Bloomington native returns home to join new Hoosiers coach Darian DeVries after three years on Wes Miller’s staff at Cincinnati.
Why is Adams an important hire for DeVries at the start of his Indiana tenure?
Local Boy Returns Home As Drew Adams Joins Darian DeVries, Hoosiers
DeVries, the new Indiana coach, has reportedly brought on Bloomington native and former Hoosiers’ staff member Drew Adams, who spent the last three seasons on Wes Miller’s staff at Cincinnati, a source told The Field of 68.
Indiana coach Darian DeVries has hired Bloomington native and IU grad Drew Adams to his staff as an assistant coach, source told @TheFieldOf68.
Adams was an assistant at Bradley and most recently at Cincinnati – where he was an assistant and recruiting coordinator.
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— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 1, 2025
Adams was an assistant coach and the recruiting coordinator with the Bearcats, who went 63-43 in three years, which included a move from the American Athletic Conference to the Big 12 ahead of the 2023-24 season.
“Drew is one of the brightest young minds in college basketball,” Cincinnati head coach Wes Miller said on the Bearcats’ team website. “His experience in operations, recruiting and coaching at the highest level – including multiple NCAA Tournament bids and conference championships at several different elite programs – has given him an impressive resume.”
Prior to Cincinnati, Adams spent seven years in Peoria, Il. under coach Brian Wardle as an assistant at Bradley. He was part of a complete Braves rebuild during his time at Bradley.
The program went 18-47 in Adams’ first two years on staff before going on to 92 wins and back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference championships in 2019-20, the first time Bradley had done so.
Adams was also a part three NCAA Tournament teams in four years at New Mexico, where he worked under first Steve Alford and then Craig Neal. The Lobos went 99-36 (.733) and won two Mountain West regular season titles and three Mountain West Conference tournament crowns.
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Adams, a 2004 graduate of Bloomington High School South, is back home for the first time since 2011. After graduating from Tennessee in 2009, Adams joined coach Tom Crean’s staff and spent two years at Indiana before joining Alford at New Mexico.
With more than a decade of coaching experience in the Midwest, DeVries will no doubt count on Adams to revitalize local recruiting for a Hoosiers program that has only reached the NCAA Tournament 10 times and made just three Sweet 16 appearances since 2002.
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