Payton Sandfort Still Navigating NBA Draft Process
- Thread starter RobHowe
- Start date
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
Right, but I am told that the combine games mean almost nothing in the evaluation process because the teams are put together on the fly, and no one has played together, and guards are the only players with the ball in their hands. Not that they don't matter, they just don't matter as much as pretty much everything else that is being considered.
I just saw 2 or more guys who were projected in front of him pull their names out and announce they are returning to school. Part of the reason he hasn't announced yet I am fairly positive is they are seeing who else pulls out and the more that do, the higher he's likely to go. He's playing this out pretty smart and he may NEVER go this high again, I have a bad feeling.
trj
Well-Known Member
He had a bad combine, but we don’t know how his individual workouts went. If the individual workouts were good and you get a promise of a second round pick I see why you leave.
Northside Hawk
Well-Known Member
Looks like he is officially back for one more ride!
HuckFinn
Well-Known Member
Welcome back, Peyton!
Well what will Iowa be picked at? top 10 in the league seems like a stretch. Borderline NCAA tourny team again with zero expectations to do anything if they do sneak in. Feels like groundhog day almost.
I think it woulda been best had Fran left. But he hasn't been bad enough to fire him. Iowa's expectations aren't all that high and missing the tourny isn't a big deal to them. Even 2 yrs in a row wouldn't be. They've shown they are ok with the stands being mostly empty quite a bit. I'll be fascinated about how that looks early on next yr.
So I think it's past time to have moved on from him but it is what it is. He'd have buyout $ coming to him if they fired him. I think Beth won't be in any hurry to extend him again so once next yr comes and goes and he has less then 4 yrs on his deal making recruiting even more difficult he'll see the writing on the wall and leave on his own to watch Jack play wherever he ends up.
That's if things go to form how we think things might go. If say Tadjo turns into Cook 2.0 early on and Harding turns into Allen Iverson and Sandfort hits every other 3 he takes and Freeman develops a shot outside the paint and Iowa turns into a top 10 team then all bets are off. That'd sure be fun to see though
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
Ground hogs day of being a good basketball program is not a bad thing. We sometimes can't see the forest through the trees and I get that, but Iowa hoops is on solid footing with Fran and thank goodness we have that stability in the current waters of the sport. We have players almost every season contemplating NBA or coming back. We have guys routinely getting drafted into the NBA. We have players starting and playing in the NBA. Isn't that nice? We keep the majority of our team in an environment where most players will leave for $100 more and a promise to play. Iowa returns maybe one of the most under the radar guards in the country with Josh Dix. No one seems to remember how good he played the 2nd half of the season. They return a potential All B1G center in Freeman. They return one of the best shooters in the country in Sandfort. His brother Price, is going to be BETTER than Payton. I have almost 0 doubt. I expect him to take a monster step forward this year. If this is what ground hogs day is, sign me up. I don't have any grand illusions of winning the B1G or being a top 3 seed or anything but I think they'll come into the season with little expectation from national pundits, probably rock the shit out of a top 10 ISU team early in the year and end up spending time in out of the top 25 most of the season. That's fun for me as a fan. I love the regular season and it's more meaningful to me then a Sweet 16, personally and I am excited about it.
Plus, we have a coach that develops and has a great eye for talent - I was upset with Tony and Pat moved on at first...then it sunk into me that those guys weren't difference makers and had 4 years to prove that. I am now in the camp of being happier that we kept the core of what we have coming back next year and we might have some guys who ARE difference makers.
Zstatman
Well-Known Member
Even with Payton coming back this team has its work cut out for it.
I've always been of the belief that players improve the most between their freshman and sophomore season. Fran knows this as well and the best thing he did last season was giving the frosh the minutes he did. If they can improve significantly then putting them with Freeman, Payton, and Josh should pay dividends this year. Throw in the incoming and the transfers and this team should easily be 10 deep. They should fit Fran's style of an up-temp offense, should play pretty sound pressure defense and be competitive, how competitive is the question. Sadly, our expectations are now it's a successful season if we just make the tourney, a Sweet 16 or higher would just be an added bonus.
They should be a lot of fun to watch. A successful non-conference season will be key. Also, they need to be playing well entering conference play, so they don't dig a big hole early as they too often do.
Starting 5:
Freeman
Payton
Dix
?
?
I've always been of the belief that players improve the most between their freshman and sophomore season. Fran knows this as well and the best thing he did last season was giving the frosh the minutes he did. If they can improve significantly then putting them with Freeman, Payton, and Josh should pay dividends this year. Throw in the incoming and the transfers and this team should easily be 10 deep. They should fit Fran's style of an up-temp offense, should play pretty sound pressure defense and be competitive, how competitive is the question. Sadly, our expectations are now it's a successful season if we just make the tourney, a Sweet 16 or higher would just be an added bonus.
They should be a lot of fun to watch. A successful non-conference season will be key. Also, they need to be playing well entering conference play, so they don't dig a big hole early as they too often do.
