Why do we always F around with this shit?

[HuckFinn]

I have been unable to understand why a 6’9” guy with some muscle can’t rebound as well as some dude 2 or 3 inches taller.

 

[Gander Hawk]

True. Nowadays there is no such thing as a walk on tho. Everyone is on scholly and that changes things. It just gets messy when coaches bring on kids. Frans kids were legit D1 players no doubt both of em. But they also had holes in there game that opened themselves up to fan criticism. And of course that went predictably too far.

Unless a player is as good as like a Doug McDermott or someone like that and it's a no brainer the nepo thing is just always gonna be there. From what I've read on Bens kid he didn't have any other D1 schools interested in him.. He's a below avg athletic 6'2 white kid.. Most likely he's only gonna play during blowouts at the end of games in garbage time. If he has to play any real mins like Lil Lick did that won't be pretty.

That said if Bens kid develops into any kind of a player then Ben just may be half of what he's cracked up to be as a coach. Time will tell

We'll have to wait and see of all things. Perhaps he wasn't recruited because schools assumed he'd play for his dad. He was first team all-state so he's no slouch. Izzo told his son he could walk on if he made his high school team. Made his high school team, not start, not play.
I've never heard the everyone is on scholarship thing before.

 

[NorthKCHawk]

We shall see.. If he does that it'd be a big time first yr. That'd also mean they'd be going dancing. Some are flat out expecting that right out of the gate and to me I think that could be a pretty big ask considering hes gonna have a Missouri Valley roster for most of the lineup. If Iowa had one 6'10 plus dude with experience to battle inside I'd feel a little better about their chances but they've struck out with landing anyone like that. I don't know if the true freshman will be ready to play a lot day 1 in there and even if he is is he that type of big guy? I'm not sure. Lot of questions on a team that's gonna be playing small ball quite a bit. But it'll be fun to watch.

You keep saying Missouri Valley and small. OK. Well, that small team won the Missouri Valley conference outright. It also won its first round game and was competitive in the second round, both games against Power 5 schools. That same core group is now at Iowa, including the Number 1 PG portal recruit in the country. So, in his first season at the helm of a Division I team, McCollum matched the career best that Fran ever did in the tourney, with close to 30 years under his belt as a HC. I am telling you, McCollum is the guy. He can flat out coach.

Drake would have finished in the middle of the Big 10 last year and would have beaten Iowa on a neutral court.

And, we also have on the roster Iowa's best freshmen from last year (barring injury) and a nice addition from K-state. There are other pieces too. This will be a solid team.

 

[InGoodCo]

Iowa doesn't need a back up 1 in 2027, they need one in 2026. This wasn't done in the shadows or on a Friday news dump - it was a direct reaction from Williamson decommitting 5 days ago. This move is an insurance policy as much as anything and IMO, if you have that luxury, do it.

Iowa gets 15 scholarships now up from 13.... chances they use much more than 8 guys for meaningful minutes a year will be slim. How do I know? I go and I look at BM former teams. Only 8 guys on Drake last year averaged double digit minutes. Same with almost all of his teams at NWMS - all only played top 8 or so.

Iowa fans are going to have to start getting used to a coach that doesn't want to play 11-12 guys ....imo you stuff the last 3 or 4 scholarships on projects, character guys who can help your roster and to reward guys who have worked hard in your program.

In the NIL world, there won't be many schools that are going to have a roster of 15 guys who are good enough to collect 6 figures.... a lot of the last slots will be questionable at any program now, but you still gotta have the bodies.

 

[NorthKCHawk]

Iowa doesn't need a back up 1 in 2027, they need one in 2026. This wasn't done in the shadows or on a Friday news dump - it was a direct reaction from Williamson decommitting 5 days ago. This move is an insurance policy as much as anything and IMO, if you have that luxury, do it.

Iowa gets 15 scholarships now up from 13.... chances they use much more than 8 guys for meaningful minutes a year will be slim. How do I know? I go and I look at BM former teams. Only 8 guys on Drake last year averaged double digit minutes. Same with almost all of his teams at NWMS - all only played top 8 or so.

