2025 SG Braylon Mullins

[IndyResident16]

3 hours ago, Inequality said:

Not sure what a defending National Champion program would want with a piddly unproven kid in high school now that the portal is the way to go

Who said IU didn’t want Mullins?

[Inequality]

24 minutes ago, IndyResident16 said:

Who said IU didn’t want Mullins?

Who said what? I must have missed it.

[bluegrassIU]

3 hours ago, IU Scott said:

A lot of things changed recruiting like more TV exposure, AAU basketball. Recruiting use to be more regional and it was easier to keep players closer to home.

This is such an overlooked part of the equation. It's just a different day and age. 

A much lower percentage of kids are all wrapped up in playing for the local school. It's a bigger world.

[cthomas]

1 hour ago, bluegrassIU said:

This is such an overlooked part of the equation. It's just a different day and age. 

A much lower percentage of kids are all wrapped up in playing for the local school. It's a bigger world.

This is so true. Recruiting is a national deal now, regional loyalties have much less impact. Every school has to compete with every other school. Kids are looking to cut the best deal for themselves no matter where that is.

[Between2Halls]

If this has been said, sorry I missed it and sorry to repeat it. Growing up in Indiana, watching  IU in the 80s and 90s, I dreamed of being good enough to don the stripes. The product spoke for itself. What product have these young men seen over their lifetime? I’m not overly surprised they aren’t jumping at IU. Much has changed. I still love this team, but it’s not the same as I used to feel back then. 
 

[Drroogh]

So, hypothetically I’m recruiting a player and IU is one of the main competitors?! I might go with ‘you want to know about IU? Just go read their message boards and get a feel for what you would be stepping into!’

[Hoosierdave]

6 hours ago, BobSaccamanno said:

It’s not just an IU thing but it’s classic fandom:  

“We don’t need him”

”we didn’t want him”

”we can do better”

That’s not right for many reasons but to each their own.  It’s ok to root for IU but still be realistic.  

Agreed, I think it’s a little comical watching people just claim the portal will solve the problems. We don’t have a clue who will be in the portal this off-season yet, and we have no idea what momentum (good or bad) we’ll be going into it with. As evident with plenty of high school kids we’re recruiting like Mullins, offering money and playing time can only get you so far.

Not to mention, why did we convince ourselves there will be a better portal player available when the coach who won the last 2 nattys thinks he’s good enough to get major minutes? Let’s be honest, Dan Hurley could probably get just about any kid he wants from the portal, and yet went all in on Braylon. 

Moreover, why do we think our deep pocketed boosters will pony up millions of dollars again this off-season after watching Woody struggle with another cycle? What if these boosters feel this season has to be conference championship/ final 4 or bust and it’s the latter?

[Purdue7]

5 hours ago, Seeking6 said:

I'm sorry. I thought he was on the short list with the likes of Gordon and a couple of others that had won similar awards. Don't think it's a reach at all given the hardware the kid won.

TKR is 2nd highest rated ever Purdue recruit on 24/7 #50 nationally 

IU has 20 players rated higher 

 

I guess we’ll see if TKR is any good this season 

[IndyResident16]

9 hours ago, Hoosierdave said:

Agreed, I think it’s a little comical watching people just claim the portal will solve the problems. We don’t have a clue who will be in the portal this off-season yet, and we have no idea what momentum (good or bad) we’ll be going into it with. As evident with plenty of high school kids we’re recruiting like Mullins, offering money and playing time can only get you so far.

Not to mention, why did we convince ourselves there will be a better portal player available when the coach who won the last 2 nattys thinks he’s good enough to get major minutes? Let’s be honest, Dan Hurley could probably get just about any kid he wants from the portal, and yet went all in on Braylon. 

Moreover, why do we think our deep pocketed boosters will pony up millions of dollars again this off-season after watching Woody struggle with another cycle? What if these boosters feel this season has to be conference championship/ final 4 or bust and it’s the latter?

