For the Indiana visitors to the board: What is the IU fans' perspective on "Creaning"? Do they think Crean runs players off any more or less than any other coach? Do they think it's just part of how big time programs run, and Crean and IU are no different? Or do they feel a little oogy about the "what have you done for me lately" tone of it all?
Since I've been lurking I may as well respond. I think every transfer is the decision of the player. Sometimes that player makes a decision on his own. Sometimes that decision only comes after a discussion with the coach about what that player's role will be in the program going forward. Sometimes that discussion is a frank one, and the player won't like what they hear. But I don't believe any player is ever forced to leave a school without ultimately giving their consent. Maybe that's naive of me, but a transfer to a different campus is such a huge change that I can't imagine it being forced on anyone without the public hearing about it. The only family I can ever recall claiming they were mistreated has been the Pattersons, and Indiana has a plausible story to tell for why Ron wasn't admitted.
I would tend toward believing Crean experiences transfers about the same as the rest of the programs out there. Each year the national sports writers compile a list of the offseasons transfers and the average is about two per program. That's about what Crean has averaged in his time at Indiana. Last year there weren't any transfers out of the program. But because a lot of transfers happened early on, the reputation stuck.
I also believe there's a bit of a chicken or the egg question when it comes to transfers and over-signing. Do players have to leave because Crean over-signs, or does Crean over-sign because he knows players plan to leave? As fans, we see the recruit sign during the year and then a current player leaves after the season. But that could be a post hoc fallacy. As fans, we'll know the conversations that are taking place between player and coach. If Crean knows Thomas Bryant, OG Anunoby and James Blackmon plan to go pro after the season - NBA or otherwise - and knows Priller plans to graduate and leave and that Hartman plans to play this year, then what looks like oversigning by five is just Crean fillig out his roster.