As we saw last week with UConn head coach Dan Hurley entertaining a move to the NBA, and top Purdue signee Kanon Catchings released from his national letter of intent, things are always fluid in college basketball.
But with the NBA Draft early entry deadline now behind us, and most of the top talent in the transfer portal now signed, we can look at the way-too-early rankings for the 2024-25 season with a straight face.
Below we’ve summarized nine different national outlets who updated their 2024-25 rankings over the last week or so.
With their overhauled roster, Indiana is a consensus preseason top-25 team across all of those prognostications, with the range being from No. 12 to No. 24, and their average spot being No. 17. If bracketologies are more your thing, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi currently thinks IU is a No. 4 seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
Indiana is also a consensus top-four team in the Big Ten, although they weren’t picked by anyone to be the best team in the league. Big Ten teams ranked ahead of IU in any of these outlooks included UCLA, Purdue and Ohio State. It’s worth noting most of these predictions were made before Purdue lost Catchings. The Boilermakers are the most common team from the now 18-team league predicted to finish ahead of IU.
Each outlet that predicted a starting lineup for the Hoosiers came up with the same one: Myles Rice, Kanaan Carlyle, Mackenzie Mgbako, Malik Reneau and Oumar Ballo.
Here’s an overview, with their commentary to the extent any was included:
Andy Katz: No. 12
(Second in Big Ten)
Here’s what they said:
The Hoosiers could end up being the Big Ten champs with a roster that returns Mackenzie Mgbako, Malik Reneau, Trey Galloway and a portal haul of Oumar Ballo, Myles Rice, Kanaan Carlyle and Luke Goode.
Jon Rothstein: No. 15
(Second in Big Ten)
FOX Sports: No. 15
(Second in Big Ten)
Jeff Goodman: No. 17
(Second in Big Ten)
247Sports: No. 17
(Second in Big Ten)
Here’s what they said:
The scoop: Indiana may very well have the most resources of any team in the Big Ten. It flexed its muscles in the transfer portal, reeling in Myles Rice, Kanaan Carlyle and Oumar Ballo, to transform the makeup of this roster. It also shored up two of its biggest weaknesses. Indiana was a poor rebounding team last year. Ballo will help change that. Indiana’s guards were terrible in pick-and-rolls last year. Rice and Carlyle will help change that.
The talent is clear, but the fit of Reneau and Ballo together could be a bit clunky unless Mike Woodson opts to ditch the two-big lineup, at times. He has the roster flexibility to do it thanks to the addition of freshman sensation Bryson Tucker and Illinois transfer sharpshooter Luke Goode. Will he pull the trigger during the moments when Ballo and Reneau are crowded on top of each other? If Woodson will accommodate more pace and space, Indiana can be the Big Ten’s best team.
ESPN: No. 18
(Second in Big Ten)
Here’s what they said:
Mike Woodson got his offseason work done early, as the Hoosiers were the big winners of the first wave of portal season. The Hoosiers landed Arizona transfer Oumar Ballo, the top-ranked player in the portal, as well as top-15 guard transfers Myles Rice (Washington State) and Kanaan Carlyle (Stanford). Three starters also return: Malik Reneau, Mackenzie Mgbako and Trey Galloway. They added Illinois transfer Luke Goode to address their shooting woes, although another perimeter sniper with size could help.
CBS Sports: No. 18
(Third in Big Ten)
This ranking is based on Mike Woodson’s Hoosiers returning three of the top four scorers — specifically Malik Reneau, Mackenzie Mgbako and Trey Galloway — from a team that finished tied for sixth in the Big Ten. The additions of Myles Rice (Washington State), Oumar Ballo (Arizona), Kanaan Carlyle (Stanford) and Luke Goode (Illinois) from the transfer portal means Indiana is adding four experienced pieces, three of whom just spent a season starting in the Pac-12.
On3: No. 21
(Third in Big Ten)
Bart Torvik: No. 24
(Fourth in Big Ten)
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