #18, 6, 109, 11, 10, 18, 61, 4 = 29.62 avg. (Two top-10 classes, six top-20)
TIER 5
Texas A&M: #33, 27, 43, 22, 44, 50, 4, 19 = 30.25 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Villanova: #5, 34, 25, 30, 32, 46, 30, 44 = 30.75 avg. (One top-10 class)
Louisville: #17, 61, 3, 74, 5, 5, 6, 89 = 32.5 avg. (Four top-10 classes, five top-20)
Marquette: #15, 15, 36, 63, 7, 94, 13, 23 = 33.25 avg. (One top-10 class, four top-20)
Florida: #95, 7, 20, 24, 31, 14, 19, 60 = 33.75 avg. (One top-10 class, four top-20 classes)
Oklahoma State: #16, 29, 30, 45, 47, 26, 28, 57 = 34.75 avg. (One top-20 class)
Illinois: #38, 11, 10, *, 14, 55, 16, 101 = 35 avg.* (One top-10 class, four top-20)
LSU: #63, 25, 41, 52, 6, 37, 9, 50 = 35.37 avg. (Two top-10 classes)
Alabama: #20, 18, 8, 72, 28, 23, 68, 49 = 35.75 avg. (One top-10 class, three top-20)
Virginia: #55, 17, 40, 15, 57, 41, 57, 7 = 36.12 avg. (One top-10 class, three top-20)
Auburn: #56, 28, 51, 31, 70, 32, 15, 10 = 36.62 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Michigan: #35, 48, 28, 7, 13, 28, 107, 31 = 37.12 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Maryland: #47, 31, 90, 13, 43, 13, 51, 13 = 37.62 avg. (Three top-20 classes)
Syracuse: #190, 5, 14, 39, 8, 33, 8, 18 = 39.37 avg. (Three top-10 classes, five top-20)
TIER 6
Oregon: #30, 122, 24, 32, 49, 27, 18, 20 = 40.25 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Arkansas: #31, 66, 7, 48, 19, 35, 97, 29 = 41.5 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Washington: #25, 32, 26, 108, 29, 89, 7, 34 = 43.75 avg. (One top-10 class)
Notre Dame: #58, 51, 53, 34, 15, 56, 44, 42 = 44.12 avg. (One top-20 class)
Arizona State: #29, 39, 47, 65, 75, 34, 59, 21 = 46.12 avg.
Memphis: #113, 3, 67, 49, 3, 38, 10, 92 = 46.87 avg. (Three top-10 classes)
Georgetown: #106, 12, 16, 17, 89, 7, 26, 103 = 47 avg. (One top-10 class, four top-20)
Purdue: #50, 35, 88, 16, 27, 31, 38, 96 = 47.62 avg. (One top-20 class)
Pitt: #21, 33, 13, 21, 30, 84, 84, 102 = 48.5 avg. (One top-20 class)
Tennessee: #119, 9, 37, 40, 34, 40, 63, 48 = 48.75 avg. (One top-10 class)
TIER 7
Virginia Tech: #44, 56, 12, 103, 64, 21, 23, 81 = 50.5 avg. (One top-20 class)
Minnesota: #13, *, 59, 76, 88, 60, 40, 30 = 52.28 avg.* (One top-20 class)
Cincinnati: #27, 84, 27, 104, 25, 36, 58, 62 = 52.87 avg.
Xavier: #170, 19, 21, 26, 61, 17, 110, 28 = 56.5 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Georgia Tech: #6, 62, 54, 10, 71, 52, 134, 69 = 57.25 avg. (Two top-10 classes)
Ole Miss: #46, 45, 58, 33, 72, 53, 94, 59 = 57.5 avg.
Miami: #14, 53, 140, 102, 33, 24, 83, 16 = 58.12 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Oklahoma: #7, 43, 171, 47, 83, 39, 54, 27 = 58.87 avg. (One top-10 class)
Kansas State: #22, 49, 49, 98, 51, 57, 74, 73 = 59.12 avg.
UNLV: #36, 255, 74, 6, 22, 4, 14, 70 = 60.5 avg. (Two top-10 classes, three top-20)
St. John's: #65, 146, 9, 29, 82, 102, 27, 24 = 60.5 avg. (One top-10 class)
Iowa State: #34, 70, 75, 41, 37, 115, 75, 38 = 60.62 avg.
