There may not be a player on the Indiana roster with a greater change in role from 2020-2021 to 2021-2022 than Trey Galloway. Galloway began last season as a starter, but injuries ultimately removed him from that spot and forced him to the bottom of the rotation.
He may have started his college career at the top of the mountain, but Galloway now likely finds himself towards the bottom of the rotation with a new coach and revamped roster. His second season of college ball will be an uphill battle as he claws for minutes in a deep backcourt.
Still, there are plenty of opportunities for Galloway to make an impact on his team. Let's take a look into what lies ahead for the Indiana native.
2020-2021 Recap
Stats: 3.6 points, 1.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 41.7% field goal
Somewhat surprisingly, the freshman Galloway began the season as a starter and looked good in his role. In his first-ever college game against Tennessee Tech, he scored 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting. That was his highest scoring output during the season, but his best game came against Penn State in December.
Galloway showed off all parts of his game against the Nittany Lions, scoring 10 points alongside five assists and four rebounds. The story after that game was Galloway's playmaking ability, as he was the main setup man for the Hoosier offense the whole game.
The trajectory of Galloway's improvement and performance was rocked in mid-January when he suffered a back injury. The pain caused him to miss several games and affected his ability to perform upon returning. The freshman lost his starting spot and really struggled the remainder of the season.
Improvements for this season
As anyone who has dealt with back issues can attest, it can be near impossible at times to move when that area of your body isn't happy. The Trey Galloway in non-conference and early Big Ten play looks like a completely different player than the Trey Galloway late in the season. A section of Hoosier fans that think he just straight-up can't play, but health played a factor in his performance.
That said, some areas of improvement in Galloway's game have nothing to do with back issues. For starters, he shot an atrocious 18.2 percent from three -- an unacceptable percentage for any guard in today's game. If he wants to get good playing time under Mike Woodson, his outside shot has to improve.
Unfortunately, the second-year freshman has a lot of work to do on his form. His shot has a noticeable hitch, making it clunky and resulting in plentiful short misses.
Galloway's handle could also stand to improve. He isn't a bad ball-handler now, but he only possesses the ability to perform straight-line drives to the rim. Improving the ability to change direction would give him more opportunities to use his playmaking and finishing gifts.
Expectations for this season
As cliche as it is, Galloway is a player any coach would love to have on their team. No one can question his effort, and that effort should result in substantial improvement each offseason.
Given the structural limitations of his shooting form, it is unlikely Galloway enters into next season shooting the lights out. Lots of remodeling needs to be done on his mechanics. However, he should come back in with a more reliable shot and overall improvement in other areas of his game. It is reasonable to expect a three-point percentage increase to around 25 percent.
Galloway should thrive in a role off the bench, especially if he is on the court with scorers like Parker Stewart who can handle most of the scoring load. This will be a crucial year for the Indiana-native's development as he takes another step towards being what I expect to be a very solid college basketball player down the road.
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