Column: Without Jones, where's another win and transfer rumors

Three out of five players in IU’s projected starting lineup at the season’s beginning are out of commission.

Two of the players — sophomore guard Maurice Creek (knee) and junior center Guy-Marc Michel (ineligible) — are out for the season.

The third, junior guard Verdell Jones, is out indefinitely with knee inflammation.

So where does that leave IU?

It leaves the Hoosiers with a thin backcourt that lacks many offensive options. Jones was one of few on the team that could create his own shot with consistency. Sophomore guard Jordan Hulls is capable of that, and at times, freshman Victor Oladipo, too. But that’s not many options for a team needing someone to score.

IU should have been able to beat Iowa this past weekend with or without Jones. But the impact of a long-term injury could decimate an already struggling team. And by decimate, I mean struggle to win another game.

Finding the next “W”

Speaking of that next win, it may take a while for the Hoosiers’ win total to reach 11 this season.

If one thing is certain after a weekend in which IU lost to Big Ten bottom-feeder Iowa, it is that no wins from here on out are certain.

In the Hoosiers’ next two games, No. 20 Illinois travels to Assembly Hall and IU plays No. 25 Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich. Neither game is a likely candidate for a win.

The following week may be the best bet for the Hoosiers, who plays No. 16 Minnesota on Feb. 2 and Iowa on Feb. 5 at home. IU has played the Golden Gophers well the past two seasons, and despite the loss at Iowa, the home environment can make things better.

Ultimately, though, I’m not comfortable calling any of those wins for IU.

Time to move on?
  
Player transfers are always touchy issues, but that’s exactly what Dan Dakich, the IU coach-turned-radio broadcaster, discussed on his radio show, The Dan Dakich Show, on Monday.   

In a harsh, but honest assessment of the team with IU play-by-play announcer Don Fischer, Dakich said, more or less, some players may need to move on.

“When the season’s over, there’s gonna have to be a couple of these guys make a decision on whether or not they want to stay here,” Dakich said. “And there might actually be a couple of them that the decision’s going to be made for them.

“There’s too much fragility, mentally, among some of these guys, and you know what? Some of them aren’t freshmen ... At some point, you know what, hey, we’re paying about 30 grand a year to come here and do this and if everything’s so fragile, maybe the MAC’s for you, not the big time.”

With the way this season is going, it’s hard to disagree.


E-mail: nmhart@indiana.edu