ASSISTANT COACH #3 and Grad Asst will be...

PezHawk is delusional.

Why do we need another former Iowa player on the staff with Sperraw there already. He doesn't count because not enough people remember him as a Hawkeye?

Why do you think Settles or Bowen brings as much as Gamble? Gamble has been a head coach at a college program that he started up, iirc, and has recruited Chicago for eight years. Does anyone outside of eastern Iowa know who Bowen is? Why would he be a good pick, other than you just making the comment, Pez?

I don't think you and others like you have any idea of what makes a good coach or you wouldn't make that comment that he is as good if a choice as Gamble, or even Murray, for that matter, who has also been a coach and has JUCO connections.

I'm sorry, but comments like these are not backed up by anything except enthusiasm for the guy's playing career and that doesn't mean jack.
 
Re: PezHawk is delusional.

Why do we need another former Iowa player on the staff with Sperraw there already. He doesn't count because not enough people remember him as a Hawkeye?

Why do you think Settles or Bowen brings as much as Gamble? Gamble has been a head coach at a college program that he started up, iirc, and has recruited Chicago for eight years. Does anyone outside of eastern Iowa know who Bowen is? Why would he be a good pick, other than you just making the comment, Pez?

I don't think you and others like you have any idea of what makes a good coach or you wouldn't make that comment that he is as good if a choice as Gamble, or even Murray, for that matter, who has also been a coach and has JUCO connections.

I'm sorry, but comments like these are not backed up by anything except enthusiasm for the guy's playing career and that doesn't mean jack.

Personally I would of liked Gamble, but he doesn't have his degree.

Murray would of been a good choice as well, but he didn't want the job, so again he wasn't an option.

Lets not kid ourselves, I'd put the amount of people who know who Kenyon Murray is outside of the 319 area code well below those who know who Bowen is. I'd venture there are more people in Denver alone who would remember Bowen, then remember Murray, Settles or Recker etc.

I'm not saying Bowen is the savior, but Fran wanted some Iowa flavor on his staff, and I think Bowen will be a good fit there. I'm not a big rah rah guy, but have no issues if Bowen is hired.

As I mentioned before, he is a poster-child for what most of us think the Hawkeye Program represents.

If you have some evidence that BJ, Lester or Nellie wanted the #3 slot on the Iowa bench, then I'd concede Bowen isn't a good option, but for what the position appears to be, I'm not aware of too many other people wanting the spot who would be better.
 
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We are talking about the third assistant coach here and I don't think Rodell would be interested in that position. Rodell is looking to move up the ladder and 3rd assistant at Iowa does not help him.

I have heard the same talk and am pretty confident that Bowen and Horner announcement will be coming soon.

I think it is a good hire. Bowen has done more career wise than anyone I could have ever imagined. He's a very hard worker and he knows what it takes to develop and make it on the next level. The guy is not very athletic compared to other NBA players his size, yet he stuck around for 10 yrs. I agree that he will have no problem recruiting the state of Iowa given that he is very well known in the state.

Fran is a strong recruiter as a head coach. He and Francis both work very hard at that aspect of the position. Speraw is well known around the country and he is a very good when it comes to experience and in-game decisions. Bowen can help guys like Brommer, Archie and Cougill develop their games. He was very similar to those guys when he came to Iowa.

Horner is a no-brainer if he is interested in GA. He's not far removed from the college game, he had a stint in Europe as a professional and he has a very good understanding of the game.

I will be happy if this is the staff that we have next season.


Please, not athletic, did you actually watch him play in the NBA, he is very athletic, just not a polished offensive player. You don't stick around the NBA that long if you are not athletic unless you are a centerm or one helluva shot. He was neither but if you talk to other NBA players about him they he is very respected. I will be very happy with him as an assistant coach.........
 
Re: PezHawk is delusional.

Personally I would of liked Gamble, but he doesn't have his degree.

Ah, I did not know this. I need to stop clammoring for Gamble then as he would have to finish his degree in order to apply as an assistant. That is to bad because he would make an awesome assistant coach. What he has done at UIS is incredible.
 
