Indiana basketball media day continued on Wednesday with Archie Miller at the podium, discussing everything Hoosiers related.
Yesterday, it was all about the players who took to the podium for the first day of Indiana basketball media day, but today it was Archie Miller and Mike Roberts who were on stage and ready to give their takes on the offseason and upcoming year for the Hoosiers.
While the big talking point yesterday was the availability of Jerome Hunter, today’s big topic was the importance placed on Devonte Green and more or less of his ‘consistency’.
"“When he’s played throughout our time with us, we’ve had some great wins. Consistency is what we’re looking for.” Said Archie Miller of Green."
In Green’s 91 career games in Bloomington, he has raised his scoring average every year, but also increased his turnovers as well as decreased his shooting percentage. His junior season seemed to exemplify all of that and more as he showed what an electrifying player he can be on both ends of the floor at times, but also the questionable decision-making and poor shot selection at other times.
The Indiana roster needs the electrifying player to show up on most occasions in order to be a successful team and if the end of last year was any indication of what Green could do while being one of the primary options, 2019-20 could be a good season for the senior guard.
After scoring three or fewer points in five of nine games bunched around his suspension in January and into early February, Green finished off the season averaging 15.4 points on 53.7 percent shooting. That wasn’t the only positive mark he finished off the year with. The more important one was his assist-to-turnover ratio. In that final seven game stretch, he had five games of four or more assists, in turn he also had five games with two or less turnovers. For someone who had the ball in his hands for a majority of the game, a near 2.0 A:TO – which he had in that span – ratio will be very good for the Hoosiers this season.
While making plays for others won’t be the majority of his duties this season, his percent rate was highest on the team, at 23.1, four percent higher than that of Phinisee – the leader in assists.
Whether it be the 26-point outing, while making eight threes against Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament, or the 18-point and 11 rebound outing against Arkansas in the NIT, big performances like that will come in bunches, but it’s his consistent double-digit scoring that will be needed first.
There is no question Green is talented and will need to have a stellar year in order for the Hoosiers to succeed, but it’s also up to the coaches to put him in position to best use his skillset.
"“For him to be able to be himself, he’s gotta have some more rope… He’s as talented an offensive player as we have.” Said Miller."
More rope is what Green will be given this season, it’s just up to him on how well he will use it.