With a new season on the horizon, Indiana’s Mike Woodson wants to do something he hasn’t done in his first three seasons in Bloomington: push the pace.
Since he took the podium in the Assembly Hall press room at Indiana’s institutional media days in September, Woodson has been preaching that his team will look to run the floor.
Woodson reiterated his desire to play fast at Big Ten Media Days earlier in the month in Chicago.
“We got guards now that are a lot quicker than we’ve had in the past,” Woodson said. "That’s something we’ve been working on since we put this team together this summer.”
Last season, the Hoosiers were 155th in the country in possessions per game and seemed to struggle in half-court sets at various times throughout the season.
A departure from Woodson’s traditional style of playing with a set offense, the new-look will depend on the guards that the Indiana coaching staff brought in over the summer. The Hoosiers brought in three guards, with two coming via the portal.
"We had to back out and regroup, which is the new wave in college basketball," Woodson said of the busy summer in the portal. "I'm pleased with where we are."
With a pair of PAC-12 guards -- Washington State's Myles Rice and Stanford's Kanaan Carlyle -- transferring in, Woodson has the tools to pick up the pace, seemingly for the first time in his tenure.
Rice and Carlyle both transfer from programs that played swiftly, so the transition for the duo will be seamless.
In contrast to Indiana’s style of play, Washington State’s offense, led by Myles Rice, was in the top-50 in effective possession ratio, which is a formula measuring a team’s ability to generate scoring opportunities.
Rice noted at Big Ten media days last week that he and Carlyle are earning the trust of his teammates when pushing the floor in practice.
"I always tell everybody when we're doing our live sessions 'if me and Kanaan [Carlyle] get it, just run with us," Rice said. "That was the most important thing I wanted to communicate with the team. It makes the game easier for us."
A contributing factor to Indiana’s success with the new-look offense will depend on the depth of the backcourt.
In years past, Indiana had a drastic drop-off in talent from the starting guards to those coming off the bench.
This year, it’s much different.
Although the rotation is far from being set, five guards are capable of making a difference on the floor.
"When you look at college basketball, teams are winning in the backcourt," Woodson said. "I think we've addressed those problems.
Conditioning has been something the coaching staff has been preaching in the preseason practices.
Woodson knows that without his team being in shape, the offense won’t have the ability to play with the same fast-paced style for 40 minutes every night.
"Conditioning plays a major role," Woodson said. "You're style gotta change a little bit too."
Last season, Indiana averaged 12.1 turnovers per game, which ranked them 216th among division one teams.
The Law of averages tells you that teams who play quicker will turn the ball over more.
Although he is well aware of the potential for more turnovers, Woodson is certain that the reward far outweighs the risk and that the ends justify the means.
"That's the downside of playing fast," Woodson said of the turnover risk. "I don't like turning the ball over, but I'll have to give them a little more leeway."
The regular season doesn’t officially tip for another 24 days; fans will get their first glimpse of the new-look offense during the Hoosiers’ scrimmage at Hoosier Hysteria Friday evening at Assembly Hall.
There are concepts of what Indiana’s hybrid offense could look like this season, but there isn’t any film.
The Hoosiers will undoubtedly keep opponents on their toes, both metaphorically and literally, and Woodson is eager to get play underway.
"I think only time will tell once we see where we are as a ball club."
–––––
Like this content? Join the conversation on TheHoosier.com's premium message boards and subscribe today!
– Follow TheHoosier on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!
– Subscribe to TheHoosier on YouTube for more content
– Interact with fellow fans on TheHoosier's Premium Football Board and Premium Hoops Board