No one is claiming the portal will solve all IU's problems. But high school recruiting is now just one of the many avenues in roster building and construction. 10 years ago missing out on Haralson and Mullins would have been monumental, today not so much. This board collectively lost their minds when IU lost out on Boogie Fland who was expected to run the point this season. They ended up getting the PAC 12 FOY and 1st teamer Myles Rice. This board also lost its collective mind when Derik Queen chose Maryland as he was supposed to replace Kel'el Ware. IU ended up with Oumar Ballo who is a consensus pre-season AA. Have to get out of this mindset that losing out on a high school recruit is the end of the world...it isn't. Would wager substantially that both Rice and Ballo have bigger impacts than Fland and Queen next year and both those are considered OAD players. 

And by the way, Hurley did not go all-in on Mullins. He will not hesitate to recruit over Mullins at any point during time there. 

Edited October 16 by IndyResident16

[94hoosier]

22 minutes ago, IndyResident16 said:

No one is claiming the portal will solve all IU's problems. But high school recruiting is now just one of the many avenues in roster building and construction. 10 years ago missing out on Haralson and Mullins would have been monumental, today not so much. This board collectively lost their minds when IU lost out on Boogie Fland who was expected to run the point this season. They ended up getting the PAC 12 FOY and 1st teamer Myles Rice. This board also lost its collective mind when Derik Queen chose Maryland as he was supposed to replace Kel'el Ware. IU ended up with Oumar Ballo who is a consensus pre-season AA. Have to get out of this mindset that losing out on a high school recruit is the end of the world...it isn't. Would wager substantially that both Rice and Ballo have bigger impacts than Fland and Queen next year and both those are considered OAD players. 

And by the way, Hurley did not go all-in on Mullins. He will not hesitate to recruit over Mullins at any point of Mullins time there. 

Agree 100%
 

It sucks missing on kids you follow this long but not the end of the world. There are options now and sometimes it will work out for the better sometimes maybe not 

[13th&Jackson]

1 hour ago, IndyResident16 said:

No one is claiming the portal will solve all IU's problems. But high school recruiting is now just one of the many avenues in roster building and construction. 10 years ago missing out on Haralson and Mullins would have been monumental, today not so much. This board collectively lost their minds when IU lost out on Boogie Fland who was expected to run the point this season. They ended up getting the PAC 12 FOY and 1st teamer Myles Rice. This board also lost its collective mind when Derik Queen chose Maryland as he was supposed to replace Kel'el Ware. IU ended up with Oumar Ballo who is a consensus pre-season AA. Have to get out of this mindset that losing out on a high school recruit is the end of the world...it isn't. Would wager substantially that both Rice and Ballo have bigger impacts than Fland and Queen next year and both those are considered OAD players. 

And by the way, Hurley did not go all-in on Mullins. He will not hesitate to recruit over Mullins at any point during time there. 

Not every HS recruit is the same. Fland is from NY. Queen stayed home in MD. Mullins is from Greenfield and possesses the skills that IU hasn't been able to recruit. Getting an IN kid, who is one of the elite shooters in this class would be huge. No way IU should lose an IN kid to CT after offering twice the NIL $. 

Scouting report:

Mullins proved himself to be one of the best long-range shooters in the country this spring and summer. He knocked down 47% of his attempts from three in 3SSB play, even on high volume, making 6+ threes per game. He has a fairly low, but still quick, release, that he doesn't even always fully extend on. He's a threat to make tough shots in transition, off screens, or the dribble. He also has very deep range, well beyond the college arc at this point.

The bottom line is that when you have an elite shooter, capable of getting hot at any point, who is also a standout defender, with positional size, solid athleticism, and a competitive mentality….you have an elite national prospect.

[IndyResident16]

4 minutes ago, 13th&Jackson said:

Not every HS recruit is the same. Fland is from NY. Queen stayed home in MD. Mullins is from Greenfield and possesses the skills that IU hasn't been able to recruit. Getting an IN kid, who is one of the elite shooters in this class would be huge. No way IU should lose an IN kid to CT after offering twice the NIL $. 