Iowa fans are going to have to start getting used to a coach that doesn't want to play 11-12 guys ....imo you stuff the last 3 or 4 scholarships on projects, character guys who can help your roster and to reward guys who have worked hard in your program.

In the NIL world, there won't be many schools that are going to have a roster of 15 guys who are good enough to collect 6 figures.... a lot of the last slots will be questionable at any program now, but you still gotta have the bodies.

Excellent analysis.

 

[kicker22]

Doesn't bother me the slightest. Ben's program. Ben calls the shots. It didn't bother me that he didn't bring Gatens on to his staff and it doesn't bother me that he's bringing on his son. We also just naturally assume that bringing on his son means he'd be favored over others day one. Maybe, just maybe he's one of those parents that rather than babying their kid are harder on them then anyone else. I wanted a fresh start. At this point I trust whatever he wants going forward, because he's the breath of fresh air this program needed.

 

[BigD]

You keep saying Missouri Valley and small. OK. Well, that small team won the Missouri Valley conference outright. It also won its first round game and was competitive in the second round, both games against Power 5 schools. That same core group is now at Iowa, including the Number 1 PG portal recruit in the country. So, in his first season at the helm of a Division I team, McCollum matched the career best that Fran ever did in the tourney, with close to 30 years under his belt as a HC. I am telling you, McCollum is the guy. He can flat out coach.

Drake would have finished in the middle of the Big 10 last year and would have beaten Iowa on a neutral court.

And, we also have on the roster Iowa's best freshmen from last year (barring injury) and a nice addition from K-state. There are other pieces too. This will be a solid team.

Alvaro Folgueiras is no slouch either. That guy can attack the rim with out fear. Also he can shoot the three at 6'9'.

from the article below "was 46.3 percent on spot-up three-pointers, including 42.2 percent on catch and shoot three-pointers, and 48.9 percent on uncontested catch and shoot three-point shots."

Iowa Basketball: Breaking down the Hawkeyes' current roster, roles, and fit in 2025-26

Diving into what Iowa's team currently looks like, their fit in Iowa City, and what their roles will be.

247sports.com

Iowa could possible be the biggest surprise team of the Big Ten this upcoming season. I am chomping at the bit to see what these guys can do.

No one can question if Ben can coach. If he can recruit we are in business.

 

[BigD]

I am also chomping at the bit to see what Lester does in his second year at the Offensive Coordinator position.

This for sure will be a long summer of anticipation for both programs............... LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!!

 

[NorthKCHawk]

Alvaro Folgueiras is no slouch either. That guy can attack the rim with out fear. Also he can shoot the three at 6'9'.

from the article below "was 46.3 percent on spot-up three-pointers, including 42.2 percent on catch and shoot three-pointers, and 48.9 percent on uncontested catch and shoot three-point shots."

Iowa Basketball: Breaking down the Hawkeyes' current roster, roles, and fit in 2025-26

Diving into what Iowa's team currently looks like, their fit in Iowa City, and what their roles will be.

247sports.com

Iowa could possible be the biggest surprise team of the Big Ten this upcoming season. I am chomping at the bit to see what these guys can do.

No one can question if Ben can coach. If he can recruit we are in business.

Great point on Folg. He actually seems a likely starter. That would give us three very effective three point shooters and two athletic post players in the starting 5. If Koch is healthy, he should be in that mix as well. Yes, the team is a little undersized for the Big 10, but defense and rebounding are about effort and heart.

 

[Hawkfnntn]

You keep saying Missouri Valley and small. OK. Well, that small team won the Missouri Valley conference outright. It also won its first round game and was competitive in the second round, both games against Power 5 schools. That same core group is now at Iowa, including the Number 1 PG portal recruit in the country. So, in his first season at the helm of a Division I team, McCollum matched the career best that Fran ever did in the tourney, with close to 30 years under his belt as a HC. I am telling you, McCollum is the guy. He can flat out coach.

