By Justin VanLaere
Hawkeye fans asked questions about the Iowa Hawkeye Mens Basketball program via the forums here on Hawkeyenation.com, as well as on Twitter. Here’s the first edition of the Hawkeye Basketball Mailbag.
Hawkeyenation poster, Warhawks77: What did/are the players of the last Iowa final four team doing with their lives? Kevin Boyle–insurance in Waterloo, and basketball voice for the UNI panthers. Anyone else?
To the best of my knowledge:
Ronnie Lester – Assistant GM with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Kenny Arnold – Was dealing with some severe health issues a few years ago, have not heard anything about him for a while.
Steve Krafcisin – Head Women’s Basketball Coach at DMACC after coaching at NIACC and ISU.
Bobby Hansen – Color commentary for Hawkeye basketball, last I heard he was also working for the Iowa Speedway in the Business Development area.
Mark Gannon – Working in Iowa City as a real estate agent.
Vince Brookins – Self-employed in the Cleveland, Ohio area, also runs a non-prof there called “Success Images – The Program, Inc.”
Hawkeyenation poster, HawkeyeBench: What can Fran do to help prevent these long scoring droughts that seem to happen every second half? It seems like it would be a lot easier to not have to come back from being down a bunch at the end of the game.
There’s really not much Fran can do to stop these droughts with the personnel he has. The key to stopping a scoring drought is to get your scorer/slasher in the lane and get to the line. Cartwright is that slasher, but he really has issues getting to the line. Free throws are a proven way to stop another team’s run. They are easy points (for most teams) and they slow down the momentum of the opposition, especially if the tempo is getting fast and furious. The issue with this Iowa team is they really don’t have a go-to-guy who is nearly automatic from the field, nor do they have a guy who can consistently get to the line when they need it. The only other option Coach McCaffery has is to either call a timeout and draw up a play or call a set play and try to get an easy bucket.
Twitter user, stlrnhwk: Which recruit coming in next season has the most potential to see playing time with all the youth on this team?
With just two commits on paper, Aaron White and Josh Oglesby, I’ll have to take the field. Both of these guys are having excellent senior seasons, however I think the Hawkeyes find either a C or a PG this spring to help out. Iowa’s frontcourt is going to be thin with basically just Basabe and Brommer downlow. I’m not sure Aaron White can play the 5 spot at the next level. That means either a prep or a JUCO spring recruit could see some significant PT, just as we’ve seen with Bryce Cartwright. With Cully Payne’s status still up in the air, Iowa will need to be sure they have depth at the PG spot. Don’t count out Brennan Cougill from getting back to Iowa City either.
Hawkeyenation poster, BradBanks02: Where do you see our freshmen ending up talent wise when they are seniors? Hopefully not at another school!
I’ve been mightily impressed with the 2010 class so far this year. All three bring completely different skill sets to the floor. Basabe has the potential to be a double-double guy night in and out down the road. McCabe has a sweet stroke from downtown and the fire/passion you hope all players have. And while I think both will be solid contributors to the program, I see Devyn Marble as the player who ends up the most talented of all three. Dev has the greatest skill set of the three and he has a very high ceiling. In regards to transfers, until I see a player leave the program I am going to assume the departures of the past few years were just that… in the past.
Several questions about recruiting…. Twitter user, underratedmovie: Where do we stand on recruit Eric Katenda for next year? And how about Adam Woodbury for the following year? Hawkeyenation user, loesshillshawk: It is obvious to me that playmakers or as I call them difference makers are the key for Fran and this program. Who are we in on that can be that guy or guys for us.
I have conflicting reports on Katenda. Reports last month were that Eric had narrowed his list of schools and Iowa did not make the cut. Since then I have talk to a few people who think Iowa is still a possibility for Katenda. I personally think Iowa is out of the picture. I really like Iowa’s chances to land Woodbury in the 2012 class. He will need some time to develop into the big man some project him to be, but he has a ton of potential and you just cannot teach height. I’m not saying he is a lock for Iowa, but I really feel good about the Hawkeyes’ chances with him. As for playmakers, there aren’t many on the 2011 list for Iowa, but Eli Carter fits that role the best of all the recruits. And while I don’t hold out a great amount of hope that he’ll be a Hawkeye, Marcus Paige would be a significant addition to the team in the 2012 class.
Hawkeyenation poster, imported_ankle23 : Why is the net made from nylon? Plastic (is) horrible for landfills.
The NCAA uses nylon nets because peach baskets break too easily.
Hawkeyenation poster, ibahawkeye: Where do you think Cully Payne fits into the program when he returns? We can assume that is next year…
I don’t see Cully unseating Cartwright as the starting PG next year if he comes back healthy. I could see the two playing on the court for a limited period of time, but I expect Cully to be the backup point guard for the 2011-12 season. Then as a junior I can see him resuming the role as the starting point guard for Iowa. This is all assuming he doesn’t have any chronic injuries with his back.
