Iowa Basketball starting to look like a basketball team

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hawkinaclownhouse

Well-Known Member
One thing that stood out to me the past few years was that Iowa did not have height on the team. They didn't look like a basketball team with almost every player 6'6" and shorter.

Just looking at the roster for the the upcoming year and 10 of the 11 scholarship players are 6'5" or taller.

If Marble is still growing as it has been reported then we will have 7 players 6'7" or taller.

While height isn't the be all and end all for a team it sure doesn't hurt if we can physically match up with other team.

For the rest of the 2012 recruiting class I would like to add one more quick guard (giving us 3 next year with Gesell and Ingram).
 
More importantly, Fran is collecting some players with multiple skills, such as ball handling and shooting, and passing and rebounding.

Add height to those other attributes, and it's as if we have a roster of Big Ten caliber players. Novel idea for, you know, a team that plays in the Big Ten. Things might work out better with this approach.
 
I agree, this is outstanding. And as you indicated, this was a problem with the previous coach primarily. He was not able to get any solid players with any size.
Size is huge in basketball, size and quickness are two of the most important things in college basketball (Might be the 2 most important).
It is great to see a team with some height, this is something Wisconsin has always been good at. They get a lot of very big players, not the quickest bunch, but they typically put at least three guys on the floor that are 6'7 and taller.
Taller teams tend to rebound better, so I assume this is something Fran is focusing on. If this team can crash the boards better and get out on the breaks, that fits right into what Fran wants. He also wants the length for defensive purposes. Long arms knock a lot of balls loose.
Go Hawks and I am getting pumped for basketball season too.
 
SwirlinLingerie said:
More importantly, Fran is collecting some players with multiple skills, such as ball handling and shooting, and passing and rebounding.

Add height to those other attributes, and it's as if we have a roster of Big Ten caliber players. Novel idea for, you know, a team that plays in the Big Ten. Things might work out better with this approach.
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This.
 
Let's be honest, short or tall, who in their right mind would want to play for Lickliter? This staff has a personality that is appealing to kids and we are starting to see relationships bear fruit. Landing a kid like Ingram from Eric Gordon's AAU team will only help us long term in Indiana. (assuming all goes well for him at Iowa)
 
Igothawked said:
I agree, this is outstanding. And as you indicated, this was a problem with the previous coach primarily. He was not able to get any solid players with any size.
Size is huge in basketball, size and quickness are two of the most important things in college basketball (Might be the 2 most important).
It is great to see a team with some height, this is something Wisconsin has always been good at. They get a lot of very big players, not the quickest bunch, but they typically put at least three guys on the floor that are 6'7 and taller.
Taller teams tend to rebound better, so I assume this is something Fran is focusing on. If this team can crash the boards better and get out on the breaks, that fits right into what Fran wants. He also wants the length for defensive purposes. Long arms knock a lot of balls loose.
Go Hawks and I am getting pumped for basketball season too.
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My thoughts exactly. If you rebound better with fewer people, you can run more.
 
McCaffery reminds me so much of Lute, it is scary. With his gray hair & his courtside demeanor, I swear to God it is like having Lute on the sidelines thirty-five years ago.

What reminds me even more of Lute is the effort in recruiting. When Lute was the coach, Big Ten teams played on Thursday & Saturday. Lute would leave the team after the Thursday game, recruit on Friday, attend a high school game on Friday night, & return to the team for the Saturday morning walk through. McCaffery is making the same type of effort in recruiting.
 
When I read the thread title I was going to agree and say that every position outside of the 5 looks like a legit Big ten player. The 5 will be a weakness this season, and if you are 7ft and can't hoop, well the height doesn't matter much at all. Getting Woodbury is very, very important right now.
 
you are selling Olaseni short, it appears you only see the lack of stars to downgrade him, lets see him play some this fall before you condemn him to the worthless pile
 
I think Fran is putting all the pieces together. I like the makeup and think we will enjoy watching Hawkeye basketball for years to come.
 
hawkinaclownhouse said:
One thing that stood out to me the past few years was that Iowa did not have height on the team. They didn't look like a basketball team with almost every player 6'6" and shorter.

