Devonte Green is already making a name for himself, and the freshman guard hasn’t even played a regular season game yet for the Hoosiers.
The freshman from North Babylon, New York, dropped 17 points on 7 of 9 shooting from the field in the exhibition opener against Hope College while playing with a mixture of different lineups.
Green said he definitely feels like he belongs after practicing with his teammates all summer, and IU Coach Tom Crean will continue to mix up his guys on the floor in the final exhibition against Bellarmine on Saturday.
“I wouldn’t read anything into any of the lineups. It could change again on Saturday,” Crean said. “To me it’s about having as many multi-dimensional, versatile guys that can play in numerous positions for us.”
This is the second consecutive season that IU welcomes Bellarmine to Assembly Hall for an exhibition matchup. Last season, Bellarmine played IU to an 11-point game. This year they’re ranked preseason No. 3 in Division II.
Bellarmine is coming off a single-digit loss to Cincinnati in its first exhibition game and will play IU on Saturday before ending its preseason slate against Louisville on Monday.
Crean said it came down to Bellarmine agreeing to play on this date to make this game happen because of IU’s departure for Hawaii to play Kansas in the season opener.
“It’s a very good program. They’ll play extremely well, and we’re not used to doing things with a team two years in a row,” Crean said. “We have a lot of respect for them.”
As Crean mixes up the lineup Saturday, Green could very well see more playing time with some of the upperclassmen. After not seeing the floor in the first seven minutes against Hope College, the freshman showcased his talents on both ends of the court in just 13 minutes.
In his short time at IU, Green has been praised by his teammates for his commitment to defense. Crean said his defense, along with his precision and execution, was one of the main reasons he was offered a scholarship to IU.
“I just remember him starting from the summer and just competing,” junior guard James Blackmon Jr. said about Green. “He’s just aggressive offensively and defensively, so that opens up things for him and everyone else.”
Fellow freshmen guard Curtis Jones and forward De’Ron Davis may also get more looks on the court after Jones dropped seven points in just 14 minutes of play and Davis had six points in nine minutes.
Crean said Green and Jones are very interchangeable for the Hoosiers and he hopes they can get to the point where they make everyone else around them on the floor better.
Davis is recovering from a minor Achilles strain after getting to campus late in the offseason. Crean said the main thing right now for him is to get healthy and work his way into the condition because Crean said he believes the 6-foot-10 forward will become a large part of this Hoosier team.
All of the freshmen have earned high praise from their coaches and teammates as they continue to progress in preparation for the season opener. The exhibition games serve as a good measuring stick for the young players as they continue to get acclimated with one another before the games actually matter.
“Playing with different players, you have to know different roles and different personalities,” Green said. “Coming in here I had a different mindset playing with new guys by learning everybody’s game and personalities on the court and learning how to play with them.”
