Be Prepared: Sunday could get ugly for Hawkeye Hoops

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SirJamaLot

Well-Known Member
After watching Purdue-Gophers last night up here I realized we do not have 1 player that would start for either team, Hoffbarger is better than Gatens, we can complain all we want about Fran's coaching but to win in the Big Ten we need to recruit better players, Fran has done a great job at every school he has been at but he has to prove that he can recruit,

sorry the jury is out, unless we start attracting better talent the misery will continue regardless of how good of a x and o coach Fran is!
 
I agree with this. The best coaching on the planet still isn't going to make the Iowa guards any quicker or make the post players any taller. Effort only takes you so far in big time college basketball. I still believe the Hawks will upset some people this year in Carver, but when good teams are on their game it's going to be tough sledding for these Hawks.
 
Prediction: Hoffarber will set a new career high against us.

I agree with the OP about the level of talent. John Wooden couldn't do much with this roster. On the flip side, if Fran inherited the same roster that Mr. Davis inherited from Raveling, he would probably take us to the Final Four. We need to start stepping it up on the recruiting front.

That said, I don't see why we shouldn't (or couldn't) have someone shadowing Hoffarber all over the court and not leave him open all game long..
 
I am sure that most of you realize that Fran can not really upgrade the talent on team in the middle of the year, right???(sarcasm) I think we can all agree that him bringing in Basabe has been an upgrade in talent and athleticism in recruiting over the last several years. Marble and McCabe are not Fran's recruits. We have no idea who is interested in Iowa or who Fran may go get in the Juco ranks after the season. If you were expecting miracles this year, it was wishful thinking. It just makes no sense why some complain when Fran's hands were tied this year. Let's see what happens over the next couple of years before we start to go manic again!! Yeah, there are many more talented teams in the big 10 compared to Iowa right now, but how about giving the coach a chance to do what he has done at several schools in the past!

Disclaimer: I am not trying to single out anyone in this thread, just an observation of some in the fanbase in general.
 
ForeverHawk said:
I am sure that most of you realize that Fran can not really upgrade the talent on team in the middle of the year, right???(sarcasm) I think we can all agree that him bringing in Basabe has been an upgrade in talent and athleticism in recruiting over the last several years. Marble and McCabe are not Fran's recruits. We have no idea who is interested in Iowa or who Fran may go get in the Juco ranks after the season. If you were expecting miracles this year, it was wishful thinking. It just makes no sense why some complain when Fran's hands were tied this year. Let's see what happens over the next couple of years before we start to go manic again!! Yeah, there are many more talented teams in the big 10 compared to Iowa right now, but how about giving the coach a chance to do what he has done at several schools in the past!

Disclaimer: I am not trying to single out anyone in this thread, just an observation of some in the fanbase in general.
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I will join others in groaning at the ugliness of the play and the outcomes at times, but I also realize Fran is doing the best he can with what he's got (at least I think he is). I think he has been slow at times to adjust defenses when teams are raining 3's from the perimeter but perhaps he knows better what he has and what sort of defense they can realistically play.

No doubt the talent bar needs to be raised. My question is whether Fran and this staff can recruit. Sorry, I'm not seeing the strong recruiter Fran is going to need to get better talent here.

Guess we'll see this spring and next what inroads he has made. Hope someone filled him in on Steve Alford's inability to recruit to Iowa City and the steps he finally had to take (too late).
 
Your right, forever. Fran can't bring in players to help the team TODAY. This year's team is what it is, and I knew it was going to be a tough year. I had hoped it would be a little better than it's been so far though (I predicted 12 wins and doesn't look like we'll get there), but I'm writing this season off as exactly what you said it is and not holding this year's record against Fran.

What concerns me at this point is that other than one 2-star recruit, and another in-state player that we have landed, Fran seems to be swinging and missing on practically every recruit he's been going after. There's alot of time for him to change all of that, but I'm not real encouraged by how it's gone so far. How does this bode for the future? I can't say, but I think it's a legitemate topic of conversation.

