When Jeff Teague selected another school over Indiana in his search for a hoops program, he also made a case for Sports Informatics to be a strong part of the Athletics Department.
Of course, sports informatics is still in need of definition (and a formal program at the School of Informatics). That part is coming. There has already been some contact between Athletics and Informatics in the past several months, and I’ve got a project I am trying to arrange with the Women’s basketball team to map the passes of a basketball in the game as a network. (Note to that program: please contact me soon. Time’s a wasting.)
This was the part of the Herald Times report that got my attention was:
On his visit Teague also watched the team workout and sat in on a video session, neither of which he got to do at Indiana. Wake coaches showed him a typical scouting report, this one on former Duke star J.J. Reddick. Included in the film reel was every single shot he had taken leading up to the game with the Demon Deacons.
“That really impressed him,†said Pike coach Billy Wright. “He’s got a very high basketball IQ and will be a kid who really uses that information.â€
Not every recruit is going to be as interested as Teague was in the technology that goes into training, scouting and coaching. However, just like the quality of practice facilities, more and more student-athletes will look at technology as a factor in making a decision about a school. Indiana University, with a program becoming ready to fill that need, should be taking advantage of the proximity of the School of Informatics.