Re: PezHawk is delusional.

Ah, I did not know this. I need to stop clammoring for Gamble then as he would have to finish his degree in order to apply as an assistant. That is to bad because he would make an awesome assistant coach. What he has done at UIS is incredible.

I read he was pursuing it, and I hope he earns it, he would be a great addition to the Iowa bench.
 
Re: PezHawk is delusional.

I wonder if McCaffery did some checking on potential candidates for the 3rd assistant spot and got some input from others? Maybe, just maybe that will help him. And if that guy turns out to be Ryan Bowen I think that's a great thing.
 
Not sure how anyone can say that Bowen will or won't be a solid recruiter in Chicago, Detroit or Broken Bow Nebraska. I know about his career, but i certainly don't know everyone he knows, who all of his contacts are or how strong of a finisher he is in a living room.

I do know howerver that from the time that I found out that Iowa signed Bowen to a LOI, he has exceeded my expectations so I would shy away from selling him short.
 
We already have Speraw and the GA spot that will be Iowa connections. I don't believe Bowen would be a good hire here, he has no coaching experience and he wasn't a superstar in the NBA so outside of Iowa and maybe Denver, the high school kids don't have a clue who he is. So Bowen will lock down the state of Iowa which produces closer to 0 NBA players a year than 1 NBA player a year so nothing against Bowen (as I loved him at Iowa) but we need a coach that can go into Chicago and recruit and connect with the high school and AAU coaches in Chicago.
 
I'll ask the question - if Ryan Bowen was a person of color, what would the perception of his recruiting abilities be? Everyone on here talks like he never talked to a head high school basketball coach. The perception seems to be that he doesn't have any AAU associations. Maybe he doesn't, but he just might. Also, he's a poster child for hard work, clean living, and fundamentals. There are so many different qualities that a staff needs, not just someone who can recruit. Who is going to "coach them up" when they get here? Who is going to put the "game plan" together? Who is going to do the scouting? Many on here seem to only view the job through the eyes of recruiting, and the only successful recruiters are of color. Maybe I'm wrong in my interpretation, but that's what I'm hearing.
 
One guy stabilizes the Iowa recruiting base.

The other guy can tell kids about being a tennis player who became an NBA veteran.

Not a bad combo.

Locking up the good in-state talent is great, but we need a go who can stabilize the OUT OF STATE recruiting. We won't get far if all we recruit is Iowa.

Unless you're saying this tongue in cheek, I faill to see how someone who can tell kids how a tennis player ended up in the NBA will give the program a huge boost.. We need a BIG recruiter as an assistant.
 
Fine, Pez.

If you want Hawkeye flavor on the staff we have Sperraw. Murray went to high school in Michigan and was a JUCO coach in Iowa. Those are connections already in place based upon his history. Bowen has a visibility in Iowa. Newsflash: We don't need even ONE coach with Iowa ties to recruit Iowa high school players. We need a hard working coach. When Lute and TD got Iowa players they didn't have ANY Iowa connected coaches. We need guys with other connections that are outside of the Iowa high schools.

By the way, what good do Denver connections that Bowen might have give us? This is not ripping anyone on the coaching staff (it is meant to rip posters on this board), but WE DON'T NEED COACHES THAT ARE FORMER HAWKEYES OR IOWA HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS. WE NEED COACHES THAT CAN RECRUIT HIGH LEVEL TALENT!!! Just because you name a guy that used to play for Iowa and you get excited doesn't mean jack. Get a clue. We need COACHES, not former Iowa Hawkeyes that have NEVER coached OR recruited.
 
I'm with you 100% Thawki.......hopefully the 3rd coach is a dynamite recruiter with very strong connections to basketball hotbeds.
 
Re: Fine, Pez.

If you want Hawkeye flavor on the staff we have Sperraw. Murray went to high school in Michigan and was a JUCO coach in Iowa. Those are connections already in place based upon his history. Bowen has a visibility in Iowa. Newsflash: We don't need even ONE coach with Iowa ties to recruit Iowa high school players. We need a hard working coach. When Lute and TD got Iowa players they didn't have ANY Iowa connected coaches. We need guys with other connections that are outside of the Iowa high schools.

