Myles Rice's commitment was huge for Mike Woodson and the Indiana Hoosiers, but they still have a lot of work to do on a roster which is heavily rough around the edges.
Rice will not solve all of this team's problems, but his presence does shore up the point guard rotation. He should make everyone around him better, but this is a depth chart that still has some crater-sized holes yet to fill.
As a point of reference, consider the following rotation outline:
PG | Myles Rice (6'3", 180 lbs | Sophomore), Gabe Cupps (6'2", 175 lbs | Sophomore)
SG | Trey Galloway (6'5", 205 lbs | Senior), Jakai Newton (6'3", 205 lbs | Sophomore)
SF | Bryson Tucker (6'7", 185 lbs | Freshman), Anthony Leal (6'5", 200 lbs | Senior)
PF | Mackenzie Mgbako (6'8", 220 lbs | Sophomore)
C | Malik Reneau (6'9", 235 lbs | Junior)
While this is an 8-man unit flush with potential, there are two humongous areas of need: SIZE and SHOOTING.
Malik Reneau is sturdy enough to wrestle with most centers, but he is miscast at the 5 spot given his 6'9", 235 pound frame. The idea of breakout candidate Mackenzie Mgbako spending more time at the 4 is interesting, but those minutes would probably be best served alongside a larger big man who can control the boards and protect the paint. Malik Reneau can do a lot of things well, but he is neither a great rebounder nor shot blocker. Oumar Ballo seems like a logical fit, and our fingers are crossed on his impending recruiting process.
Indiana has received a Crystal Ball prediction from @TravisBranham_ to land the No. 1 ranked player in the country in the @247SportsPortal rankings, Arizona 7-foot center Oumar Ballo. IU is hosting Ballo for an official visit this weekend. #iubb https://t.co/k0mYGWY95i
— Jeff Rabjohns (@JeffRabjohns) April 12, 2024
Aside from Ballo, Connor Hickman seems like a logical plug to help patch up the shooting void. This a team that shot a putrid 32.4% from deep in 2023-2024, and it is Mike Woodson's duty to learn from his previous mistakes. Hickman could fill a similar role to that of Nick Zeisloft's two seasons under Tom Crean after he came over from Illinois State prior to the 2014-2015 campaign.
Similar to Ballo in the size department, Hickman would not immediately solve all of this team's shooting woes. However, his commitment would be a superb start in addressing that area of weakness. The 6'3" sniper splashed 40.2% of his 5.9 attempts from deep this year, and is among the most lethal marksman on the market.
We could nitpick a need for another perimeter wing defender with size, but Bryson Tucker should offer them an upgrade to the services received from CJ Gunn during the 2023-2024 season in that area. Plus, the areas of size and shooting are of insanely larger need.
With 5 scholarships left to allocate, the hope is that at least 2 of those could come in the form of a shooter and a big man in the not-so-distant future. It has already been a big weekend for Mike Woodson and this program, but the weekend wizardry may not be done just yet.