Scouting report:

Mullins proved himself to be one of the best long-range shooters in the country this spring and summer. He knocked down 47% of his attempts from three in 3SSB play, even on high volume, making 6+ threes per game. He has a fairly low, but still quick, release, that he doesn't even always fully extend on. He's a threat to make tough shots in transition, off screens, or the dribble. He also has very deep range, well beyond the college arc at this point.

The bottom line is that when you have an elite shooter, capable of getting hot at any point, who is also a standout defender, with positional size, solid athleticism, and a competitive mentality….you have an elite national prospect.

Again, the sentimental value of losing Mullins stings, I've acknowledged that multiple times. Is it a program changing miss or even a season defining miss? Absolutely not. 

Edited October 16 by IndyResident16

[13th&Jackson]

5 minutes ago, IndyResident16 said:

Again, the sentimental value of losing Mullins stings, I've acknowledged that multiple times. Is it a program changing miss or even a season defining miss? Absolutely not. 

He would be IU's Reed Sheppard. Maybe not program defining, but was the difference maker at KY last season. They flamed out when he had a bad game in the NCAAT. 

[IUfaninIllinois]

7 minutes ago, IndyResident16 said:

Again, the sentimental value of losing Mullins stings, I've acknowledged that multiple times. Is it a program changing miss or even a season defining miss? Absolutely not. 

If we do miss out on Mullins I would love to know the real reason and not the “coach speak” generic reason. To me the literal only advantage of going to UCONN is winning and with our roster this year we could easily be better than UCONN. If Liam doesn’t have a good year, Darius Adams is as good as advertised, the overseas kid is as good as they are saying, then Mullins isn’t going to achieve what he would want to achieve there. Also if he truly knows it’s UCONN just announce it. Why draw it out until the 23rd

[IndyResident16]

25 minutes ago, 13th&Jackson said:

He would be IU's Reed Sheppard. Maybe not program defining, but was the difference maker at KY last season. They flamed out when he had a bad game in the NCAAT. 

That's a massive stretch to say the least.

Edited October 16 by IndyResident16

[IndyResident16]

2 minutes ago, IUfaninIllinois said:

If we do miss out on Mullins I would love to know the real reason and not the “coach speak” generic reason. To me the literal only advantage of going to UCONN is winning and with our roster this year we could easily be better than UCONN. If Liam doesn’t have a good year, Darius Adams is as good as advertised, the overseas kid is as good as they are saying, then Mullins isn’t going to achieve what he would want to achieve there. Also if he truly knows it’s UCONN just announce it. Why draw it out until the 23rd

Because they are the name brand program right now with a fun offense who sends guards to the league. From a basketball perspective it's an obvious choice and probably the right one at that. But there is also the risk of becoming just another "guy" at UConn. There is a very real chance he's coming off the bench next year and that blows up Hurley's 10 month plan for Mullins which is what he sold him on during his recruitment. 

[Maedhros]

10 minutes ago, 13th&Jackson said:

No way IU should lose an IN kid to CT after offering twice the NIL $. 

Eh. We didn't lose him to Boston College or Hartford. We lost him to the two time reigning national champions, a program with six banners in the last 25 years, all of them more recent than our fifth. They play a super efficient offense and have had seven guards drafted in the NBA in the last four classes. This is exactly the program you'd expect a kid to pick.

Braylon had us over Duke, Kansas, Michigan, Purdue, etc. He just liked the current premiere program in the sport a little better. I tip my cap and move on. It's not as though there won't be shooters with that scouting report in the portal. And if rumors of a changed offense are true, those guys will have seen it in action.

[13th&Jackson]

2 minutes ago, Maedhros said:

Eh. We didn't lose him to Boston College or Hartford. We lost him to the two time reigning national champions, a program with six banners in the last 25 years, all of them more recent than our fifth. They play a super efficient offense and have had seven guards drafted in the NBA in the last four classes. This is exactly the program you'd expect a kid to pick.

