Indiana Hoosiers receive transfer from guard Josh Newkirk

Tom Crean has been looking to get the Indiana Hoosiers back to legitimate championship contenders over the past few seasons, but he hasn’t been able to do it just yet. His recruiting classes have been solid, but they haven’t been great. Indiana is excited about the upcoming 2015-16 season and even received a late transfer from former Pittsburgh Panthers guard Josh Newkirk.

Newkirk will have to sit out the entire 2015-16 season due to NCAA transfer restrictions, but he will have two years of eligibility when he takes the court for the Hoosiers next season.

Last season with the Panthers, Newkirk ended up averaging 5.9 points, 2.7 assists and 1.3 rebounds per game. He shot just 37.7 percent from the floor overall and 30.1 percent from behind the three-point arc.

Those numbers may not make him look like a big pickup, but he will have an entire season to work on his game and come back better next season. Yogi Ferrell will be a senior this season, which makes Newkirk some back-court depth at the very least. If he takes this transfer seriously and wants to earn playing time next year, he will work hard on his offensive game and come back with a much better shot.

Indiana certainly has a chance to make a big leap forward over the next couple of seasons. Crean has been getting interest from quite a few of the top recruits in the next couple recruiting classes and there is no denying the basketball tradition that the Hoosiers have on their side.

Expect to see Newkirk attack workouts this coming season and work hard to become as good of a player as he can be. He obviously believes that he will have a chance to earn some playing time early on with Indiana. Crean is a very good coach at developing young talent, which could be huge for Newkirk’s future.

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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports

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