Just looking at the roster for the the upcoming year and 10 of the 11 scholarship players are 6'5" or taller.

If Marble is still growing as it has been reported then we will have 7 players 6'7" or taller.

While height isn't the be all and end all for a team it sure doesn't hurt if we can physically match up with other team.

For the rest of the 2012 recruiting class I would like to add one more quick guard (giving us 3 next year with Gesell and Ingram).
Click to expand...

So you don't want to add Woodbury to the class? :D

I am very eager to see what this team can do this coming season, but I guess football will have to do for now. I think that they're going to be playing with a chip on their shoulder, but I still think that there are going to be some growing pains. And I hope that people keep their expectations realistic and realize that it usually takes a few seasons to turn around a program that was as down as it got with Lick'.
 
We may get our wish re another quick guard. Anthony Clemmons has reopened his commitment, and my hunch (no inside info here) is that he saw the nice class that IA was putting together, and realized he has a chance to be part of something special. He looks like a Fran type of player. Not a lot of stars, but is quick and seems to have the tools to grow into a nice B10 player. I like having a 2nd PG in the class, and I think Clemmons would be a nice pick up if it happens.
 
at some point in time Fran has to stop throwing offers out there to guards, otherwise ther won't be one for Woodbury, maybe i look at stars as well but when you have guys like Lee and Macon looking to schedule visits and are interested i don't see the need, hate to see them get told sorry we are full
 
ColumbusHawk said:
What reminds me even more of Lute is the effort in recruiting. When Lute was the coach, Big Ten teams played on Thursday & Saturday. Lute would leave the team after the Thursday game, recruit on Friday, attend a high school game on Friday night, & return to the team for the Saturday morning walk through. McCaffery is making the same type of effort in recruiting.
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Sounds like this is a big difference between Fran and Lick. Fran is apparently a workaholic and Lick seemed content to narrow his recruiting search to a 90-mile radius of Iowa City, although he did find Fuller in AZ. Lick didn't strike me as a tenacious recruiter....

Fran's work ethic has got to pay some dividends, probably sooner than later.
 
Height & depth. Fran & staff are getting both. Lick lacked both of these with his recruits & that was not a good thing for the BIG.

Fran is now getting depth which is so imperative to run the style of play that he wants to run.
 
There is no comparison between Lick and Fran when it comes to recruiting. Lick was after the Butler type of players and Fran is after Big Ten type of players. Fran does seem to be putting a lot more emphasis and time into recruiting than Lick ever did. He landed Gessel by being at every single game he played in, which made the difference in getting him to commit. Lick did not strike me to be the type of coach that would commit that much time to a single player.
 
ssckelley said:
There is no comparison between Lick and Fran when it comes to recruiting. Lick was after the Butler type of players and Fran is after Big Ten type of players. Fran does seem to be putting a lot more emphasis and time into recruiting than Lick ever did. He landed Gessel by being at every single game he played in, which made the difference in getting him to commit. Lick did not strike me to be the type of coach that would commit that much time to a single player.
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Correct my if I am wrong here but wasn't Woodbury on that same team that Gessel was on? If so then that means he was also at every game that Woodbury played in. Woodbury....."I am a very loyal person." He wasn't a glint in North Carolinas eye when Fran was recruiting him and showing full confidence in Adam. NC.....NOT COMING!!!!!
 
Dragonhawk said:
you are selling Olaseni short, it appears you only see the lack of stars to downgrade him, lets see him play some this fall before you condemn him to the worthless pile
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What are you talking about? Olesani is going to be a project. There is nothing wrong with that, and it certainly could work out really well for Iowa as he develops. I don't think too many people are expecting a lot out of him in his first season.
 
Dragonhawk said:
at some point in time Fran has to stop throwing offers out there to guards, otherwise ther won't be one for Woodbury, maybe i look at stars as well but when you have guys like Lee and Macon looking to schedule visits and are interested i don't see the need, hate to see them get told sorry we are full
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Lol...wow. Don't you fret, buddy. Just a hunch, but I'm pretty sure that they'll make sure that they have room for Woodbury.
 
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