Braylon had us over Duke, Kansas, Michigan, Purdue, etc. He just liked the current premiere program in the sport a little better. I tip my cap and move on. It's not as though there won't be shooters with that scouting report in the portal. And if rumors of a changed offense are true, those guys will have seen it in action.

I totally understand why he would pick UConn

[MoyeCowbell]

1 hour ago, IndyResident16 said:

And by the way, Hurley did not go all-in on Mullins. He will not hesitate to recruit over Mullins at any point during time there. 

I don’t want to assume your intent here. Could just be presenting an opinion or taking a dig at Hurley, but either way, I would hope IU/Woodson would do the same thing. There are no sacred cows.

Especially now, with big boy money being floated around, it’s a business. Coaches should be “recruiting over” constantly. This doesn’t mean being shady and not standing on your word, but rather always trying to find talent that’s better than what you currently have.

Woodson and co. need to be recruiting over every single player on our current roster, and that’s having the damn fine players we do. It’s about the strive for greatness and always looking to get better. Until IU’s roster is at the level of the Dream Team’s, there’s room to level up and keep finding better players, no matter the talent currently assembled.

IMO, if you’re (the player) is a good as you think you are, don’t let a prospective recruit at your position knock you off your block. Focus on what you can control, compete, and prove you’re the best.

[IndyResident16]

4 minutes ago, MoyeCowbell said:

I don’t want to assume your intent here. Could just be presenting an opinion or taking a dig at Hurley, but either way, I would hope IU/Woodson would do the same thing. There are no sacred cows.

Especially now, with big boy money being floated around, it’s a business. Coaches should be “recruiting over” constantly. This doesn’t mean being shady and not standing on your word, but rather always trying to find talent that’s better than what you currently have.

Woodson and co. need to be recruiting over every single player on our current roster, and that’s having the damn fine players we do. It’s about the strive for greatness and always looking to get better. Until IU’s roster is at the level of the Dream Team’s, there’s room to level up and keep finding better players, no matter the talent currently assembled.

IMO, if you’re (the player) is a good as you think you are, don’t let a prospective recruit at your position knock you off your block. Focus on what you can control, compete, and prove you’re the best.

Of course, but right now it's a lot harder to to recruit over people at Indiana vs UConn. Just the reality of where the two programs are at right now. And for someone looking for a fast track to the NBA, that's potentially a danger in choosing UConn.

[Fkfootball]

Shrewsberry didn't have an issue landing a top instate recruit. Does anyone think that Woodson would take Penn State to the tournament? 4th and maybe 5th best coach in the state.

[Boiler Sam]

18 minutes ago, Fkfootball said:

Shrewsberry didn't have an issue landing a top instate recruit. Does anyone think that Woodson would take Penn State to the tournament? 4th and maybe 5th best coach in the state.

I love Shrews, but due to his relatively barren roster he was able to make promises to Haralson that Woody (or Izzo or Painter) couldn’t make. 
 

[Tom White]

16 hours ago, Fkfootball said:

If Woodson doesn't win enough games, he'll be in hot water.

You can say that about darned near every coach in every sport. Not exactly "breaking news".

[Kdug]

2 hours ago, 13th&Jackson said:

He would be IU's Reed Sheppard. Maybe not program defining, but was the difference maker at KY last season. They flamed out when he had a bad game in the NCAAT. 

Reed Sheppard was the highest college player picked in the NBA draft last year. Mullins no doubt looks like he’ll be a good player, but I wouldn’t say he’s going to be at that level.

[Fkfootball]

1 hour ago, Boiler Sam said:

I love Shrews, but due to his relatively barren roster he was able to make promises to Haralson that Woody (or Izzo or Painter) couldn’t make. 
 

I'm just super salty over this. There is a big part of me that hopes this doesn't work out well for Mullins. I just cannot stand Hurley. That's what makes it worse. I wouldn't have been as mad if this kid went to Purdue or Notre Dame because it's in-state and I respect the hell out of Paint and Shrews and I know they'd do right by this kid. This Hurley guy is a level 4 🐍.