By the way, what good do Denver connections that Bowen might have give us? This is not ripping anyone on the coaching staff (it is meant to rip posters on this board), but WE DON'T NEED COACHES THAT ARE FORMER HAWKEYES OR IOWA HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS. WE NEED COACHES THAT CAN RECRUIT HIGH LEVEL TALENT!!! Just because you name a guy that used to play for Iowa and you get excited doesn't mean jack. Get a clue. We need COACHES, not former Iowa Hawkeyes that have NEVER coached OR recruited.


Iowa has that in Coach Mac and Coach Francis have great Philly ties. And while at UCF, Speraw recruited Illinios (Even some Chicago kids) and Florida very well. Fran is a great recruiter all around, and has very good ties and is creating very good ties with AAU coaches all over. So adding Bowen would be great for recruiting Iowa and I think he'd be able to help recruit Florida, Illinios, and Philly, as well. So you need to get a clue...
 
Re: Fine, Pez.

If you want Hawkeye flavor on the staff we have Sperraw. Murray went to high school in Michigan and was a JUCO coach in Iowa. Those are connections already in place based upon his history. Bowen has a visibility in Iowa. Newsflash: We don't need even ONE coach with Iowa ties to recruit Iowa high school players. We need a hard working coach. When Lute and TD got Iowa players they didn't have ANY Iowa connected coaches. We need guys with other connections that are outside of the Iowa high schools.

By the way, what good do Denver connections that Bowen might have give us? This is not ripping anyone on the coaching staff (it is meant to rip posters on this board), but WE DON'T NEED COACHES THAT ARE FORMER HAWKEYES OR IOWA HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS. WE NEED COACHES THAT CAN RECRUIT HIGH LEVEL TALENT!!! Just because you name a guy that used to play for Iowa and you get excited doesn't mean jack. Get a clue. We need COACHES, not former Iowa Hawkeyes that have NEVER coached OR recruited.


Iowa has that in Coach Mac and Coach Francis have great Philly ties. And while at UCF, Speraw recruited Illinios (Even some Chicago kids) and Florida very well. Fran is a great recruiter all around, and has very good ties and is creating very good ties with AAU coaches all over. So adding Bowen would be great for recruiting Iowa and I think he'd be able to help recruit Florida, Illinios, and Philly, as well. So you need to get a clue...
 
Re: Fine, Pez.

If you want Hawkeye flavor on the staff we have Sperraw. Murray went to high school in Michigan and was a JUCO coach in Iowa. Those are connections already in place based upon his history. Bowen has a visibility in Iowa. Newsflash: We don't need even ONE coach with Iowa ties to recruit Iowa high school players. We need a hard working coach. When Lute and TD got Iowa players they didn't have ANY Iowa connected coaches. We need guys with other connections that are outside of the Iowa high schools.

By the way, what good do Denver connections that Bowen might have give us? This is not ripping anyone on the coaching staff (it is meant to rip posters on this board), but WE DON'T NEED COACHES THAT ARE FORMER HAWKEYES OR IOWA HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS. WE NEED COACHES THAT CAN RECRUIT HIGH LEVEL TALENT!!! Just because you name a guy that used to play for Iowa and you get excited doesn't mean jack. Get a clue. We need COACHES, not former Iowa Hawkeyes that have NEVER coached OR recruited.

Who does Ryan Bowen know? How good of a recruiter is he and what are you basing your opinion from? Look, if you want a proven recruiter, I get that and maybe your point would be better made by saying, I think we should hire a proven recruiter with _______ experience. I think that would be fair and probably well thought out.

But before you start telling posters to get a clue, make sure you have one as well. Unless you know truly what connections ________ or _________ has, what _________ or ________ can do in a living room, or a film session, on a side line or on the AAU circut, probably not good to call others out as clueless.

Personaly, i think it is reasonable to assume that a guy as well respected in NBA and B10 circles as Ryan Bowen is to have relationships that go beyond his home NBA venue.
 
Re: Fine, Pez.

