A plan at Forward

[SpecialKHawk]

I think what is being lost is the fact that some of us think TD will provide an element that we have been missing from the point and that fact is not a slight on MG. MG has been a really solid player and maybe better than expected but his game does not feel like a true point guard, more like a 2 guard. We need a guy that can attack off of the bounce creating finishing opportunities and open shots for others especially in the half court when our transition game gets bogged down.

There is a role and need for MG but if TD is what we think he can be then there is going to be a real dilemma at the point. It will be too difficult to keep TD off of the court.

If Fran was just looking to add depth he did not need to offer TD.... He could have offered an incoming freshman and had a heart-to-heart with AC. This offer was about what we are lacking at the point to get over the top in close games.

 

[UncleHawk]

I think what is being lost is the fact that some of us think TD will provide an element that we have been missing from the point and that fact is not a slight on MG. MG has been a really solid player and maybe better than expected but his game does not feel like a true point guard, more like a 2 guard. We need a guy that can attack off of the bounce creating finishing opportunities and open shots for others especially in the half court when our transition game gets bogged down.

There is a role and need for MG but if TD is what we think he can be then there is going to be a real dilemma at the point. It will be too difficult to keep TD off of the court.

If Fran was just looking to add depth he did not need to offer TD.... He could have offered an incoming freshman and had a heart-to-heart with AC. This offer was about what we are lacking at the point to get over the top in close games.

I generally agree with this but I think almost everyone is missing the point about why TD was recruited. It was the same reason Ulis was recruited. This was not as a Clemmons replacement but as a replacement of the creating ability RDM provided and adding quickness that we don't have. That's why he will be given every opportunity to be a MAJOR contributor next year. This may not be as an MG replacement. I think they will be tried starting together. If he doesn't start, multiple guys will have taken it to a level that they haven't demonstrated consistently. Note that Fran is continuing to legitimately recruit guys like House (he's applying to become eligible to play in 2014) because he would like Jok, MG, Uthoff, etc., to take big leaps next year and thinks that they can, but they haven't yet.

 

[ArvadaHawk]

This year's plan is not the problem. When White and Gabe are gone next year.... then we're in trouble.

Bingo...hence my disappointment in missing on Atwood. He could have been a stop-gap/bridge for a season. Fran really needs to get some bigs with 2015 recruits, if not a, surprise 2014 big. Woody can't go it alone in 2015.

 

[lightning1]

I don't think "mental toughness" can be learned over short time periods, like one off season. I don't think Fran McCaffrey is mentally tough. Otherwise he wouldn't be a temper tantrum waiting to happen on the sidelines. The toughness and the leadership has to come from the HC and since we imploded at the end of last season like we did, I'm going to assume we never get there. Until It's proven otherwise. I've said it before and I'll say it again. This head coaching tenure is looking more and more like Mr. Davis part deux. Some people would willingly embrace that. I'm not one of those people.

 

[JHHawk]

Look at how Minny brought in jucos in Malik Smith and DeAndre Matthieu last year, even tho they had 3yr starters at guard in the Hollins boys, and Maverick .....somehow, Matthieu ended up starting and probably being their best player for much of the league season. Having too many quick guards is not a problem at Iowa, we need more. TD will play plenty, as will Mike. Vs Minny for sure, anyway, as they were too quick for us in the Barn last year and we got embarrassed and run out of the place. I think this was an eye-opener for Fran...cementing his opinion that we need more quickness on the perimeter. Minny had a frosh, McNeil, last year who also looked promising at guard.....gonna be hard for Iowa to match up with them again.

 

[mopkins]

Id like to see a lot more Gabe this year and it sounds like that's exactly what the Hawks will do. 25 minutes for Gabe including 8-10 minutes of Gabe/Woody together. Gabe has made big strides every single year, it will be fun to watch his senior season.

 

[BigD]

When Gabe and Woody both foul out it is going to get ugly. There is. Reason he was going after a junior college transfer and that was because Fran knew he needed some muscle underneath the boards. I will hope for the best but not expect it by any means.

 

[UncleHawk]

When Gabe and Woody both foul out it is going to get ugly. There is. Reason he was going after a junior college transfer and that was because Fran knew he needed some muscle underneath the boards. I will hope for the best but not expect it by any means.

