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It\u2019s been a productive week for the IU basketball staff in the transfer portal.<\/p>\n
On Monday, the Hoosiers landed commitments from Georgia Tech wing Jaeden Mustaf<\/a>, Duke guard Darren Harris<\/a> and Notre Dame guard Markus Burton<\/a>.<\/p>\n On Tuesday, IU added 7-foot-2 SMU transfer Samet Yigitoglu<\/a>.<\/p>\n And on Wednesday, Alabama forward Aiden Sherrell<\/a> committed, as did Villanova guard Bryce Lindsay<\/a>.<\/p>\n With 10 roster spots filled, the Hoosiers are only a few spots shy of a full roster for the 2026-27 season. The starting lineup for next season may already be on the roster.<\/p>\n The focus now turns to the remaining roster spots for Darian DeVries and the coaching staff. Here\u2019s a look at the potential roles the Hoosiers could look to fill this spring:<\/p>\n A backup frontcourt contributor<\/p>\n The duo of Sherrell and Yigitoglu should comprise the starting frontcourt for the Hoosiers next winter.<\/p>\n Both were starters last season for major conference programs that reached the NCAA tournament.<\/p>\n But it seems unlikely that Indiana would want to enter the season without more depth up front. Positionally, it would be good to have someone who could mainly serve as a backup to Yigitoglu, who was in foul trouble in several games last season at SMU and averaged 28.9 minutes per game.<\/p>\n Sherrell is obviously capable of playing the five \u2013 he did so all of last season at Alabama \u2013 but adding another big man capable of playing 8-10 minutes per game would solidify Indiana\u2019s depth up front.<\/p>\n Bigs are obviously at a premium in the portal and highly coveted, so it will be interesting to see what caliber of player IU can land for this role if it chooses to use a roster spot here.<\/p>\n Another ball handler for backup minutes<\/p>\n Markus Burton has averaged 33.2 minutes per game over his career at Notre Dame.<\/p>\n The 6-foot point guard was brought to Bloomington to be the starting point guard. Villanova transfer Bryce Lindsay played some on the ball this past season \u2013 a role he could continue with the Hoosiers \u2013 and freshman Prince-Alexander Moody is a combo guard.<\/p>\n This doesn\u2019t seem as pressing a need as another frontcourt addition, but it could make sense to bring in another guard for backup point guard minutes.<\/p>\n The staff may feel Lindsay can play on the ball when Burton goes to the bench. Or perhaps they\u2019re hopeful Moody, who had an excellent senior season at Bishop McNamara (Md.) will be able to earn minutes in his first season.<\/p>\n But you can never have too many guards in college basketball and having another capable ball handler off the bench would fully solidify the backcourt rotation.<\/p>\n An international player looking to develop, a player looking to move up a level in a limited role or available 2026 recruit<\/p>\n The reality of minutes distribution in college basketball is that most successful programs play only a core of seven, eight or at most nine guys.<\/p>\n If the roster of scholarship players is going to be 13, as Indiana went with last season, that leaves several spots that will get limited to no minutes when conference play arrives.<\/p>\n With the core of the rotation seemingly established, is there an international player who might be looking for a program to develop in with the hopes of stepping into a bigger role in the 2027-28 season?<\/p>\n Or would IU look for a player from the mid or low-major level willing to accept a limited role for the opportunity to move up to the Big Ten level? <\/p>\n There\u2019s also the possibility that the staff likes an available class of 2026 recruit enough to add another freshman to next season\u2019s roster.<\/p>\n While it might be fun for the fanbase to daydream of a roster of 13 players all capable of seeing the floor, that\u2019s not realistic, nor should it be the expectation.<\/p>\n