Stanford: #221, 16, 89, 35, 46, 12, 37, 54 = 63.75 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Mississippi State: #26, 244, 15, 37, 85, 74, 22, 9 = 64 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Wisconsin: #57, 57, 42, 56, 39, 120, 46, 100 = 64.62 avg.
THE REST
USC: #264, 42, 57, 64, 65, 19, 36, 32 = 72.37 avg. (One top-20 class)
Gonzaga: #39, 139, 38, *, 131, 42, 108, 15 = 73.14 avg.* (One top-20 class)
Butler: #213, 63, 61, 57, 50, 63, 103, 45 = 81.87 avg.
San Diego State: #41, 252, 253, 38, 54, 15, 50, 97 = 100 avg. (One top-20 class)
* Represents a season in which a team's recruiting class rank wasn't available using 247Sports' Composite Rankings.
While Indiana is mentioned among the blue bloods of college basketball, it recruits at a lower level than the rest. Under Crean, Indiana's recruiting rankings have been consistently good but not great, and the two highest-rated classes -- 2012 and 2013 -- didn't really pan out. Indiana's annual incoming talent level is more akin to Florida State, Baylor, Michigan State, UConn, Ohio State and N.C. State, on average, so maybe those are the teams that the Hoosiers should be measured against in a post-Bob Knight world.
There are few conversation topics among Indiana basketball fans that are discussed as frequently as roster management. Roster management encompasses areas such as recruiting, scholarship commitments, positional depth and transfers both in and out of the program.
It was recruiting that re-invigorated Indiana to bring the program out of the gutter in the aftermath of Kelvin Sampson's tenure in Bloomington but it has also led to several up-and-down seasons since, and ultimately leaving some fans wondering if the program has reached its ceiling under Indiana coach Tom Crean. For being included among college basketball's blue bloods, Indiana doesn't consistently recruit at the level of its so-called peers.
Here's a comparison of the annual recruiting rankings among college basketball's blue blood programs using 247Sports' Composite Team Rankings since 2009 (Tom Crean's first full recruiting cycle as Indiana's head coach):
Kentucky: #1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2 = 1.25 avg.
Duke: #24, 13, 2, 36, 9, 1, 2, 1 = 11 avg.
Kansas: #8, 44, 17, 14, 2, 9, 12, 17 = 15.37 avg.
North Carolina: #3, 4, 11, 5, 18, 10, 67, 14 = 16.5 avg.
UCLA: #9, 24, 69, 2, 12, 8, 24, 11 = 19.87 avg.
Indiana: #23, 64, 35, 8, 4, 22, 29, 22 = 25.87 avg.
According to those metrics, Indiana's recruiting class rankings peaked in 2012 and 2013. Of the 11 players who signed to play for Indiana from those two classes, five transferred, two decided to leave school early for the NBA, one exhausted his eligibility, one was dismissed from the team, one didn't qualify academically and one still remains with the program.
The Hoosiers' six-man 2014 recruiting class was another mixed bag as two players transferred after their freshman season (Max Hoetzel and Jeremiah April) and another was dismissed (Emmitt Holt). Guards James Blackmon Jr. and Robert Johnson have become mainstays in Indiana's starting lineup, while Tim Priller has developed into a cult hero among fans, while struggling to see the floor.
Using 247Sports' Composite Rankings, Crean has enrolled five 5-star recruits -- one per season from 2011 to 2015, bookended by Cody Zeller and Thomas Bryant. Few schools can recruit on the level of Kentucky, or Duke in recent years, but for comparison's sake, the Wildcats enrolled the same number of 5-star recruits last fall as Crean has enrolled during his tenure in Bloomington.
Of course recruiting rankings aren't the be-all and end-all in college basketball. Crean saw promise in three-star prospects like Victor Oladipo, Will Sheehey and OG Anunoby, with the former becoming the No. 2 pick in the 2013 NBA draft and the latter will likely be a first-round pick whenever he declares for the draft.
Even if recruiting rankings aren't an exact science for projecting a player's collegiate or professional success, they are a pretty good indicator of blue-chip recruits' professional futures. Gary Parrish of CBS Sports found that top-10 recruits are almost guaranteed to play in the NBA. But it's these prospects that have been elusive for Crean and Indiana's coaching staff.
