Uthoff is up to 220lbs now. I like many of people knew a large part of his potential was him getting a little muscle behind him. I think he played closer to 200 then 205 most of the time. That's just too light for a 6'9 plus tall player that will be expected to take advantages of mismatches down low. (He did good when he got the ball but it takes a lot of work to get open to get it and there were times he was pushed around and denied touches due to his lack of strength) Now that he's up to 220 I think(maybe he can get up to 225 or 230 if he's still gaining by the the time the season starts) he can be even more impactfull then what Marble and White were. When it comes to having an offensive game he's exactly the type of weapon coaches want. (that's not even mentioning what he does at the defensive end) So when I heard he's put on 15-20 lbs so far it fired me up and I think that's as good of news as anything they have going into next season.
Best news I've seen this off season is....
- Thread starter Hawkfnntn
- Start date
ibahawkeye
Well-Known Member
It will be interesting to see how he carries the weight. I'm kind of surprised as he didn't seem to gain much weight in between seasons the last couple of years.
I don't anticipate him ever being too much of a post presence as I think his game is more of a wing with the ball in his hands. But if this weight will allow him to take advantage of a situation in which an opposing team tries to go small on him, this certainly could help.
I don't anticipate him ever being too much of a post presence as I think his game is more of a wing with the ball in his hands. But if this weight will allow him to take advantage of a situation in which an opposing team tries to go small on him, this certainly could help.
Guess we'll see... I think it's the difference between him being good and great. I don't think his skill set will have improved that much more. But I think his ability to get the position he wants to on the court will. His ability to score in traffic and finish "and ones" will go up. Maybe even play more mins endurance wise. It'll be interesting to see what he says at the end of this year after it's all said and done. I think the only thing that'll hold him to under 20 pts a game will be Fran and how they like to share the ball. Utoff isn't a selfish player at all. But with out White and GO if say Woody, MG & Jok aren't able to pick up the slack this team can now lean on Uthoff if they need to and I bet there will be a lot of games they do.
A handful of years ago I saw him go up against Jaryd Cole in the prime time league. And Cole pushed him around like a rag doll even though Uthoff had a couple inches on him. I think there's a minimum weight that players of certain heights need to have and Uthoff hovering around 200 on a 6'9-6'10 frame (he was less then that when he first came) is just right at it he was just all arms and legs. And yes he could hit open shots and get his arms in the passing lanes at that size but now he can do that and a whole lot more.
DP5555
Well-Known Member
This is exactly what I was thinking when I heard him say he's now up to 220. It's kind of strange that it took him 3 seasons to go from 190ish to 205 and then in just a matter of a few months he's gone from 205 up to 220. Either his metabolism slowed down all of a sudden or he really increased his effort to gain weight. I'm not sure what it is, but if he was capable of putting on that kind of weight so fast then why didn't he do so earlier?
hawkdrummer1
Well-Known Member
Interesting question. I think we sometimes forget these are still relatively young guys. People reach physical maturity at different ages, sometimes a guy just gets a growth spurt, be it height, strength, size whatever. A lot of young men don't really "fill out" until they're nearly 30. With basketball, guys also tend to run off their calories if they're constantly in the gym playing. It can be tough to put on weight if you're already a naturally slim build and then are constantly burning off what you consume.
I'm sure he may be asked what he's been doing this off season to do that. On a much smaller scale then him I had an impossible time of trying to gain weight in my teens and 20s. It wasn't till I was 30 that I started gaining at all and I tried all kinds of diets and those weight gainer shakes with 2000 calories a pop while lifting. It was frustrating for me. Our bodies all can change at different times maybe that's all it was for him or maybe he's tried some kind of diet/workout combo that has. Just hope it's not from some shake on the banned substance list...
The prospect of making millions of dollars is probably a good incentive for him to gain weight. His senior season has arrived. He has even graduated from college. Hopefully, he will have a great year.
WinOneThisCentury
Well-Known Member
It's good news...he needs the weight. If you watch B10 basketball down the stretch of any season, mainly the last 6 or so games, it just gets more physical. Adding 20 pounds and not losing a step means that inevitable shove is absorbed more easily rather than throw you off balance going to the basket.
Uhl supposedly has added similar weight. That's good too. With Woody the only clear post player...these guys are going to need to step up on the glass. The weight is good.
Uhl supposedly has added similar weight. That's good too. With Woody the only clear post player...these guys are going to need to step up on the glass. The weight is good.
ATLHawkeye
Well-Known Member
Remember when Basabe bulked up? Hopefully it will help JU, but simply adding weight isn't necessarily a good thing in every case. If he can retain his speed and quickness, I do think it will be a good change.
HawgEyeState
Banned
Agree with GoodCo.
Jarrod Uthoff has been successful at every level. His skill set does not
require bulk or power.
He will be just fine at 210, in my humble opinion.
I'll re-iterate what I've posted before on HN. Jarrod Uthoff will have an
Excellent year. For the Hawkeyes to have a Great year, it's going to depend on how much
help Jarrod gets from the supporting cast.
GO HAWKS
hawkjunkie
Well-Known Member
JU will have his supporting cast. They are all upper classmen. Include Jones in that group, as he will be a junior. A player that will really spread the floor, by drawing a big man to the exterior away from the rim. Plus you have Uhl, Baer, and 5 athletic freshmen, and that is a great group.
This is going to be one fun team to watch. Probably Fran's best yet.
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
If we had a dollar for every time some idiot said JU couldn't be a player in the B10 because of his weight last off season on Hawkeyenation, we'd have at least enough to spend a couple of hours at The Lumberyard. Weight would be nice but he's made it this far with out it, he'll likely be just fine regardless of what weight he plays at. So, what I'm saying is////his weight isn't going to make or break this season for Iowa, or his season individually.
atomicblue224
Well-Known Member
atomicblue224
Well-Known Member
And just for the record that's not what I've said or felt. I just think it's the difference for him to take his game up a notch. He was pretty good last year. He can be just that much better now. He had rebounds taken away from him sometimes last year that won't be now etc. It could be the difference between Europe and NBA after next year. Could be the difference between a season like last year and an elite 8 run or better for Iowa. Who knows. But nobody would say him being able to gain some weight now is a bad thing.
What happened with Basabe was he went from a comfortable weight of 215ish on his frame to bulk up to like 230-235ish. It slowed him down and he just didn't like it. But he wasn't too skinny to start with he was just attempting to bulk up to bang with the bigger power forwards in the league.
SteveGarvey
Well-Known Member
depends if it's ice cream weight or mostly muscle. I'm guessing it's from protein and working out.
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
For the record, I wasn't calling you an idiot... even though it totally reads like I was saying that. I'm just kind of over people obsessing with the kids weight, he's a good basketball player...I agree weight would be a good thing, I'm just not hell bent on that really being a big factor. Maybe it will be, but I think he's poised to be good regardless.
Last year, I was sick of people obsessing over White's jumper and people on this site wondering if he was "actually any good?" cause that was the narrative heading into last season. Much like the "Trey Dickerson" starting over MG .... so what I am saying is this site get's awfully stupid in the summer months. I guess that's what keeps it entertaining.