I'm not panicking, but I'll admit I'm a bit concerned.

Basabe is a nice upgrade, no doubt. But he's just one recruit and we need alot more like him. We can only wait and see if Basabe was a good piece of luck for Fran, or if it's a true indicator of the type of talent we will see coming in from here on out. It's just too early to tell IMO.

But I'm there with you to give Fran the benefit of the doubt for a couple years and give him a chance.
 
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Also, the data shows that if you can't ramp up your recruiting within your first 2 classes, it just doesn't happen. Fran needs to pull out all the stops in recuiting now.
 
3 bad games in a row?? Saying that it won't happen. Iowa most likely won't win, but I see this Iowa team playing better Sunday.

That said this is IMO a terrible matchup for Iowa. Iowa's post is going to have it's hands full. The probably I see is the 2nd and 3rd opportunities that Minnesota will get. I see Boards being a big problem.

I see it

Iowa- 67
Minnesota- 78
 
1977Hawkeye said:
Your right, forever. Fran can't bring in players to help the team TODAY. This year's team is what it is, and I knew it was going to be a tough year. I had hoped it would be a little better than it's been so far though (I predicted 12 wins and doesn't look like we'll get there), but I'm writing this season off as exactly what you said it is and not holding this year's record against Fran.

What concerns me at this point is that other than one 2-star recruit, and another in-state player that we have landed, Fran seems to be swinging and missing on practically every recruit he's been going after. There's alot of time for him to change all of that, but I'm not real encouraged by how it's gone so far. How does this bode for the future? I can't say, but I think it's a legitemate topic of conversation.

I'm not panicking, but I'll admit I'm a bit concerned.

Basabe is a nice upgrade, no doubt. But he's just one recruit and we need alot more like him. We can only wait and see if Basabe was a good piece of luck for Fran, or if it's a true indicator of the type of talent we will see coming in from here on out. It's just too early to tell IMO.

But I'm there with you to give Fran the benefit of the doubt for a couple years and give him a chance.
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I love our Freshman. You must remember they are freshman. Basabe is going to be a beast in the future, Marble is going to be solid and potential to be very good is there and McCabe will continue to improve.

Iowa hasn't had someone who could recruit since Raveling. Mr. Davis got middle of the road players and made that work for years. He would trickle in that top recruit every now and again. Fran is just starting and we must give it time. Don't forget Mr. Davis had the luxury of coming in his first year with players that fit is style and probably the best class ever at Iowa. He was able to feed off that for years. Fran didn't have that luxury and actually no coach coming in since Mr. Davis left has.
 
No practice facilities, a fan base that has a reputation of running three coaches out of town, player defections every single year, and horrible basketball for the past five to six years.

What recruit is going to come into this situation? It's obvious kids want more than immediate playing time. They want to win, and they want to win now. Fran can't promise that at all.

The recruits we've landed so far are role players at best. I do like Fran, think he's much better fit than Lick, but I honestly am not sure how he turns this program around.
 
hawkforlife9 said:
Be prepared for the Gophers to put on a shooting clinic. Fran's D SUCKS.
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This statement is laughable! Fran's D is not what sucks, it is how the team executes it at times. When they are executing they shut teams down, if they are not teams have individuals that set scoring records.

This being said, I think our teams biggest problem is confidence. This team has more skill than most are giving them credit for having. I do not care how skilled/talented a team is, if they do not have confidence they will lose a lot of games. We can thank Lick for the current lack of confidence, and I hope Fran can bring that confidence back. I feel he can and will, but time is needed. I am confident that we will land the recruits needed to improve, but it will not be easy.
 
Could get ugly? after watching NW put up 90!
Patience on our part as fans is what will be important.
I like the passion that Fran has. Hope it continues and not killed
by fans who do not appreciate the mountain Fran has to climb to rebuild
Iowa Hoops back to respectability. This is the biggest rebuilding job any BBcoach has faced at Iowa. When the best instate talent is leaving state year after year. Good Luck!
we cant expect him to have a 20 win season after 3 years.
Hopefully Hawks can get back to .500 by then.
The challenge is finding the recruits who want to be part of the rebuilding.
the only coach in a tougher position is TC at IND.
Going to Ind game. hoping to see Frans 1st b1g 10 victory.
I dont see it happening before then.
 