Zeller was the highest-rated recruit of the Crean era, coming in at No. 10 nationally in the 247Sports Composite Rankings. Noah Vonleh was No. 11, Blackmon Jr. and Bryant were both No. 20, and Yogi Ferrell was No. 21. It's the lack of elite prospects combined with scholarship offers to fringe Power Five recruits that has limited Indiana's ceiling. For every diamond in the rough Crean has discovered and polished -- Oladipo, Anunoby, etc. -- there's at least one Jeremiah April or Tim Priller that winds up in Bloomington. ESPN lists 27 players in the 2014 recruiting class who reportedly received a scholarship offer from Indiana. The four lowest-rated players -- Hoetzel, April, Priller and Holt -- all enrolled at Indiana.
Indiana's coaching staff was desperate to add size to the team's roster for the 2014-15 season with 6-foot-8 Hanner Mosquera-Perea and 6-foot-7 Devin Davis being the biggest returning players on scholarship. So the Hoosiers offered the 6-foot-9 Priller and 6-foot-11 April, who both committed in April 2014, and Holt committed to Indiana in August. 247Sports lists that Priller's only other offers were from Albany, the University of Illinois-Chicago and Incarnate Word. April didn't have any other reported offers.
This is a long way of saying Indiana doesn't land enough elite recruits and has historically signed too many players who take up a valuable scholarship spot without contributing much on the court.
Here is a more detailed breakdown of the average recruiting class ranking of many of the top teams in the country since 2009 using 247Sports' Composite Rankings. It was worth noting that one or two poorly ranked recruiting classes can significantly affect a team's average but the numbers below consider both consistency and high-level recruiting.
TIER 1
Kentucky: #1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2 = 1.25 avg. (Eight top-10 classes)
TIER 2
Arizona: #12, 36, 4, 3, 11, 3, 3, 6 = 9.75 avg. (Five top-10 classes, seven top-20)
Duke: #24, 13, 2, 36, 9, 1, 2, 1 = 11 avg (Five top-10 classes, six top-20)
TIER 3
Kansas: #8, 44, 17, 14, 2, 9, 12, 17 = 15.37 avg. (Three top-10 classes, seven top-20)
North Carolina: #3, 4, 11, 5, 18, 10, 67, 14 = 16.5 avg. (Four top-10 classes, seven top-20)
Texas: #2, 23, 5, 9, 41, 45, 17, 5 = 18.37 avg. (Four top-10 classes, five top-20)
UCLA: #9, 24, 69, 2, 12, 8, 24, 11 = 19.87 avg. (Three top-10 classes, five top-20)
TIER 4
Indiana: #23, 64, 35, 8, 4, 22, 29, 22 = 25.87 avg. (Two top-10 classes)
Florida State: #4, 21, 44, 23, 42, 58, 11, 12 = 26.87 avg. (One top-10 class, three top-20)
Baylor: #19, 8, 22, 4, 23, 59, 41, 40 = 27 avg. (Two top-10 classes, three top-20)
Michigan State: #28, 10, 19, 12, 76, 48, 25, 3 = 27.62 avg. (Two top-10 classes, four top-20)
UConn: #11, 22, 33, 27, 40, 44, 39, 8 = 28 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Ohio State: *, 2, 6, 106, 36, 6, 5, 41 = 28.85 avg.* (Four top-10 classes)
N.C. State: #18, 6, 109, 11, 10, 18, 61, 4 = 29.62 avg. (Two top-10 classes, six top-20)
TIER 5
Texas A&M: #33, 27, 43, 22, 44, 50, 4, 19 = 30.25 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Villanova: #5, 34, 25, 30, 32, 46, 30, 44 = 30.75 avg. (One top-10 class)
Louisville: #17, 61, 3, 74, 5, 5, 6, 89 = 32.5 avg. (Four top-10 classes, five top-20)
Marquette: #15, 15, 36, 63, 7, 94, 13, 23 = 33.25 avg. (One top-10 class, four top-20)
Florida: #95, 7, 20, 24, 31, 14, 19, 60 = 33.75 avg. (One top-10 class, four top-20 classes)
Oklahoma State: #16, 29, 30, 45, 47, 26, 28, 57 = 34.75 avg. (One top-20 class)
Illinois: #38, 11, 10, *, 14, 55, 16, 101 = 35 avg.* (One top-10 class, four top-20)
LSU: #63, 25, 41, 52, 6, 37, 9, 50 = 35.37 avg. (Two top-10 classes)
Alabama: #20, 18, 8, 72, 28, 23, 68, 49 = 35.75 avg. (One top-10 class, three top-20)
Virginia: #55, 17, 40, 15, 57, 41, 57, 7 = 36.12 avg. (One top-10 class, three top-20)
Auburn: #56, 28, 51, 31, 70, 32, 15, 10 = 36.62 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Michigan: #35, 48, 28, 7, 13, 28, 107, 31 = 37.12 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Maryland: #47, 31, 90, 13, 43, 13, 51, 13 = 37.62 avg. (Three top-20 classes)
Syracuse: #190, 5, 14, 39, 8, 33, 8, 18 = 39.37 avg. (Three top-10 classes, five top-20)
TIER 6
Oregon: #30, 122, 24, 32, 49, 27, 18, 20 = 40.25 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Arkansas: #31, 66, 7, 48, 19, 35, 97, 29 = 41.5 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Washington: #25, 32, 26, 108, 29, 89, 7, 34 = 43.75 avg. (One top-10 class)
Notre Dame: #58, 51, 53, 34, 15, 56, 44, 42 = 44.12 avg. (One top-20 class)
Arizona State: #29, 39, 47, 65, 75, 34, 59, 21 = 46.12 avg.