Drake would have finished in the middle of the Big 10 last year and would have beaten Iowa on a neutral court.

And, we also have on the roster Iowa's best freshmen from last year (barring injury) and a nice addition from K-state. There are other pieces too. This will be a solid team.

Oh I agree with this. What they did against Mizzu wasn't a fluke. They probably beat them 7 times out of 10. And of course when you say beat last yrs Iowa team do you mean the one with a healthy Freeman or the Iowa team at the end of the yr? I'm nitpicking with such a distinction because Iowa wasn't on track to have a great yr with Freeman either but that Iowa team down the stretch just wasn't a good team. (Was nice to see em beat Neb though)

The universal consensus is that McCollum can coach. He's been lauded as the best hire of the off season by most and combining that with his overall fit at Iowa it looks like a no brainer. Yet the BIG/D1 isn't the Missouri Valley or D2. And only time will tell if that core group of kids he's brought over will be able to do it. End of the day players play and thankfully Stirtz is the real deal too. I'm hopeful for a great start. Most of all I want to see optimism from the fan base and folks going back to Carver again.

 

[NorthKCHawk]

Oh I agree with this. What they did against Mizzu wasn't a fluke. They probably beat them 7 times out of 10. And of course when you say beat last yrs Iowa team do you mean the one with a healthy Freeman or the Iowa team at the end of the yr? I'm nitpicking with such a distinction because Iowa wasn't on track to have a great yr with Freeman either but that Iowa team down the stretch just wasn't a good team. (Was nice to see em beat Neb though)

The universal consensus is that McCollum can coach. He's been lauded as the best hire of the off season by most and combining that with his overall fit at Iowa it looks like a no brainer. Yet the BIG/D1 isn't the Missouri Valley or D2. And only time will tell if that core group of kids he's brought over will be able to do it. End of the day players play and thankfully Stirtz is the real deal too. I'm hopeful for a great start. Most of all I want to see optimism from the fan base and folks going back to Carver again.

For sure. The thing that gives me comfort with McCollum is multiple championships at the D2 level, and in one year taking Drake about as far as Drake can go (conference title and second round of the tourney is probably the high watermark for Drake. Ever). That is impressive. Yes, he has never coached at this level. But, relative to his piers at the two lower levels he has coached, he has flat out outcoached the competition. That should translate.

There are never any guarantees. There is a good nucleus of players this season, but it is not a perfect roster by any stretch. But, building around a championship level PG and HC are two pretty good places to start things off.

 

[Hawkfnntn]

Iowa doesn't need a back up 1 in 2027, they need one in 2026. This wasn't done in the shadows or on a Friday news dump - it was a direct reaction from Williamson decommitting 5 days ago. This move is an insurance policy as much as anything and IMO, if you have that luxury, do it.

Iowa gets 15 scholarships now up from 13.... chances they use much more than 8 guys for meaningful minutes a year will be slim. How do I know? I go and I look at BM former teams. Only 8 guys on Drake last year averaged double digit minutes. Same with almost all of his teams at NWMS - all only played top 8 or so.

Iowa fans are going to have to start getting used to a coach that doesn't want to play 11-12 guys ....imo you stuff the last 3 or 4 scholarships on projects, character guys who can help your roster and to reward guys who have worked hard in your program.

In the NIL world, there won't be many schools that are going to have a roster of 15 guys who are good enough to collect 6 figures.... a lot of the last slots will be questionable at any program now, but you still gotta have the bodies.

1000% Stirtz is gonna get ran into the ground and in much the same way that Iowa put all their chips in the middle at QB for McNamarra and now Gronowski Ben has all his in on Stirtz. If he avgs less then 35 mins/game I'll be surprised. But he's only got this yr to play and he's been hoping to find a future one. Looks like he'll still be looking after this yr for that since the Williams kid went back to FIU.

Getting used to seeing less guys playing will be an adjustment for us. Cause under Fran we saw 10 plus guys get regular mins quite a bit. That was always a thing of his. Be it foul trouble players making mistakes etc Ben is gonna ride his main guys it seems like.