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Indiana Basketball: What NBA scouts are saying about Indiana’s roster

By Alec Lasley

BLOOMINGTON, IN - NOVEMBER 09: Indiana Hoosiers players take the floor against the Montana State Bobcats in the second half of the game at Assembly Hall on November 9, 2018 in Bloomington, Indiana. The Hoosiers won 80-35. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, IN - NOVEMBER 09: Indiana Hoosiers players take the floor against the Montana State Bobcats in the second half of the game at Assembly Hall on November 9, 2018 in Bloomington, Indiana. The Hoosiers won 80-35. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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The Indiana basketball program was a topic of discussion in a recent article in regards to where some of their star players would be drafted.

One of the biggest topics of discussion this season for Indiana basketball has been the talent, or lack thereof on the roster.

Some people look at top-100 recruits such as Justin Smith, De’Ron Davis (returning from a torn achilles),  Jerome Hunter (who has yet to play due to a leg injury), and Robert Phinisee who was just outside of the top-100, as players who should be more capable of maybe what they can do at this stage of their careers.

Obviously with Romeo Langford, a top-10 recruit in 2018 and projected lottery pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, and bringing back Juwan Morgan, ranked the preseason 31st best player in the country on CBS Sports, the expectations were sky high. But were they too high?

At 13-14 (4-12), Indiana is looking at missing the tournament in both of the first two seasons under Archie Miller, so many people are getting anxious.

Though the Hoosiers do have talent, it was interesting what some NBA scouts had to say about the roster. 

"“They have one guy (Juwan Morgan) who will probably play in the G-League. The rest of those guys would be substitutes coming off the bench on the good teams in the Big Ten. It’s just not a very talented team.”“The first game I scouted Indiana in person was at Duke, and Romeo was one of the few guys who could even function in the first half. The rest of the guys could not function until the game was already over. The stage was too big."

With so many underclassmen on the roster, despite their ranking, it is difficult to put so much responsibility on their shoulders. It is very rare for freshmen or even sophomores to come in and start and carry the load. Obviously there are outliers such as Kentucky, Duke and Kansas, but if you look at the recent success of the NCAA Tournament, the teams who have made it farthest have rosters filled with upperclassmen (UNC, Villanova, Gonzaga, Michigan, Wisconsin).

As for Romeo Langford, there has been talk whether or not he would still be a top 10 pick, and in some cases even a lottery pick, with the slump that he went through about a month ago, but two different scouts put that to rest.

SCOUT ONE:

"“He’s still a lottery pick because the overall talent is there. You can see it. He can score, and people are always going to like that. The final piece that people will be looking at is his shooting, but he’s gotten better with that this season.”"

SCOUT TWO:

"“I like Romeo. To me, Romeo is a top-five pick. He will go no later than No. 8….Does he need to improve his shot? Yes. Does he need to get stronger? Yes — so do nine out every 10 guys coming out of college basketball. Romeo will be fine.”"

As disappointing as this season has been, it is clear that in NBA eyes, the current Indiana basketball roster is nowhere close to where it needs to be to compete on the big stage.

Next. Late threes doom Hoosiers in loss. dark

Just keep in mind, there is only one full recruiting class that Archie Miller has brought it, so before you start blaming him about the talent, look at the pieces he inherited.

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