Biggest Challenges for Tom Crean

The boys at Bleacher Report love to talk Indiana basketball, frankly, who can blame them?

They recently took a look at Indiana Basketball coach, Tom Crean. Kyle Grand examined the Biggest Challenges for Tom Crean in 2013-2014.

WHAT IS YOGI FERRELL?

“The thing is, should Crean have Ferrell focus on being a creator or a scorer? There are valid points on both sides of the argument.

Indiana lost its top four scorers from a season ago. Ferrell, being the only returning starter, is one of the more seasoned players on an otherwise inexperienced team. 

He’s more than capable of creating his own shot, and with a full offseason under his belt, his shaky jumper should be better.

On the other hand, Ferrell is going to be surrounded by new faces, mainly freshmen. In order to play well, these young players need confidence. A great way to build confidence is through making shots. Ferrell is an excellent distributor and will be able to get them great looks at the basket.

How to best use Ferrell is something Crean will wrestle with throughout the year.”

HOW DOES HE REPLACE CODY ZELLER

“For the past two seasons, Cody Zeller was the main cog in the Hoosiers’ wheel. The talented big man was arguably the best post player in the country. He could score, rebound and defend the lane.

Tom Crean has options to replace him, but all of them are surrounded by questions.

Hanner Mosquera-Perea was a high profile recruit but had a subpar freshman year. Did he improve enough in the offseason to finally live up to the hype?

Peter Jurkin has great size (7’0″), but very little experience. Is he ready for the big stage in one of college basketball’s toughest conferences?

Luke Fischer is only a freshman, but is very skilled. His game is similar to Zeller’s. The problem is, he’s been battling injury throughout the preseason. Will Fischer be healthy enough to contribute when the games begin?

The final and most interesting option is freshman Noah Vonleh. Vonleh, the highest ranked recruit in this year’s class, has the skills of a guard but the size of a post player (6’10, 240 lbs).

Playing him down low would certainly be a nontraditional idea, but having a quicker, “small ball” lineup might just be what the Hoosiers need. 

Which direction Crean will go remains to be seen. “

CAN WILL SHEEHEY SHOULDER THE LOAD

“The one concern is, he’s never been the centerpiece of Indiana’s attack. 

Sheehey’s made his mark as Indiana’s spark plug off the bench. Is he ready to carry the offense? Should he even be the primary option?

If Tom Crean builds the offense around Sheehey, he must preach efficiency to the senior. Sheehey’s a capable player, but him being an effective volume shooter remains to be seen. 

Sheehey must take the right shots at the right time.

If he isn’t the right choice to be the primary option, Crean must figure out who is.”