Basketball
Rebuilding an entire roster in an offseason is no longer unusual in college basketball. Darian DeVries did it a year ago at West Virginia, and now, he’ll have to do it at Indiana.
Many of WVU’s players who transferred out a year ago were likely out the door regardless of who the hire was going to be. This situation in Indiana is a little different, though. The Hoosiers have some really talented players who have opted to hit the portal, including their top offensive producers – Malik Reneau, Mackenzie Mgbako, and Myles Rice.
As a matter of fact, Mackenzie Mgbako told our Indiana Hoosiers On SI publisher, Tom Brew, that there is “no chance” he is coming back to Indiana.
DeVries’s Hoosiers currently have zero players on the roster. Well, that’s outside of Tucker DeVries. Does this say something about how the players feel about the hire? Perhaps. Then again, every player’s situation is different. Some just want more playing time, others have their eyes on more money, and some just may not be a good fit. Players like Reneau, Mgbako, and Rice, however, should be able to fit in just about any system, and clearly, Indiana has the money to keep them. So, that’s interesting.
New West Virginia head coach Ross Hodge will have to rebuild the roster from scratch also, but that was going to happen even if DeVries stayed. The Mountaineers had several seniors, and the underclassmen who can return are open to coming back if it’s the right fit.
If you remember, WVU assistant head coach Chester Frazier is the one who brought in Sencire Harris and Amani Hansberry. He wasn’t hired until about a month after DeVries landed at WVU. GM Nelson Hernandez had a connection with Javon Small at Oklahoma State, so in reality, the only significant “recruit” DeVries landed was his son, Tucker.
It’s not time for anyone to panic in Bloomington, but Hoosier fans should be concerned to some degree.
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