Darian DeVries' solid week in the transfer portal has Indiana basketball fans fired up.
DeVries and new executive director of basketball Ryan Carr have Indiana's 2026-27 rounding into form by adding six players via the portal this week. The Hoosiers have added shooting guard Jaeden Mustaf from Georgia Tech, guard Darren Harris from Duke, point guard Markus Burton from Notre Dame, center Samet Yigitoglu from SMU, power forward Aiden Sherrell from Alabama, and guard Bryce Lindsay from Villanova.
Ex-Hoosier uses monster mid-major season to level back up to Power 4 team via portal
Those portal additions figure to make up the core of Indiana's roster next season, and the Hoosiers are quickly putting themselves on the map heading into DeVries' second season at the helm.
Indiana's portal class is drawing plenty of attention for all the right reasons
There's no denying that Indiana's portal class so far is putting the country on notice. As it stands, IU's portal class is ranked No. 1 in the country by On3, and No. 2 in the country by 247Sports.
The Hoosiers have done whatever it takes to land some of the top players on the market, including Alabama power forward Aiden Sherrell. Sherrell is ranked as the No. 11 overall player in the portal, and Indiana reportedly beat out Michigan State, Duke, North Carolina, and LSU, among others, to land his services.
DeVries has also found much-needed size in the portal, as the combination of Sherrell and 7'2" SMU transfer Samet Yigitoglu have great potential to make up one of the most dangerous front courts in the country.
Furthermore, Notre Dame's Markus Burton is a true bucket-getter, and he figures to replace plenty of production that Lamar Wilkerson provided this past season. The wings are also vastly-improved, as Bryce Lindsay is a knock-down shooter and Jaeden Mustaf can provide some physicality on the boards. Duke transfer Darren Harris also figures to contribute early on after struggling to find minutes on some loaded Blue Devil teams the past two seasons.
High-major transfers have been a priority for Darian DeVries
Last offseason, DeVries built his first portal class at Indiana by finding experienced players who logged a lot of minutes for mid-major programs. In fact, zero of IU's 10 incoming transfers last season had multiple years of experience at the high-major level. All six incoming transfers this season (so far) have that high-major experience.
When watching the Hoosiers this past season, it was clear that they didn't possess the size, physicality, or high-major experience to find the wins necessary to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. They looked small, slow, and out of sync down the stretch when it mattered most.
That should change in Year 2 for DeVries. IU's 2026 portal class is far more proven at the high-major level than last year's portal class. That gives Indiana fans confidence that next year will be different. DeVries and company still have to put it all together, but the Hoosiers are much closer to Big Ten contention thanks to DeVries' strong work in the portal thus far.
As DeVries continues to build Indiana's roster, be sure to follow along with the latest developments using our 2026 Indiana Basketball Transfer Portal Tracker.
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