The potential of a basketball season just changed with the decision of an 18-year-old.
Thomas Bryant, the freshman center who provided the Hoosiers with both a low-post presence and a heart and soul this season, will be back for another year in Bloomington.
With that decision comes an increase in expectations and a ceiling that rivals top teams in the country. Regardless of the upcoming decision of junior forward Troy Williams, IU is now a real title contender next season.
Bryant was the top NBA prospect on the 2015-16 Hoosiers team. He has a large body with a great motor and plenty of offensive skills. Nobody would have blamed him for testing the NBA Draft waters. Nobody would have even blamed him for leaving.
Yet it was clear from day one that Bryant cared — and cared a lot. He won fans over quickly with his energetic demeanor and the emotion he poured into each game. Senior guard Yogi Ferrell was the leader of that team, but Bryant was the passion.
Bryant is the one with the now-famous image of his head buried under the right arm of IU Coach Tom Crean after a season-ending loss to North Carolina last month. He was supporting his weight onto his coach because the loss seemed to sting.
He isn’t just another guy using school as a stepping stone to the NBA.
But from a purely basketball-oriented perspective, Bryant gives IU a chance to be truly great next season. I always viewed next season’s fate as contingent upon Bryant or Williams’ return. If one came back, IU could be a real contender.
The Hoosiers are getting at least the big man back. Bryant’s return puts IU in position to have one of the best frontcourts in all of basketball. Two years ago, this was a team trotting out as many as four guards on the floor and trying to win through small ball.
Next season, IU will have as much size — athletic size, at that — as anyone in the nation. Along with Bryant, IU is bringing back junior forward Collin Hartman, freshman forwards OG Anunoby and Juwan Morgan as well as the possibility of Williams returning.
All five of those players have experience playing major minutes. This list doesn’t include incoming high school commit De’Ron Davis, a 6-foot-9 power forward who is ranked as the No. 45 player in the nation by 247sports composite.
With the likely returns of sophomore guards Robert Johnson and James Blackmon Jr., this is a potential top-10 team. It will have depth in nearly every area.
The only question is point guard, but transfer guard Josh Newkirk and incoming combo guard Curtis Jones could give IU some comfort there.
Bryant’s return means a player like Davis can develop as a freshman. It will be fascinating to see how the minutes of guys like Anunoby, Hartman, Morgan and Davis are managed.
But another consequence of Bryant’s return could be the potential for him to go down as a truly beloved IU player like Cody Zeller, who stayed for two years. Players like Noah Vonleh, who left after one year with little team success, are more easily forgotten.
Bryant is already loved for his personality. He was also loved for choosing IU as a high schooler and giving IU a big man to round out the 2015-16 team.
Now, he can be an IU great for sticking around and possibly taking IU to greater success.
brodmill@indiana.edu
@BrodyMillerIDS
