Tom Crean added strength to the Indiana basketball team at its weakest position today, earning his first verbal commitment to Indiana from class of 2009 big man
Bobby Capobianco. Capobianco, a 6-8, 220-lb power forward from Loveland, Ohio, joins
Derek Elston in IU’s developing class for 2009.
Indiana has been in need of another strong post player
Capobianco has been drawing increased attention after working hard to get into shape and averaging around 21 points and 12 rebounds in his junior year of high school. He averaged 20.4 points and 10.5 rebounds as a sophomore, and drew interest early from several major programs, including Marquette, West Virginia, UCLA, Purdue, Wisconsin, and Xavier. Marquette had risen to the top of Capobianco’s short list and was among the leaders before Crean was hired by Indiana, and it didn’t take long for the big man to jump on board with the coach.
Although he is a three-star recruit at this point, Capobianco looks as though he could develop into a top prospect by the time he graduates. Scouts have noted significant improvement over his high school career, and his physical tools should allow him to excel in college, particularly in the rough-and-tumble Big Ten conference, where big physical post players are a must for success.
Capobianco seems to be a perfect fit for a team that lost its top two rebounders, 6-9 DJ White to graduation, and 6-5 Jamarcus Ellis to a dismissal, as well as an important post defender in the 6-8 Lance Stemler. Indiana has gone through several seasons without a player who is natural at the four spot. This year DJ White and inconsistent Deandre Thomas were the only natural power-forward/center position players for the Hoosiers after freshman Eli Holman went down with a season-ending injury. Ellis and Stemler did their best to help on defense and on the boards, but both were more suited on the perimeter than battling in the trenches.
Elston also fits the prototypical small forward mold, but Capobianco looks as if he could fit perfectly into power forward position. His strengths are creating a presence in the post through defense and rebounding. Just being tall isn't enough to call someone a post player, but Capobianco looks to be physical enough to really make a difference down low. With a few more pounds of muscle packed on by the time he leaves high school, he will be a truly formidable matchup for opponents.
The Hoosiers’ lack of depth in the post was severely exposed by teams such as Wisconsin, Michigan State, and most recently by Arkansas in the NCAA tournament, but Capobianco’s signing may be the first step in reversing that trend.
With shooting guard Nick Williams possibly signing on this year and Indianapolis power forward Stephan Van Treese also showing interest for 2009, it looks as though Crean might get the program going in the right direction faster than anyone could have expected.
For more discussion, hit up the
men's basketball forum.
Linear Mode
