Indiana Basketball: Top 5 recruiting classes of the decade

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BLOOMINGTON, IN – JANUARY 07: Robert Johnson #4, Thomas Bryant #31 and James Blackmon Jr. #1 of the Indiana Hoosiers celebrate in the second half of the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Assembly Hall on January 7, 2017 in Bloomington, Indiana. Indiana defeated Illinois 96-80. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

3. 2014 Class (No. 21 overall class)

James Blackmon Jr (No. 20 overall recruit)

Robert Johnson (No. 49 overall recruit)

Emmitt Holt (No. 260 overall recruit)

Max Hoetzel (No. 364 overall recruit)

Jeremiah April (No. 410 overall recruit)

Tim Priller (No. 436 overall recruit)

This was one of the largest classes of the decade with six members joining the Indiana program, but only two of them made serious impacts.

While Jeremiah April, Max Hoetzel, and Emmitt Holt all had their mishaps along the way and transferred out of the program, the likes of James Blackmon and Robert Johnson turned out to be some of the best players of the past decade.

Blackmon spent three seasons with the Hoosiers, and while sidelined at times by injuries, was one of the best shooters in the Big Ten all three seasons.

Averaging 16.3 points for his career, he shot 41.5 percent from three and 45 percent from the field as well. His last season in Bloomington, Blackmon made 91 3-point field goals, which ranks second all-time in IU single-season history.

At the time, fans seemed to want more from Blackmon, but looking back, having someone of that scoring and shooting ability has yet to come to Bloomington since.

As for Robert Johnson, the Virginia native finished Indiana ranked 21st in Indiana history with 1,413 points, a career average of 11.0 points per game. As one of the most consistent members of the lineup, Johnson finished his career ranked 4th in all-time starts (118).

The combo guard was forced to play a few positions during his time at Indiana, and his senior season, he was forced to be the go-to player on the roster, averaging 14.0 points and became one of the best shooters in Indiana history, ranking 4th in 3-pt made field goals (239).

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