James Blackmon Jr.’s Season Recap: The Injury that Changed a Season
By Edward Koton
On December 28th, the Hoosiers lost James Blackmon Jr. for the season. To the surprise of many, his absence actually seemed to be the best for both parties.
I’m willing to go on record and say that James Blackmon Jr.’s injury early on in the season was a good thing for this Indiana basketball team, and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one who would be willing to say that.
With that said, there are two sides to the argument that most people look for and I don’t agree with either. I’m that faithful little outsider that believes in option number three.
The first argument is quite simple. James Blackmon Jr. is just too talented to even consider his injury to be beneficial to this basketball team. The former 4-star guard was arguably the best player on the team before going down and Indiana’s success after his injury was just coincidence.
The second argument surrounds the negative ways in which Blackmon’s game affect the team. JBJ has too many defensive lapses to compete and finds ways to be too selfish. Without Blackmon on the floor, the team improved defensively and came together better.
Now, my beliefs are a bit more complex.
This Indiana basketball team was not in any way better without him, but they were better because of his absence.
Calm down Drake, I know you’re confused. Just let me explain.
When looking back at this season, everyone likes to make the dramatic exclamation of “wow, IU went from 1-2 in Maui to Big Ten Champions!” Now, what this statement neglects to mention is the fact that this team didn’t improve directly after Maui either. One would have thought that Maui would have been the wake-up call this team needed, but it seemed this basketball team was destined for failure as the season wore on. The team that lost by 20 to Duke on December 2nd was the same exact team that lost in Maui. There was no urgency. There was no unity. It was brutal.
What James Blackmon Jr.’s injury did was send this basketball team into alert. It created the urgency that apparently Maui couldn’t. No one seemed to recognize the putrid path this team was going down until JBJ went down. James Blackmon Jr.’s injury created adversity. Adversity which made this team stronger.
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Other players had to step up quick and that’s why guys like OG Anunoby, Colin Hartman, and Max Bielfeldt had the seasons that they did.
James Blackmon Jr.’s injury in no way improved the talent level of this basketball team. Rather, it improved its mentality.
A team doesn’t just replace 15.8 points per game, 2.8 3-point field goals per game, and a 46.3 shooting percentage from behind the arc.
That team must find new ways to win, and that’s exactly what happened with Indiana.
And it can’t without mentioning that JBJ’s injury especially seemed to light a fire in Yogi Ferrell. In Blackmon’s absence, Yogi completely took over this team and pretty much became its only ball handler. With Blackmon still there, it would have been intersting to see how those two iso-scorers would have gelled.
Now, looking ahead there are still some question marks.
The first thing that has to be discussed moving forward are the absurd rumors that Blackmon will be transferring. When I say rumors, I mean that one guy on twitter that started an Indiana Twitter Firestorm.
There is no justified reason for James Blackmon Jr. to transfer.
First of all, that means sitting out another season of basketball, which I’m sure a future NBA talent like JBJ doesn’t want any part of.
Secondly, transferring would mean James Blackmon Jr. would be missing out on the opportunity to take claim of this Indiana basketball team.
Yes, this Indiana basketball team is all his if he wants it next year. If he’s ready for it, now is his chance.
Without Yogi Ferrell bringing up the ball, JBJ is the star ball handler that this team needs.
He often gets forgotten because of his injury, but looking at next season, he’s the guy.
If he plays up to his potential next season, he’s Indiana’s leading scorer, leading facilitator, and just simply its overall leader.
The only things that this man really needs to improve upon are his passing ability and his defensive motor, but if he truly seeks greatness, that shouldn’t be a problem.
Not too long ago people were talking about him being one of the best player’ in the nation.
Although the injury derailed him, it has set up his next season to be the season where he proves he is not only an NBA talent, but a leader.