Indiana Basketball's New 2-Big Lineup, with Better Spacing, 'Going to Help Us'

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — As Indiana men's basketball forward Reed Bailey drove from the right wing to the rim during the Hoosiers' practice Tuesday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, he drew closer to the only other player on the floor capable of matching his size.

The 6-foot-10, 230-pound Bailey dished a pass underneath the basket to 6-foot-10, 240-pound center Andrej Acimovic, who finished the play with a layup at the rim.

Once the ball slipped through the net, Bailey exited the court, giving way to 6-foot-9, 240-pound forward Sam Alexis. On the next possession, Acimovic made another layup.

Welcome to Indiana coach Darian DeVries' new luxury: Having more than two traditionally sized big men not only on the roster, but on the floor together.

Acimovic signed with Indiana on July 28, but he didn't arrive in Bloomington until late August. The Hoosiers went through all of summer workouts with Bailey and Alexis as their only two players 6-foot-9 or taller, and due to injuries and late arrivals, DeVries said they didn't always have enough bodies to play both sides of the ball.

Consequently, Indiana had miniscule practice time with its two-big lineup entering its three-game exhibition slate in Puerto Rico. DeVries and his staff landed in San Juan eager to see Alexis and Bailey play together against front courts with more size and length than the Hoosiers' practice players, and in a setting where Indiana could sub players in and out.

The lineup worked. Indiana's two-big experiment netted positive returns in Puerto Rico, and the Hoosiers returned to Bloomington with an adequate foundation to build upon.

Acimovic, who Bailey described as hard-working and "really skilled," has added a critical piece to the groundwork. He's another body, and he gives Indiana different looks in practice each day.

"It's helped us a lot just to have multiple guys at the 5 position," DeVries said Tuesday. "So that from a practice standpoint, we can do some more experimental-type things, going with a bigger lineup at times during practice."

Indiana had a two-week break after the Puerto Rico trip, but when it resumed practice and workouts near the end of August, it incorporated more lineups with Alexis and Bailey.

"Now that we've really started coming to the school year and started to really practice, me and him have been able to play a lot together," Bailey said. "It's been great."

In lineups with both Bailey and Alexis on the floor, Bailey transitions to power forward while Alexis plays center. It's a dynamic Alexis knows well from his time at Florida, where he often shared the court with 6-foot-9, 215-pound forward Thomas Haugh, who Alexis said is comparable to Bailey.

The floor spacing issues Indiana experienced with two-big lineups under previous coach Mike Woodson shouldn't reemerge this season. Bailey is athletic and skilled at attacking downhill, and when he plays power forward with Alexis, he's more than comfortable aligning on the perimeter.

Bailey can also stretch the floor, as he shot 41% on 41 attempts from 3-point range last season at Davidson and won't hesitate to let shots fly from distance.

"I think that'll be a good part of it, just being able to space the floor and keep teams honest and provide that spacing for all the other guys on the court," Bailey said. "I think shooting threes will be a big factor, and I think I'm ready to do that."

Alexis proved he can make mid-range jump shots in Puerto Rico, but distance has proven more troublesome. He went only 4 of 20 on 3-pointers last season at Florida and he was 0-for-5 shooting triples in San Juan, but he's spent extensive time this summer working on his jump shot and he feels he can space the floor, too.

"It's good, just being able to hit the shots and see it go in in practice so I'll be able to shoot in the game," Alexis said. "Because right now, when I shoot in drills, I'm pretty consistent. It's about making them in practice so they can translate to the game."

Alexis acknowledged Indiana's three-point shooting won't be as prominent during two-big lineups, forcing the Hoosiers to discover different ways to score.

It's all part of a preseason experiment geared toward figuring out which lineups work, and which ones don't.

"Those are the type of things, because it is a different type of lineup, that you're trying to get different things on the offensive end and maybe even a little bit the defensive end," DeVries said. "But having that size out there is certainly a good advantage if we can develop enough depth along that front line so that we can play that way."

With near-daily practice reps, Bailey and Alexis have each grown more comfortable playing with one another. How often they do it during the season remains to be seen, and with DeVries' stylistic tendencies centering around pace and shooting, it likely won't be in excess.

But in a physicality-filled Big Ten, the Hoosiers — undersized relative to the rest of the conference — know they'll play considerable minutes with Bailey and Alexis on court together.

And DeVries, with proof continuing to compile in practice, believes Bailey and Alexis will provide a potent punch as a change-of-pace duo.

"I think it's going to be a lineup that's going to help us throughout the year," DeVries said. "So, we'll continue to work with it and see what we can do."