Way Too Early Preview – 2027 Indiana Mr. Basketball Candidates

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>So far in our "way too early" preview series for the 2026-2027 Indiana High School Basketball season we have focused on teams. We've highlighted the state title contenders across all four classes and released our first look at a Top 20 Super Poll. However, we will now drill a little deeper and starting looking at some big picture individual awards. There is no better place to start than with those players who will compete for the coveted Indiana Mr. Basketball award.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Favorites</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indiana Mr. Basketball is an actual vote consisting coaches, media, and other people "in the know" across the state. In a perfect world, this would probably be a year for a czar to step in and name co-Mr. Basketball award winners. It could be difficult for these two elite guards to not split each other's vote.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2267046' first='Jason' last='Gardner Jr.']</strong> - This four-star prospect has the national profile and high-major recruitment along with outstanding high school success. Gardner Jr. missed the majority of his junior season, but averaged 20.3 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game. The super explosive guard was excellent while playing in the Indiana All-Star series as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2140345' first='Cooper' last='Zachary']</strong> - Even while playing alongside Gardner Jr. it would be hard to not lean towards Zachary from a career achievement standpoint. He has been a major contributor for three seasons including winning a state title as a freshman. Zachary enters his senior season with only three losses and is coming off of a junior year where he averaged 14.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 2.8 steals per game while also being one of the best shooters in the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Other Front-Runners</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If the vote were to get split between Gardner Jr. and Zachary these are the three players who would likely be in the best position to earn the Indiana Mr. Basketball award.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2266896' first='Isaiah' last='Hill'] </strong>- Hill is a 6'11" center committed to Purdue. He is the state's most dominant interior defender and will be the anchor of what will once again be a Top 5 Pike High School team. The state's top prospect averaged 12.4 points, 9.5 rebounds and 4.6 blocked shots per game earning "Core" Indiana Junior All-Star honors.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2140328' first='Brandon' last='Hunter']</strong> - If Hunter flirts with averaging a triple-double and leads Silver Creek to a Class 3A State Championship you can expect him to carry a large percentage of the vote from the south. The 6'3" point guard is committed to Belmont and has done a lot of winning in his high school career. Last season he led Silver Creek to the 3A South Semi-State averaging 12.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 10.5 assists, and 1.9 steals per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2140419' first='Max' last='Vise']</strong> - This one admittedly feels a bit less likely, but if Vise were to somehow lead Mt. Vernon (Fortville) on another deep run in Class 4A it would be hard to not consider him. The 6'8" versatile forward was a huge part of the Marauders state championship last season earning "Core" Indiana Junior All-Star honors. Vise averaged 14.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.0 blocked shots per game as a junior.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Dark Horse Candidates</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>These players will need to do something special, both individually and with their team, in order to truly enter the conversation. However, they are likely to grab a couple of first or second place votes along the way.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2267048' first='Harper' last='Baker-Lands'] - The keys to the car will be completely handed over to Baker-Lands this season at Plainfield. He could put up some huge offensive numbers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2140359' first='Elijah' last='King'] - King has been a consistent standout for South Bend St. Joseph leading them to the Class 3A State Championship as a sophomore and earning Indiana Junior All-Star honors last year. He should put up some big numbers this season and could lead the Huskies on another deep state tournament run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2932419' first='Mack' last='Welker'] - A recent Wright State commit, Welker averaged a double-double as a junior at Homestead. If he could repeat those numbers while leading the Spartans to Gainbridge Fieldhouse he could get a lot of votes from the north.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->