Bowen played in the NBA for a decade. I'm sure he knows people, and I'm sure he spent a lot of time with urban athletes. We act like it is impossible to make "connections." If Bowen is a personable guy, he simply drives to Chicago introduces himself to Mac Irvin and tells him about himself and his background (including all that NBA and life experience), converse for 20 or 30 minutes, then tells Irvin he looks forward to keeping in contact with him in the future. Then at AAU tournaments he makes sure to say Hi strike up conversation, introduces himself to some of the teams' players. These guys just want to know who the coaches are and that they will look after their kids.

"Connections" are personal relationships. You can build them. McCaffery and Francis waltzed into Mt. Carmel and talked to top 50 recruit Mike Shaw, likely with very few "connections", maybe they have some now.
 
Re: Fine, Pez.

Newsflash: We don't need even ONE coach with Iowa ties to recruit Iowa high school players. We need a hard working coach. When Lute and TD got Iowa players they didn't have ANY Iowa connected coaches. We need guys with other connections that are outside of the Iowa high schools.

By the way, what good do Denver connections that Bowen might have give us? This is not ripping anyone on the coaching staff (it is meant to rip posters on this board), but WE DON'T NEED COACHES THAT ARE FORMER HAWKEYES OR IOWA HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS. WE NEED COACHES THAT CAN RECRUIT HIGH LEVEL TALENT!!! Just because you name a guy that used to play for Iowa and you get excited doesn't mean jack. Get a clue. We need COACHES, not former Iowa Hawkeyes that have NEVER coached OR recruited.


NEWSFLASH for YOU:

Iowa is not exactly a high-profile basketball program, THawki.

Getting the best of the best out there is not going to just 'happen'. Speraw was a dream scenario: recently fired, former Hawk, wants to coach, loves to recruit, and there were a couple openings at his alma mater.

What have we been to, like 3 Final Fours in 110 years of the program? We have not won an NCAA Tournament game since most of the current players were still in Jr. High and the recruits were still finger painting.

Take a reality check.

Fran Mac has brought excitement. Yes.

But, we have won 38 games in 3 years previous to this.

Getting Rodell Davis to leave the Big East is not just going to happen because he was a Hawk. He has a great gig at Providence. Where would you rather be as a coach right now? Iowa or Providence. When we take off the black and gold glasses, the choice is 100% obvious. (psst - unfortunately, the answer is not Iowa).

So, if we get Speraw, Francis, and Bowen.

That is much better than any staff we have had in a long time. About 15 years.
 
Re: Fine, Pez.

If you want Hawkeye flavor on the staff we have Sperraw. Murray went to high school in Michigan and was a JUCO coach in Iowa. Those are connections already in place based upon his history. Bowen has a visibility in Iowa. Newsflash: We don't need even ONE coach with Iowa ties to recruit Iowa high school players. We need a hard working coach. When Lute and TD got Iowa players they didn't have ANY Iowa connected coaches. We need guys with other connections that are outside of the Iowa high schools.

By the way, what good do Denver connections that Bowen might have give us? This is not ripping anyone on the coaching staff (it is meant to rip posters on this board), but WE DON'T NEED COACHES THAT ARE FORMER HAWKEYES OR IOWA HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS. WE NEED COACHES THAT CAN RECRUIT HIGH LEVEL TALENT!!! Just because you name a guy that used to play for Iowa and you get excited doesn't mean jack. Get a clue. We need COACHES, not former Iowa Hawkeyes that have NEVER coached OR recruited.

Thawki, I think your issue lies with Coach McCaffery not me in regards to the Iowa presence on the staff. I'm just commenting in information as it was presented. I'm not quite sure what you are getting so worked up over, or maybe your caps lock is stuck?

I think the best solution for the program would be for you to get McCaffery your list of coaches who you feel have adequate experience as well as rockstar connections to the 'hotbeds' of high school talent........and would also be willing to take the #3 spot on Iowa's staff. I think you need to let him know there are dozens of options out there, because he doesn't seem to be aware of any of them.

I'm off to get that clue you think I need before you rupture something.
 

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