"I pick Brad Stevens to coach at Indiana": College hoops fans react to Mike Woodson's potential replacement at Hoosiers 

Reports on Thursday claimed that Indiana men's basketball head coach Mike Woodson is unlikely to return next season. ESPN analyst Pete Thamel expressed that sources say that Woodsen will finish off the season with the Hoosiers but wishes to step away after.

This new development has led to speculation over who will fill the head coach vacancy at Indiana for the 2025-26 season. The IG account for the podcast "The Field of 68: After Dark" shared a post on Friday morning with possible replacements.

These replacements were split into two categories: home run swings for unlikely but exciting pick-ups such as veteran head coach Rick Pitino, and realistic options, including UCLA's Mick Cronin.

Basketball fans took to the comment section to express their viewpoints on who could be the Hoosiers' next head coach. One comment had a firm stance as to who should lead Indiana into the future.

"I pick Brad Stevens to coach at Indiana."

One IG user shares his pick for Indiana's next head coach

Others comments decided to focus instead on who they didn't want to see in charge of the Indiana basketball team.

"Anyone but Cronin."

"NOT Pitino."

IG users express who they do not want to see as Indiana's head coach

Some comments questioned why the seasoned head coaches included in @fieldof68's list of possible replacements would choose to leave their current positions to coach the Hoosiers.

"Is Indiana even a better situation than where these guys currently are?"

"Brad Stevens 😭😭 Why would he leave the best team in the NBA?"

"Why would Pitino leave St. John's?? They're really good this year. Why ruin something that's going good?"

IG users express doubt in @fieldof68's picks for Indiana's new head coach

Indiana under Mike Woodson

Mike Woodson was a longtime NBA assistant coach and served as the head coach of the New York Knicks and the Atlanta Hawks before coming to coach at his alma mater in 2021. He led the Hoosiers to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2022 and 2023 but never made it past the round of 32.

Indiana is 0-4 against ranked teams this season and is not projected to make the NCAA Tournament, despite opening the season at No. 17. The team is currently 14-9 overall and sits at 12th in the Big Ten with a 5-7 conference record.

"We're just not a tough team right now," Mike Woodson said Tuesday after Indiana's loss to Wisconsin. "We're not. Mentally we're not tough."

Syndication: The Indianapolis Star - Source: Imagn

Is the Indiana job desirable?

Indiana is a historically iconic program, with five National Championship titles and the last undefeated season in college basketball back in 1976. However, the Hoosiers have slipped away from greatness in recent years.

The team's last championship title was in 1987 and the last time Indiana reached the title game was in 2002. The closest the Hoosiers have come since then was a 2016 Sweet Sixteen appearance.

Fans of the once-thriving basketball school want to see it return to being a top-contending program, and a successful head coach would be an essential piece to that.

As some comments on @fieldof68's post suggest, Stevens would be a slam-dunk hire. The Boston Celtics general manager, who led his team to an NBA championship win last season and was named 2023-24 NBA Executive of the Year, is an Indiana native and would be a huge pickup for the program.

However, as other comments suggested, the odds of Stevens leaving his successful tenure with Boston seem very low. Indiana fans will have to wait to see how the head coach vacancy shakes out.