Why Indiana? Transfers Explain Decision To Play For Mike Woodson
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The transfer portal has become one of the most important tools for college basketball coaches in recent years.
Athletes are no longer required by the NCAA to sit out a season after transferring, so programs can reload with experienced talent year after year, instead of relying on internal development. For some schools, it has made rebuilding years a thing of the past and overtaken the importance of high school recruiting.
Now entering his third year as Indiana's head coach, Mike Woodson has used the portal to varying degrees. Before his first season in 2021-22, he brought in four transfers: Xavier Johnson (Pittsburgh), Miller Kopp (Northwestern), Parker Stewart (UT-Martin) and Michael Durr (South Florida). Woodson's first transfer crop included two multi-year starters in Johnson and Kopp, the 2021-22 team's leading 3-point shooter in Stewart, and a serviceable backup big in Durr.
The following offseason, Woodson didn't use the portal at all. He didn't have to. Indiana returned four starters from the previous seasons, and Woodson supplemented the roster with a four-man freshman class: Jalen Hood-Schifino, Malik Reneau, CJ Gunn and Kaleb Banks.
But much like his first offseason, Woodson was forced to dip back into transfer portal recruiting ahead of the 2023-24 campaign. He lost four starters from a team that earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and returned only two players with extensive starting experience in Xavier Johnson, who is coming off a broken foot, and Trey Galloway.
"This summer, I recruited more. I had to," Woodson said. "We lost four seniors. We lost three guys that left with -- basically we lost 10 guys last year with the two walk-ons, as well. So we had to go out and build our team back."
Woodson landed three transfers over the summer, bolstering Indiana's front court after the loss of forwards Trayce Jackson-Davis, Race Thompson, Jordan Geronimo and Logan Duncomb. He brought in 7-foot center Kel'el Ware (Oregon), 6-foot-10 forward Payton Sparks (Ball State) and Anthony Walker, a 6-foot-8 forward who helped Miami defeat the Hoosiers in last year's NCAA Tournament.
Along with the transfers, Woodson recruited a three-man freshman class, which includes five-star forward Mackenzie Mgbako and four-star guards Gabe Cupps and Jakai Newton, who's unsure what his freshman year holds after knee surgery.
Ware, a 2022 McDonald's All-American, and Mgbako, the eighth-ranked recruit in the class of 2023, are expected to step into a starting roles, while Walker, Sparks and Cupps add important depth.
At Indiana basketball media day last week, we asked the three transfers why they chose to play for Indiana and Woodson.
For Ware, it starts with the opportunity to earn more playing time and playing with his new teammates. As a freshman at Oregon, he started four of 35 games and played 15.8 minutes per game, averaging 6.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks.
"Trayce left, so that spot was wide open," Ware said. "Then, it's just a great group of guys that are here right now on the team. So going into next season, I feel like we can be good."
In past eras, Walker's college career would have been over, but the NCAA granted all players in 2020-21 a bonus year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Walker averaged 9.6 points and played 26.4 minutes per game as a sophomore in 2020-21, but his minutes slowly decreased during his last two years at Miami.
Walker's decision starts with Woodson.
"I’ve always been a fan of Woodson and the teams that he’s coached and the players that he’s coached in his years," Walker said. "I think he’s one of the most prestigious people that’s ever been a part of this sport. So being able to learn from him and being able to be under his wing for a year is definitely something that I wanted to be a part of.
"And of course, the point guard, X, I’ve known him for the last four or five years because I’ve played him in the ACC against each other," Walker said. "So just those two guys definitely made it feel like Indiana was what I wanted to be a part of.”
Sparks had two successful seasons at Ball State, averaging 13.4 points and 8.6 rebounds across 62 starts. But he saw the transfer portal as an opportunity to advance his career.
"When I went into the portal, I wanted to play for a bigger school," Sparks said. ''I love Ball State, that's my home; I was there for two years. But I wanted to play for a Power 5 school and IU was on the table and going into the portal, I couldn't really pass up on that."
The Hoosiers officially started practice this week. With three transfers and three freshmen, Woodson's next step is acclimating the newcomers to his system and tinkering with lineups and rotations for the upcoming season.
"I'm pleased with the players that we've brought in, knowing that when you add a lot of pieces to your team, there's a lot of work that comes with that," Woodson said. "I'm not pleased and happy right now where we are as a ball club because there is a lot of work that's still left on the table that we've got to get these guys to understand who we are and what we're about and how we want to play on both ends of the floor."
Indiana added three transfers for the 2023-24 season: Kel'el Ware (left), Anthony Walker (middle) and Payton Sparks (right).
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports, Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports, Jordan Kartholl / The Star Press / USA TODAY NETWORK
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