How many times did GO and Woody both foul out of games? Answer: zero. The 2 forward JC guys we recruited wanted to play SF and didn't come mostly because of that. I'm confident that White will get close to 8rbs at PF. Woody and GO will certainly combine for at least 10-12 with increased minutes. On top of that, Uthoff will probably get 5. I'm not worried about boards. I'm worried about creators on offense and lateral quickness, particularly at SF, on D. There look to be solutions, but none of them is a sure thing.

 

[RocknRollface]

When Gabe and Woody both foul out it is going to get ugly. There is. Reason he was going after a junior college transfer and that was because Fran knew he needed some muscle underneath the boards. I will hope for the best but not expect it by any means.

10 fouls is allot, I don't see it as much of an issue.

Most teams only roll with a 7/8 man rotation.

Atwood was not really a muscle under the boards guy, more of a perimeter player.

 

[Tierney]

I doubt Gabe will play much power forward just for the reason of possibly getting into foul trouble. He might play some in blow out games, but its hard to believe Fran won't want them to play center. I see White at power forward with Uthoff at small forward and relieving White at power forward. Iowa has a couple of other guys that can back up at small forward.

 

[bws258]

Uthoff can't play PF by any means at all

^^^

 

[Tierney]

I think Fran has already said he plans to play Uthoff some at power forward, but how he would use him if he was coming in for White would be a coaching decision. I think Uthoff is pretty talented offensively, and he has the length and athletic ability to be disruptive defensively. He probably won't be pushing to many guys around down low, but he can be excellent at a lot of other things.

 

[MiniMoeHawk]

I think Fran has already said he plans to play Uthoff some at power forward, but how he would use him if he was coming in for White would be a coaching decision. I think Uthoff is pretty talented offensively, and he has the length and athletic ability to be disruptive defensively. He probably won't be pushing to many guys around down low, but he can be excellent at a lot of other things.

JU needs to get stronger, and improve his hand skills. He should have to carry around a basketball to class everyday like start RB in The Program.

 

[InGoodCo]

JU really needs to hit that weight room.... than he'll be unstoppable.

 

[jacknicholson]

It would be nice to land some muscle under the glass, we lost our muscle to graduation, one who made a young man's mistakes, but one who protected our property and lads.....

Kyle was big but might have been too slow for the Big, I liked Kyle, seemed to be a loyal teammate.....

We can do it with quickness and skintight defense, and movement on offense, hopefully overcoming our problems at scoring from the three point territory, all the while spreading the court....

 

[jacknicholson]

JU needs to get stronger, and improve his hand skills. He should have to carry around a basketball to class everyday like start RB in The Program.

Dribbling to school and to each and every class wearing weights on his ankles.....

Jaryd has a lot of potential, he just didn't get a chance to show his complete game at it's best. It was Devyn's team last season.....

I do believe he can be similar to Dekker in style of play.....

 

[FBletterman]

Rotation will be interesting this year.

Will Woody stay out of foul trouble? If so how many minutes can he log at the 5? The more he can, the more Gabe could play at the 4.

White will probably average close to 30 min per game at the 4 so that leaves about 10 minutes per game between Gabe, Uthoff and possibly Uhl to cover.

The 3 is the our thinnest position. Uthoff will log the most minutes. I look for Jok to spell Uthoff at the 3 as well as play the 2.

Ogelsby, Jok and Mike will play the 2.

Mike, Dickerson, Clemons will play PG.

We have the same issue as last year that we had with White. We are going to have guys playing out of their natural position to help cover the teams needs. Jok is a 2 but will play minutes at the 3. Gabe is a 5 but will play minutes at a 4. Mike is a PG but will play minutes at the 2. I agree with above that Uthoff is better as a 4 than a 3.

Some players are versatile enough to jump play multiple spots. I'm not sure these guys have that versatility to compete and be an NCAA tourney caliber team.

I hope I'm wrong.

