IU basketball has six open scholarships as of Thursday, following five-star 2024 forward Bryson Tucker's commitment. Coach Mike Woodson carried an open scholarship in 2023-24 after some swings and misses in the portal.

You'd expect the staff to target shooting, ball-handling, rim protection, perimeter defense and a big man to complement Malik Reneau. That all? Probably not, but Woodson and staff have plenty of roster space to fill.

Here are some interesting names in the transfer portal. Some have been linked with IU, others make sense, while the others are just interesting.

Names are in alphabetical order.

Deyton Albury, Queens University (N.C.)

IU is among the teams showing Albury the most interest, per The Portal Report.

A 6-2 guard out of The Bahamas, Albury averaged 17.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game this season. He's not really a high-volume 3-point shooter (only attempted 55), but his 36.4% from behind the arc is passable. He scored 20 points or more 11 times after transferring in from Chipola JC. Albury was named the ASun Newcomer of the Year and was third-team all-conference.

Jalen Blackmon, Stetson

You want shooters? Let's reintroduce you to Jalen Blackmon.

The younger brother of former Hoosier scorer James Blackmon, Jalen scored 2,269 points at Marion and was a 2021 Indiana All-Star before starting his college career at Grand Canyon University.

This past season, Blackmon was a first-team All-ASUN pick this year, averaging 21.3 points per game. The junior guard scored 43 points — 16 in four minutes — in the ASUN conference tournament final to book the Hatters' first NCAA tournament appearance.

He shot 289 times from behind the arc this past season. That's more than IU's top 3-point shooters combined from last season (Mackenzie Mgbako, 153; Trey Galloway, 100). He shot 38.1% from deep and 90.7% from the free-throw line. He's the shooter specialist IU fans have cried out for.

Skyy Clark, Louisville

UPDATE: Clark committed to UCLA

A one-time Kentucky commit who began his college career at Illinois, Clark is looking for a new home again after Kenny Payne was fired at Louisville. Clark, who held an IU offer coming out of Montverde Academy, averaged 13.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists as a sophomore this season. He shot 35.3% from behind the arc and his 47 makes from distance would have been the second-most on IU.

Woodson had good luck with the last guard he landed out of Montverde, and Clark and Reneau and Jalen Hood-Schifino were teammates at the Florida powerhouse.

Devo Davis, Arkansas

Davis told 247HSHoops IU is among the teams he's heard from since entering the portal. A 6-4 senior guard, Davis started 85 games for the Razorbacks. His scoring dipped from 10.9 points per game as a junior to 5.9 this season and he shot just 24.2% from the behind the arc (and is a career 29.4% 3-point shooter). Over his career, he averaged 8.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.4 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game.

Jake Davis, Mercer

UPDATE: Davis committed to Illinois.

Remember him? Cathedral's king of taking charges.

Butler, Illinois and DePaul are among the schools who have made contact, per The Portal Report. He kind of has a Mason Gillis aspect to his game, and who couldn't use a Mason Gillis? As a freshman, Davis averaged 9.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 38.7% from behind the arc. The 6-6 forward hit 60 3-pointers this season, more than any IU player.

Tre Dinkins, Canisius

Per The Portal Report, IU is among the schools that have reached out to Dinkins, though reports say Miami has prioritized the junior to replace its own portal departure, Bensley Joseph. The 6-2 Dinkins averaged 15.4 points, 3.6 assists and 2.7 rebounds a game, and hit 85 3-pointers at a 36.5% clip. He hit at least five 3s in a game five times and was named third-team All-MAAC.

Connor Essegian, Wisconsin

A 2022 Indiana All-Star out of Central Noble, Essegian saw his playing time cut drastically from his freshman to sophomore seasons with the Badgers. He started 19 games in 2022-23 and averaged 11.7 points per game in 27.4 minutes, shooting 35.9% from behind the arc. This season, he didn’t start and played just 7.3 minutes per game, hence the massive drop-off in production (3.2 ppg).

Essegian averaged 26.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, leading Central Noble to a 28-3 record and its first Class 2A state finals appearance as a senior. Essegian scored 2,526 career points to rank No. 10 in state history and was already the school’s all-time leading scorer after his junior season, breaking a record that had stood for 44 years.

247Sports' Davis Moseley reported there is mutual interest between Essegian and Michigan, who is now coached by another former Indiana schoolboy, Dusty May.

Connor Hickman, Bradley

A homegrown shooter? Hickman checks that box.

The Bloomington South grad helped take Bradley to a 23-12 record and the NIT this season. Hickman, who has one year of eligibility, earned third-team All-MVC honors and led the Braves in scoring with 14.5 points per game. There will likely be a strong market for Hickman, who delivered a 40.2% shooting rate from 3-point range and was among the MVC's best defensive guards.

Expect the Hoosiers to be involved here.

Meechie Johnson, South Carolina

UPDATE: Johnson committed to Ohio State.

Might as well test out the NIL war chest, right?

The 6-2 senior guard had a good thing going with the Gamecocks, leading South Carolina back to the NCAA tournament for the first time in seven years. He averaged 14.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, his second with the Gamecocks. The Cleveland guard started his career at Ohio State and started 62 of the 63 games he played for USC.