Starting 5:
Freeman
Payton
Dix
?
?
Iowa is just right smack dab in the middle. Iowa seems to have a low ceiling and high floor with Fran. (sounds familiar to those of us that go back to Mr. Davis) So saying Iowa's been a 'good' program is certainly in the eye of the beholder. For those yearning for the Sweet 16s and beyond Iowa's not been any 'good' to those folks expectations. Yet Iowa's never really bottomed out and been in the cellar either. I'd be curious though how another yr of not making the dance at all would be taken by Goetz and the fans. Cause as I'd mentioned I can't see fans coming out in droves anyway but especially if they are like they were last yr.
Fran has cultivated a great culture there's no doubt about that. Players all love him. He's a straight shooter and even the ones that have left like Bowen and Perkins aren't doing it out of any grudges with coaching staff. There's no under the table cheating or nefarious stuff going on or even been rumored with him. He runs a clean tight ship and those are few and far between.
That along with being a middle of the pack team can keep you employed at a school like Iowa for a long time. He's taken advantage of that to the fullest and good for him. He's gotten to raise his kids here mostly put them through school with Jack bringing up the caboose. I can't see Fran having any complaints really either.
Everything boils down to expectations and what are Beth Goetzs and the fans have for the hoops team? We'll see soon enough I suspect.
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
Lol Iowa is 4th in B1G wins over the last 5 seasons, to some that might be considered pretty good when you think about the ingredients needed to compete at that level. To get a good seed in the dance, you gotta win games first in your conference. Fran is not the problem at Iowa and I confident Beth knows that.
I appreciate your optimism. That said, Perkins WAS a 'difference maker' on last year's very young team, and single-handedly won multiple games for the Hawks. When he got injured at the end of last season, we saw what that team looked like when Perkins was not full strength.
I disagree that Price will end up being better than Peyton. I hope you're correct, but I just don't see the Venus-Serena thing happening there.
This is gonna be a 3 guard, 1 center, 1 forward team. Starters will be Harding, Payton, Dix, Freeman and a forward to be named later -- with the Fr & So guys (and Mulvey) backing up those 5. The glaring weakness -- as always -- is gonna be defense. Harding is a defensive liability whenever he steps on the court, and Freeman is a foul waiting to happen. Hopefully they can finish in the Top 10 of the new BTen.
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
He wasn't a difference maker that got Iowa anywhere that they wanted to be. Can we agree on that? A difference maker, makes a difference. He's probably one of my favorite Iowa players of all time. I love Saucy T (mostly his tenacity and his attitude)- but he didn't make 1st team all conference in 4 seasons, he didn't average over 14 points a game and didn't even average double digits his entire career. I didn't say he didn't help win Iowa some games last year, he did, I said, ultimately, he wasn't a difference maker. When you have guys like Marble, White, Uthoff, Cook, Garza, Jok, Wieskamp, Keegan Murray, Kris Murray etc. come before you, doing what Tony did while he was at Iowa is very insignificant. Very pedestrian when compared to his peers. Ultimately, he also didn't get Iowa to the 2nd weekend in March either....which is what we've all said, Iowa needs guards that can get them to the 2nd weekend of March. Tony had his shot, he didn't hit it. We also might be better off with someone who has a more consistent perimeter game with the ball in his hands and I am sure that while Fran could have used TP another year at Iowa, I don't think it's the dagger that a lot of people think (myself included when I initially heard the news)
As far as Pryce... he was ranked a lot higher than Payton coming out of HS and every single person I know that actually saw them both play in HS, say that Pryce is way better and has a better all around game and is a better defender, rebounder and shooter. He hasn't had the off seasons to develop but I bet you feel differently here in a few years. I've always thought that the reason we even took Payton was to ultimately get Pryce.
I don't think many fans care about that much.. Without looking it up who could've even guessed it? I agree that's good and it's not bad at all. But that's not bringing fans into CHA. Till they can do that along with having some success in March weather it's Frans fault or not that always falls onto the coach at the end of the day.
I don't think Harding is gonna start over Thelwell... The forward to be named later I will guess will be either Tadjo or Dembele and I give the edge to Tadjo and I've hardly seen highlights of him in HS. Dembele still has a ways to go yet I think.
NorthKCHawk
Well-Known Member
He is a great distributor and floor general, but I haven't seen that his shooting is super awesome, and his size makes him a liability on defense. I like his game and hope he can be a starter or serious factor at the 1 so Dix can play more off ball. But, he has things to prove IMHO.
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
I don't care what fans think really, and let's be honest, Iowa fans don't give a shit about mens basketball either way and wouldn't know a good coach if it smacked them in the face when it comes to basketball. Players matter. I bet the players know how good Iowa has been over the last 5 seasons or we wouldn't bringing in 2 4 star players who are arguably the best recruits Fran has gotten. Thankfully, the actual basketball world (Coaches, players, etc) are smarter than I bet we give them credit for.