DBAHawkFan said:
No practice facilities, a fan base that has a reputation of running three coaches out of town, player defections every single year, and horrible basketball for the past five to six years.
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I take it you have not noticed all the activity beside Carver in the past year. By the time any current recruit sets foot on campus, the practice facility will be done. At least mark that off your list.
 
I can't imagine any Iowa BB game being uglier than against NW...

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The nightmares will last for weeks.
 
The greatest practice facilities wont change the win loss record.
Are they needed yes. Will it bring in the fans? no
AD needs to be as flexible as possible to fill seats.
Fran has the right Ideas but Barta needs to lower ticket $ to fill then when they are winning raise price to level of play. Havent been to Carver in 5 years for BIG 10 game
hoping atmosphere is better than it was then. Taking my 12yr old to his first Big 10 Game. Hope atmosphere is great!
 
DBAHawkFan said:
No practice facilities, a fan base that has a reputation of running three coaches out of town, player defections every single year, and horrible basketball for the past five to six years.

What recruit is going to come into this situation?
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Sorry, but I'm calling BS on this. The FANS didn't get rid of ANYBODY.. Bowlsby let Davis go after 13 years and wanted to get to that next level. I think it was a poor move, and may partly have been spurred by gradually declining attendance towards the end, and yeah, I know SOME people were grumbling about Davis, but I think equally as many, or more, were against getting rid of him. But at this point, do any recruits even remember the days when Davis was coaching us anyway? Current recruits were probably 5 or 6 years old back then.

Alford was mediocre, and got 8 years - a few more than he should have in all probability. So between him and Davis, that's two coaches in 21 years. Hardly a revolving door.

As far as Lickliter.. How is firing the coach with the worst winning percentage in school history "running him out of town"? Do you think it really would have gotten any better this year if we'd brought Licliter back for a 4th year? That move HAD to be made.

The practice facility will be done this summer from what I've heard, so that's no longer an excuse going forward.

The fact that our program has been horrible for the past 4 (not 5 or 6), is the only legit argument you've got there. 5 years ago (2006), we were a 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. 4 years ago we were 9-7 in the Big Ten.
 
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77Hawk
I agree with most but how can you forget Alford last 2 years. He Poisoned Iowa basketball! I hated to see Davis go but understood the potential Alford brought.
Alford's last 2 years were all about how Iowa was not a basketball school, despite having a better history in Basketball than Football.
Iowa Hoops in deepest hole in program history! hope Fran gets time and support otherwise Iowa BBall will be bottom of Conference for a generation or more!
 
das89hawk said:
77Hawk
I agree with most but how can you forget Alford last 2 years. He Poisoned Iowa basketball! I hated to see Davis go but understood the potential Alford brought.
Alford's last 2 years were all about how Iowa was not a basketball school, despite having a better history in Basketball than Football.
Iowa Hoops in deepest hole in program history! hope Fran gets time and support otherwise Iowa BBall will be bottom of Conference for a generation or more!
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I would actually say that most of the poison Alford injected into the program came from about 2002 through 2005 or so. It started with the Recker/Evans season, going from a pre-season Top 10 team to a first round NIT loss. Fan excitement was about as high as I'd ever seen it going into that season. I was there at the Black and Gold blowout for that season, and it was standing room only..

Then both Pierre Pierce incidents - especially the first one and the way it was handled. That turned alot of people off.

The last two years were actually better than that middle period IMO - 25 wins the 2nd to last year. Too bad it all came crashing down with that NWST debacle. And a decent conference record at least the last year, but by then, most people were already so anti-Alford by 2005 that he really was done at Iowa.

But Lick took the damage down by Alford and fnished the job. Now, we are where we are.
 
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