Miller's Hoosiers Already 3-0

By Andy Graham, IUHoosiers.com

Indiana men's basketball officially counts three scholarship freshmen on its roster heading into this season.

Collin Hartman feels there are, in some very real ways, more like 18. Counting even himself, a graduate student ready for his final season of eligibility.

"To be honest with you, we're all kind of in a freshman seat right now," Hartman said during Thursday's IU hoops media day at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, "because, new staff and everything."
Coach Archie Miller and his staff will start their new era for Hoosier hoops with a squad of 18 (walk-ons included), formally opening practice Sept. 29.

But in a sense, Miller is already 3-0. Because after getting the IU job last March, Miller pulled off a tough trifecta by renewing all three 2017 recruiting commitments previously pledged to predecessor Tom Crean.

So Clifton Moore, Justin Smith and Aljami Durham were all on hand to meet the media Thursday, well-spoken young men clearly pleased to be in Bloomington. And all seemed poised to contribute, in at least some capacity, to Miller's inaugural Indiana campaign.

"First and foremost, they're very, very talented," Hartman said of the frosh. "Very athletic. I think the thing that is going to put them in a situation to be the most successful is them being sponges -- soaking it all in, learning everything that they possibly can, as early as they can.

"We're all learning a new system and everything. But these guys, Justin, Al, Cliff, all these guys, even Race (Thompson, enrolled but is targeted to reshirt after skipping his senior year of high school basketball), they've all been really good and listened really well and just been sponges."

They're tall by sponge standards. Moore, a 6-foot-10 forward from north Philadelphia suburb of Ambler, has real length. Smith, 6-7 from Chicago's northwestern suburb of Buffalo Grove, can play taller than his listed height, blessed with some serious vertical. Durham is a rangy 6-4 guard from Lilburn, Ga., northeast of Atlanta.

None were McDonald's All-Americans, but all were considered talented prospects at the national level by the prep scouting services.

And Miller is already valuing them beyond their physical attributes.

"Our three freshmen have stayed as consistent as any group I've been around," Miller said of their approach to new roles as IU student-athletes. "I think all three of them are terrific additions as people and players.

"They have been a very, very mature group on and off the court, which has added a lot of value to our program. They're very business-like. They care. They work very, very hard, and they're all learning the game in a fast way. I think the big thing for those guys is to stay the course here early in the year and find their niche."

When Miller was asked who else besides senior Josh Newkirk might see time at the point, Durham's name surfaced first in that potential niche: "Guys who I can potentially see at point guard -- Al Durham for sure."

IU senior Rob Johnson, who also might play some point when not holding down the two-guard spot, has seen potential in Durham's ability to readily gauge aspects of the game.

"One of the things I noticed with Al right away was he picked up things like really quick," Johnson said. "So I think from a standpoint of understanding the game and things like that, he's already far along."

Miller also is searching for depth on the Hoosier front line, something which both Smith and Moore can potentially supply.

Moore started his freshman season in high school as a 6-2 winger and – in a situation similar to former IU great Cody Zeller – maintained some of those guard skills as growth spurts carried him to his present height.

So while Moore will spend time on the blocks for Indiana and has worked to bulk up, adding around 15 pounds since arriving in June, he also has the versatility to play mid-range and perimeter games (and there is both height and bulk in his family, with his mom a cousin of former North Carolina two-sport star and NFL standout Julius Peppers.)

"I usually use my length and my height, and I can use that to my advantage," said Moore, who averaged 20 points and 10 boards as a senior. "When I hit my growth spurt, I was a guard, and continuing to grow, I still kept the skills of being able to handle and shoot, and I think that really complements my game.

"In practice, I'm usually around blocking the paint, but I'd say my strength would be on the perimeter or like in the midrange area," Moore said. "And with Archie's system, you can do a variety of different things, and I see myself playing all over the place. (But) Archie wants me to play more in the post, using my strength and my length. So adding those pounds really helped me over the past couple months, and I've really been able to continue to get better and be more effective there."

Miller is optimistic Moore will eventually shine in a variety of roles, and perhaps sooner than later.

"I feel as though Cliff, because of the way he works and is gifted athletically and talented, will show glimpses as a freshman of what he can be," Miller said. "My hope is that he can help us with multiple positions in the frontcourt with our depth, and I think that, as the season applies into January, February, March, you can see a guy really blossom into what we think is going to be a star here one day.

"But early on here – I don't want to say he's wet behind the ears or a little young, but he's like a slippery guy on ice skates out there at times, just getting his footing. But you've seen him go in big, big jumps week to week where he is. From a conditioning level, from a mobility standpoint, he's as gifted as any player I've ever been around, and I think that speaks volumes."

Johnson was among those extolling Smith's potential, too.

"With Justin, one of the most impressive things with him has just been his athleticism," Johnson said. "You can tell he's a really high level athlete that's going to be able to help us just based off that."

Smith averaged 21 points and 10 boards for Adlai Stevenson High as a senior, averaged 17 and eight as a junior and, as a sophomore, teamed with guard Jalen Brunson (who won a NCAA championship at Villanova) in helping Stevenson win an Illinois 4A state title.

Adjusting to the college game, for Smith, has so far meant getting calibrated to a faster pace and working on his jumper.

"Even (in) open gyms, just how fast everything moves, you have to really be paying attention, especially during drills," Smith said. "The speed was quite an adjustment, but after a couple weeks, you kind of get used to it.

"Right when I came in, we started working on (my jump shot). We kind of made some tweaks. I'm working on it every day after practice, before practice, just trying to get it to where it needs to be for when the season starts."

Durham feels that, even in his relatively brief time on campus, he is already getting a handle on the pace of the game at the college level. "I feel like I'm better at controlling my pace," he said, "knowing when to go fast, when to slow down, and probably being more consistent with my whole game overall."

And Durham has become enamored of that campus and environs. Asked what he was telling folks back in Georgia about Indiana, he replied:

"I've been telling them how I love Bloomington, how it's so much different than Atlanta, but how much they love basketball more here than they do in Atlanta."

Smith is sending similar sentiments back to his people in Chicagoland.

"Just letting them know I enjoy it," Smith said. "I've loved every minute, every single second that I've been here. It's just everything that is advertised. So just going through the workouts, just being on campus, I mean, it's everything that I thought it was."

And if Indiana's freshman trio eventually become everything Miller thinks they can be, IU's basketball-loving fans have some enjoyment in store.

Indiana University Athletics

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Aljami Durham

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