INDIANA UNIVERSITY MEN’S BASKETBALL POTENTIAL 2025-2026 DEPTH CHART FEATURING HARUN ZRNO

WRITTEN + EDITED BY JORDYN BONTRAGER

While things are certainly not going according to plan for the currently constructed Indiana University men’s basketball squad, Mike Woodson and his staff were able to scoop another solid pillar for the future blueprints of the program’s foundation.

Born and bred in the beautiful country of Bosnia, the soon-to-be 21-year-old Harun Zrno recently confirmed his election to relocate overseas to Bloomington next season. The commitment came just a few weeks after Zrno’s official visit to Indiana back in early January. It is clear that the European swingman was swayed by IU’s combination of rich basketball tradition and vibrant campus life, as he chose the Hoosiers over the likes of Wisconsin, Virginia and Creighton. This move (Woody’s first international acquisition as the Hoosier shot caller) was not only crucial for next season’s team, but it should also alleviate some of the candy stripe faithful’s trust issues towards Woody as he actively sits atop a scorching hot seat.

So, who exactly is this unranked foreign recruit and how does he fit into the equation from a rotational perspective next year?

The Bosnian baller stands 6’6” and checks in around 205 on the lb. scale. He is never going to mistake anyone for a freak athlete, but what he lacks in explosiveness he compensates for with slick skills and extreme confidence. His jumpshot is his bread and butter, but he has gone on record in stating that he is much more than just a sharpshooter. And he has the film to support his claims on that matter.

Zrno is a certified sniper on the perimeter, and he does not need much time at all to get a shot off and more often times than not in as evidenced by his 48% from deep this season as a member of Slavija Istocno Sarajevo in Bosnia’s Division I. There is no denying the purity of his stroke, but judging from some of the clips above it is actually his footwork which makes him such a lethal threat from the great beyond. HZ can hit outside shots of all makes and models, and his ability to get into his shooting motion so smoothly after sprinting off of a screen/curl cut/hand off/etc is particularly impressive. We do not want to get ahead of ourselves here, but this guy (who is fresh off of eye-catching averages of 20.4 PPG + 4.8 RPG + 4.4 APG [!]) has all the makings of an elite marksman.

You have to admire his belief in his own ability to impact the game in other areas of the game, and you cannot help but respect both the gritty nature he brings to the table defensively AND collected secondary table-setting services he offers offensively. We must admit that we were not familiar with HZ’s game (apologies on that to you if you are reading this Harun!) prior to news breaking of his impending IU visit awhile back, but it only took a matter of moments watching his highlights to become big supporters of this pickup.

In fact, we are such fond fans of this dude’s game that as of this moment we would go as far as to say that he could/should be a starter for the 2025-2026 Indiana Hoosiers. Now before you go calling us crazy, you must first realize that there are 6x scholarship players whose eligibility will be exhausted at the conclusion of the current campaign (Ballo, Galloway, Goode, Hatton, James, Leal). There is still tons of time between now and next season, and after Woody’s impeccable offseason overhaul a year ago there is no telling what he has up his sleeve with this upcoming roster renovation. We do know, however, that the projected rotation as of this moment could/should/would look something like this if next season started today:

STARTERS

PG = Myles Rice | 6’3” | 185 lbs | Junior

SG = Harun Zrno | 6’6” | 205 lbs | Freshman

SF = Bryson Tucker | 6’7” | 207 lbs | Sophomore

PF = Mackenzie Mgbako | 6’9” | 222 lbs | Junior

C = Malik Reneau | 6’9” | 232 lbs | Senior

BENCH

PG = Gabe Cupps | 6’2” | 180 lbs | Junior

SG = Kanaan Carlyle | 6’3” | 182 lbs | Junior

SG = Jakai Newton | 6’3” | 210 lbs | Sophomore

PF = Trent Sisley | 6’7” | 210 lbs | Freshman

C = TBD

G = TBD

G = TBD

F = TBD

C = TBD

Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle were supposed to be this team’s starting backcourt for the next few years, but Carlyle has looked lost (19.0 MPG | 4.6 PPG | 1.8 RPG | 1.6 APG | 0.6 SPG | 29.2% FG [!] | 22.4% 3FG [!!] | 33.3% FT [!!!]) since transitioning from the west to east coast. Assuming he does not transfer (we hope he does not, he just needs some time), Carlyle seems more snuggly suited in a microwave scoring type role off the pine. And with Gabe Cupps and Jakai Newton continuing to work their ways through respective knee problems, there really is not a better candidate to slot next to Rice in the starting backcourt.

All caps OBVIOUSLY there are going to be other guys coming aboard via the incoming freshman class and/or transfer portal (we saw Woody’s wizardry on this specific side of the spectrum last offseason), so who knows if a more worthy option or two (or if we are lucky three or four) will supplant Zrno on the Hoosier hierarchy. We also do not even know if all of the eligible returnees will in fact return, with Mackenzie Mgbako previously being mentioned in NBA mock draft discussions plus overall uncertainty of who may seek greener pastures via the portal like Kaleb Banks (who is KILLING this season), CJ Gunn and Payton Sparks each did after the final buzzer sounded last year.

There is a seemingly never ending list of unknowns as it pertains to what this team will look like next season, but one thing we are sure of is the fact that Harun Zrno could quite feasibly turn out to be one of the true hidden treasure acquisitions across the entire landscape of college hoops.

Welcome, HZ. Now, keep going!