IU basketball’s team building for the 2025-26 season is well underway in Bloomington.
The Hoosiers are now in week four of their summer program, which includes four hours per week of on-court work in addition to a full practice each week in preparation for an August trip to Puerto Rico. Indiana will play three exhibition games in Puerto Rico.
It was a busy spring for Darian DeVries, who completely overhauled the IU basketball roster after his hiring on March 18.
DeVries retained signee Trent Sisley, signed 10 players from the transfer portal and recently added Serbian guard Aleksa Ristic, who won’t join the program until later in the summer.
With a new roster, DeVries is beginning to get a feel for the team he’ll have next winter at Indiana.
“I’ve been really pleased with the approach that the group has had for a group of guys that don’t know each other very well, and they’re coming in, and everybody’s got a new role, and maybe they’re all wondering what their expectation level is for for this team and coaches that are all trying to figure it out, too,” DeVries told Inside the Hall. “I think they’ve done a really good job of just buying into whatever we need to do to try to get better individually and as a team.”
It’s no secret that DeVries and the coaching staff prioritized shooting in the transfer portal. The Hoosiers have assembled a solid stable of guards and wings who have attempted – and made – a high volume of 3-pointers throughout their college careers.
Lamar Wilkerson, a transfer from Sam Houston, shot 109-for-245 last season from distance. Jasai Miles, a transfer from North Florida, went 78-for-243. Tucker DeVries is a career 36.7 percent 3-point shooter with more than 275 makes over four seasons.
With no shortage of players who are wired to shoot and score, it’s been encouraging for DeVries that the new roster has exhibited a willingness to make sharing the ball a priority.
“I like their unselfishness a lot. I think they’ve really shared the ball well,” DeVries said. “Usually when you have a new team, it starts off the opposite, because everybody’s trying to establish their role, and they’ve done a really good job of being unselfish. I think we have multiple guys that can really shoot it, which should allow us to get some good floor spacing offensively.”
Defensively, Indiana lacks a traditional rim protector, but is hopeful that it can make up for this perceived deficiency by being connected and communicating effectively.
The Hoosiers have one player – Reed Bailey – who is 6-foot-10 or taller.
“I think it’s going to have to be a really connected group in terms of just making sure that they’re always covering for one another,” DeVries explained. “And we don’t have great rim protection, but I do think we have guys that really understand how to do a wall up, how to perform verticality. I think we can protect each other enough in that regard.”
DeVries acknowledged there are challenges with a brand-new roster. In the current transfer portal environment, players and coaches are forced to get to know each other in a short period.
The staff was diligent in collecting as much information as possible about each player recruited from the portal to identify a group of players that fit together cohesively.
And now that the group is together, DeVries has emphasized effort as the priority in everything the team does.
“The number one thing I told them is that it just starts with effort,” he said. “Like, I don’t care if you don’t understand what we’re doing, just give great effort, even if it’s wrong, and then we can work our way backwards to doing it right later. But just start with great effort, great energy, great enthusiasm, because that’s all kind of contagious stuff. And then the technique of it all, we can build those habits as we go. And I wanted that to be kind of their primary focus.”
Beyond the improved 3-point shooting – IU will take and make more 3-pointers next season – there’s also a focus on two specific areas that DeVries believes are pillars to winning.
“The two things that we talk about in winning is just defensive rebounding and then not turning the ball over,” DeVries said. “So those are two things from just like a schematic, I guess if you want to call it, standpoint, we need to be elite at those two things. And then the rest of the stuff, making and missing shots, now you can survive nights if you’re still good at those two things. So that’s the priorities kind of we want them to carry throughout summer and fall, and as we get into games.”
(Photo credit: IU Athletics)
Category: Media
Filed to: Darian DeVries