Dakota Leffew, Mount St. Mary's

A first-team All-MAAC selection, Leffew averaged 17.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game this season. IU is among the many schools that have reached out to the 6-4 senior, per The Portal Report. He hit 74 3-pointers, 24 more than IU's top 3-point shooter, Mackenzie Mgbako, hit. For his career, he's a 35.8% shooter from behind the arc. He hit seven 3s in a 34-point performance vs. Marist on Feb. 2. He's from suburban Atlanta, which has been a point of emphasis in recruiting with IU assistant Yasir Rosemond, who helped land Jakai Newton and Kaleb Banks out of Georgia in recent classes.

Malik Mack, Harvard

Woodson missed on a Harvard guard transfer last season as Jordan Dingle chose St. John's (he averaged 11.6 ppg this season). Mack will be another popular transfer target after averaging 17.2 points, 4.8 assists and 4.0 rebounds for the Crimson as a freshman. And the Hoosiers know all-too-well how good he is. The Ivy league Rookie of the Year scored 27 against IU on Nov. 26. Another adept 3-point shooter (34.1%), he had just five fewer 3s than Mgbako.

Sincere Parker, Saint Louis

Noticing a trend? Parker shot 42.9% from behind the arc this season on his way to averaging 15.9 points for the Billikens, but was limited to just 16 games because of multiple injuries.

The Rockford, Ill., product can score at all three levels and became the first Billiken since Larry Hughes to top 30 points three games in a row.

“He’s got a great future ahead of him,” SLU coach Travis Ford told the Rockford Register-Star before his dismissal. “He’s just scratching the surface now. As he continues to get games under his belt, the sky is the future for him. The way he can score the basketball, not many guys can do that.”

Tony Perkins, Iowa

Over four seasons at Iowa, Perkins racked up 1,175 points, 398 rebounds and 321 assists. Perkins made the NCAA tournament in three of his four seasons.

The Lawrence North grad put up some of his best numbers during the 2023-24 season, when he was named to the All-Big Ten second team by the league's coaches. Perkins averaged career highs in points (14.0), rebounds (4.4), assists (4.6) and steals (1.6).

The Portal Report says IU was among the schools to reach out to Perkins in the first hours he was in the portal. He's the type of athletic two-way guard the Hoosiers need.

Tarris Reed Jr., Michigan

A 6-10 sophomore forward out of St. Louis, Reed held an IU offer out of high school in the 2022 class, per 247Sports. Reed averaged 9.0 points and 7.2 rebounds for the Wolverines in 26 minutes per game. He also averaged 1.4 blocks and could be a rim protector and rugged rebounder needed alongside Reneau.

Clark Slajchert, Penn

A senior guard from Los Angeles, Slajchert was second-team All-Ivy League, averaging 18.0 points per game for the Quakers. And guess what? He's a shooter. He shot 42.2% from behind the arc, hitting 57 3s. He averaged 3.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game and is a career 85.5% free-throw shooter. The Hoosiers have reached out, per Portal Updates.

Javon Small, Oklahoma State

A native Hoosier (South Bend), Small is a strong point guard who immediately would add a rugged edge. After transferring in from East Carolina, he averaged 15.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists on his way to earning All-Big 12 honorable mention. He drew the most fouls on the Cowboys this season and shot 86.6% from the free-throw line. He made 61 3s, shooting 37.4%.

Leland Walker, Eastern Kentucky

A former North Central point guard who finished his prep career at Hargrave Military (Va.), Walker will visit IU on Monday, per IndyStar's Kyle Neddenriep. Neddenriep also reported Walker will visit DePaul. The first-team All-ASUN pick averaged 15.4 points per game (second on team by 0.2) and led the Colonels in with 4.1 assists per game as a sophomore. He shot 34% from behind the arc and his 38 made 3s would have been second-most on IU. A homecoming makes sense to fill the void of Xavier Johnson's departure.

Marques Warrick, Northern Kentucky

Warrick has 2,246 career points for NKU and has averaged at least 15.8 points a game in each of his four seasons with the Norse. A 6-2 guard from Lexington, Ky., Warrick averaged a career-high 19.9 points this season, with 2.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists. Per The Portal Report, IU is among the programs to reach out to Warrick. His 3-point shooting took a dip this season, from 38.2% to 29.8%. That said, he still has 283 career 3s.

Amari Williams, Drexel

The Hoosiers need a shot-blocking presence to replace Kel'el Ware, who replaced Trayce Jackson-Davis. Reneau has his strengths, but staying out of foul trouble and protecting the rim aren't among them. Williams is a three-time CAA defensive player of the year with 181 blocks over the past three seasons. He fits the bill. Which is why, per Joe Tipton, IU is among the teams to reach out to Williams.

The 6-10 forward from Nottingham, England, averaged 12.2 points and 7.8 rebounds this season. Woodson's recruiting pitch could be simple: I help get big men to the league.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana basketball will be busy in transfer portal. 19 names to know.