I have to disagree, teams are winning championships with 7 and 8 rotations. You don't need 2 stars each and every position. I don't think 10 deep helped us last year at all. Gessell, Jok, Uthoff, White, Gabe and Woody is 6 throw in Trey D. you got 7. 1 more step up like Uhl and we are there IMO

 

[jacknicholson]

I have to disagree, teams are winning championships with 7 and 8 rotations. You don't need 2 stars each and every position. I don't think 10 deep helped us last year at all. Gessell, Jok, Uthoff, White, Gabe and Woody is 6 throw in Trey D. you got 7. 1 more step up like Uhl and we are there IMO

I think the substitution patterns were a problem last season. This season, I think we need more than who will play at forward. We have the personal to play the position. What I believe we need is to get the teamwork and chemistry back. We need to play with intensity, especially on D, similar to the way we played Michigan at Carver. Steals, half court traps, solid D causing missed shots all give us the opportunity to play our transition game which was less than it had been the previous season. The Big coaches are very good and among the best in the country, some of them adjusted to our style, we did not. I can see this being an entirely different team next season.....

If we can spread the floor in half court offense, with our skillful three point shooters, who hopefully maximize their potential, we will be dangerous inside, and give us more room to move around under the basket. It would make a huge difference. I would also like to see a lot of passing. It is easy to follow a player who is dribbling, but much more difficult to chase passes around.....

I look forward to a renewed team with valuable experience learned last season, one with attitude, positioning can overcome mere power and gangster mentality.....

Fran is a solid coach, and he knows what to do and has the staff and players to do it. One factor that favors us is the lack of expectations, like, for instance, experts tagging us for the Final Four. Perhaps this team will fly under the radar and excell like Kirk's teams have done on a few occasions....

 

[LASBUR]

You always break it down and make it simple Jack Well Said

I think the substitution patterns were a problem last season. This season, I think we need more than who will play at forward. We have the personal to play the position. What I believe we need is to get the teamwork and chemistry back. We need to play with intensity, especially on D, similar to the way we played Michigan at Carver. Steals, half court traps, solid D causing missed shots all give us the opportunity to play our transition game which was less than it had been the previous season. The Big coaches are very good and among the best in the country, some of them adjusted to our style, we did not. I can see this being an entirely different team next season.....

If we can spread the floor in half court offense, with our skillful three point shooters, who hopefully maximize their potential, we will be dangerous inside, and give us more room to move around under the basket. It would make a huge difference. I would also like to see a lot of passing. It is easy to follow a player who is dribbling, but much more difficult to chase passes around.....

I look forward to a renewed team with valuable experience learned last season, one with attitude, positioning can overcome mere power and gangster mentality.....

Fran is a solid coach, and he knows what to do and has the staff and players to do it. One factor that favors us is the lack of expectations, like, for instance, experts tagging us for the Final Four. Perhaps this team will fly under the radar and excell like Kirk's teams have done on a few occasions....

 

[SheagleHawk]

I think the substitution patterns were a problem last season. This season, I think we need more than who will play at forward. We have the personal to play the position. What I believe we need is to get the teamwork and chemistry back. We need to play with intensity, especially on D, similar to the way we played Michigan at Carver. Steals, half court traps, solid D causing missed shots all give us the opportunity to play our transition game which was less than it had been the previous season. The Big coaches are very good and among the best in the country, some of them adjusted to our style, we did not. I can see this being an entirely different team next season.....

If we can spread the floor in half court offense, with our skillful three point shooters, who hopefully maximize their potential, we will be dangerous inside, and give us more room to move around under the basket. It would make a huge difference. I would also like to see a lot of passing. It is easy to follow a player who is dribbling, but much more difficult to chase passes around.....

I look forward to a renewed team with valuable experience learned last season, one with attitude, positioning can overcome mere power and gangster mentality.....

Fran is a solid coach, and he knows what to do and has the staff and players to do it. One factor that favors us is the lack of expectations, like, for instance, experts tagging us for the Final Four. Perhaps this team will fly under the radar and excell like Kirk's teams have done on a few occasions....

This is going to be key for next season. If we can't make teams pay for sagging off the perimeter it is going to be a long year. TD was a nice pick-up and should provide some much needed penetration and playmaking ability. However, that isn't going to help if teams continue to clog the middle b/c of our poor perimeter shooting. The clowns make up for a lack of size with good perimeter shooting. It pretty much opens everything up for them, allowing their guards and quicker "big" men to penetrate and create. I really, really hope this team works on the 3 ball this summer and mid-range jumpers.