Memphis: #113, 3, 67, 49, 3, 38, 10, 92 = 46.87 avg. (Three top-10 classes)
Georgetown: #106, 12, 16, 17, 89, 7, 26, 103 = 47 avg. (One top-10 class, four top-20)
Purdue: #50, 35, 88, 16, 27, 31, 38, 96 = 47.62 avg. (One top-20 class)
Pitt: #21, 33, 13, 21, 30, 84, 84, 102 = 48.5 avg. (One top-20 class)
Tennessee: #119, 9, 37, 40, 34, 40, 63, 48 = 48.75 avg. (One top-10 class)
TIER 7
Virginia Tech: #44, 56, 12, 103, 64, 21, 23, 81 = 50.5 avg. (One top-20 class)
Minnesota: #13, *, 59, 76, 88, 60, 40, 30 = 52.28 avg.* (One top-20 class)
Cincinnati: #27, 84, 27, 104, 25, 36, 58, 62 = 52.87 avg.
Xavier: #170, 19, 21, 26, 61, 17, 110, 28 = 56.5 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Georgia Tech: #6, 62, 54, 10, 71, 52, 134, 69 = 57.25 avg. (Two top-10 classes)
Ole Miss: #46, 45, 58, 33, 72, 53, 94, 59 = 57.5 avg.
Miami: #14, 53, 140, 102, 33, 24, 83, 16 = 58.12 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Oklahoma: #7, 43, 171, 47, 83, 39, 54, 27 = 58.87 avg. (One top-10 class)
Kansas State: #22, 49, 49, 98, 51, 57, 74, 73 = 59.12 avg.
UNLV: #36, 255, 74, 6, 22, 4, 14, 70 = 60.5 avg. (Two top-10 classes, three top-20)
St. John's: #65, 146, 9, 29, 82, 102, 27, 24 = 60.5 avg. (One top-10 class)
Iowa State: #34, 70, 75, 41, 37, 115, 75, 38 = 60.62 avg.
Stanford: #221, 16, 89, 35, 46, 12, 37, 54 = 63.75 avg. (Two top-20 classes)
Mississippi State: #26, 244, 15, 37, 85, 74, 22, 9 = 64 avg. (One top-10 class, two top-20)
Wisconsin: #57, 57, 42, 56, 39, 120, 46, 100 = 64.62 avg.
THE REST
USC: #264, 42, 57, 64, 65, 19, 36, 32 = 72.37 avg. (One top-20 class)
Gonzaga: #39, 139, 38, *, 131, 42, 108, 15 = 73.14 avg.* (One top-20 class)
Butler: #213, 63, 61, 57, 50, 63, 103, 45 = 81.87 avg.
San Diego State: #41, 252, 253, 38, 54, 15, 50, 97 = 100 avg. (One top-20 class)
* Represents a season in which a team's recruiting class rank wasn't available using 247Sports' Composite Rankings.
While Indiana is mentioned among the blue bloods of college basketball, it recruits at a lower level than the rest. Under Crean, Indiana's recruiting rankings have been consistently good but not great, and the two highest-rated classes -- 2012 and 2013 -- didn't really pan out. Indiana's annual incoming talent level is more akin to Florida State, Baylor, Michigan State, UConn, Ohio State and N.C. State, on average, so maybe those are the teams that the Hoosiers should be measured against in a post-Bob Knight world.