The Hoosier Pulse: Roster Transition

The Hoosier pulse is a feature I would like to revisit 2-3 times a month. I have my own opinions on a number of subjects and would like to see where I stand in comparison to the Hoosier faithful. As a result, when at the local bar talking Hoosier smack I can totally bring the "he said, she said" card to the table and feel better about myself.

I've been following our basketball team for a long time, long enough to not only watch but appreciate the 1987 National Championship run on a night we took down a completely loaded Syracuse team. I appreciated the fact our kids hung around the program for 4 years and graduated. Of course there were exceptions. Yet in general, I felt we really got to KNOW our players. It's difficult to drag Mike Davis and Kelvin Sampson into the equation here. They were not around long enough to churn the roster and if they were, it wouldn't be worth discussing anyway.

The last 3 years we have been moving things around a lot. Personally, I'm not positive what the situation was with Ron Patterson. We all heard the same statement regarding his academics. However, it was a convenient math solution since we were indeed over-signed at that juncture. Things certainly seemed to steamroll after his departure. I'm not diving into the numbers game on this topic. The fact is we are currently over-signing and doing so quite regularly. The consistent retort has been the, "It always works itself out" mentality. Are we cool with that? Personally, I'm not sure I am. As is stands today one of the kids on the current roster will not be here next season regardless of his performance. Realistically another, perhaps two, will not be donning candy stripes in 2015-2016. Therefore it begs the question, "How does the bottom third of the roster feel about this on a daily basis?" How do you, The Hoosier fan feel about it?

Perhaps I'm a little old-fashioned? RMK had his issues but he created one of the highest standards in the country regarding academics and in my opinion, loyalty. As a parent and a coach, I would like to think there is a right way and a wrong way of doing things. It is entirely possible to practice this philosophy regardless of what the competition is doing to get ahead? Is there tremendous pressure on these coach's to win? Absolutely. Can they afford to do things "the right way" without sacrificing their careers? I would like to think so.

When I look back on the last 4 signings, I wonder if maybe we could not have done a better job of balancing the roster. I don't want to start dropping names and throwing a kid under the bus. Sometimes the right signing is no signing at all. Were we overreacting a bit to the lack of 2015 bigs on the roster? Did we whiff on a few bigs we thought might join the class? These are the questions you can help me answer.

I have created a poll on the subject and realize more than one answer may apply. I am interested in hearing the answer you feel is the best fit under the circumstances. I'm looking forward to discussing the results.