Twitter user, pmchawk: How would Iowa basketball be different if #Davis was retained and boy wonder was never hired?
For one, it’s quite possible that Keno Davis could be the head coach at Iowa. Who knows where the Iowa program would be if Mr. Bowlsby didn’t show Dr. Tom the door? It’d be hard to think that the program would be in any worse shape than it was just last year, though.
Hawkeyenation poster, tweeterhawk: With the current roster, has Fran been able to fully implement his style of play? Or are we seeing Fran Lite, pending the recruitment and arrival of more fast and athletic players?
I think so many fans are expecting a non-stop, up and down the court spectacle when watching Iowa basketball. While I doubt that will ever happen, I fully expect that Iowa will be an even more dynamic team once they up the recruiting. McCaffery is doing what he can with the players he has.
Couple related questions here… Twitter user, hawkeyejames1: Seeing Iowa against 2 ranked Big Ten opponents how do you think they will fare the rest of the season? aka midway prediction. Twitter user, FtWorthHawkeye: What’s a realistic win total for the Hawks this year? Hawkeyenation user, RADMAN: Now that they are starting to jell, how many B10 wins do you forcast?
I see Iowa ending the season with 12-14 wins overall and 4-6 Big Ten wins. I do think they knock off an upper tier Big Ten team before the season ends. I have the last game of the regular season against Purdue inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena pegged as the upset of the year for the 2010-11 Hawkeyes.
Hawkeyenation poster, Shaggyhawk: What is the deal with Archie? He never seems to see the court. After all of the talk of him the past two years, I was expecting more. IS it due to the new coaching staff? Or is he just not Big Ten talent?
Fran mentioned earlier last month that he wanted to go to a two man rotation at the 5 spot, the two finalists were Cole and Brommer. Archie still has a ways to go to become a legitimate Big Ten player, but he has certainly shown flashes in his limited PT this year (RE: the Xavier game earlier in the year).
Hawkeyenation poster, TritonHawkeye: What was the best thing before sliced bread?
Wade Lookingbill’s pump fakes.
Twitter user, kvnrbnsn: How is the strength training workouts going with the adjustments related to new construction?
I don’t know about the adjustments made due to construction, but as far as workouts themselves, McCaffery has asked for more speed and less bulk. The players are doing more reps with less weight in order to improve dexterity, flexibility, and quickness.
A couple related questions posed about a defensive man getting backed down…. Hawkeyenation poster, tweeterhawk: Lacking a big, strong player in the paint, Iowa has had troubling matching up with teams who have big, strong centers who can bump defenders out of the way or back into defenders to gain position under the basket without being called for a charge. From an officiating standpoint, when does backing into a defender become a charge? Explain the rule and then how it is interpreted. Hawkeyenation poster, Herkeynerd: Why is it that an offensive player can back a guy down to the hoop, but when the defender resists or bumps back, he gets called for a block? (I’m referring to the call on Cole the other night against Sullinger when Jaryd’s hands were up and not extended away from his body (which is where I thought most of those foul calls come from).
It all goes back to space. Every player on the court is entitled to the space they are occupying on the court. It gets a bit touchy on the kind of play you guys are talking about. I really thought the call on Jarryd was weak, at best, but I can see why it was called. If you go back to the tape you will see that Cole was actually bodying Sullinger back, he had his chest out and was coming towards Sullinger as he was being backed down. Cole wasn’t in the wrong, he was merely attempting to avoid giving up ground. Sometimes the only option for a defender in that case is to let the offensive player come at you and take the flop. If anything, it should have been a no call, and 9 out of 10 times Cole would do the same thing again, and I wouldn’t blame him. Think back to all the times Shaq backed his man down and the things the defenders tried to do to stop it. I like the no-call in the case we are talking about here.
Hawkeyenation poster, Ahawk1: Hows Tucker and some of our other transfers performing?
Anthony Tucker has lead the DII Winona State Warriors to a 9-2 record (they lost an exhibition game to the Minnesota Gophers by 6 points). He’s doing pretty much the same thing he did in high school now in the D2 level, averaging about 20 PPG and hitting a lot of 3 pt shots.
Jake Kelly is finishing up his senior year at Indiana State where he is averaging about 11 PPG. He hasn’t played the last 4 games due to a stress fracture in his foot. I was hoping to see Jake play UNI this Friday, but that will not happen.
Aaron Fuller is redshirting at USC.
Jeff Peterson is starting for the Arkansas Razorbacks at PG. Scoring just over 8 PPG, but still having issues turning the ball over. His hip-check during the Texas A&M game started a minor ruckus.
Hawkeyenation poster, RADMAN: Stormin, were you surprised last night when OSU went on the 16-0 run and Mac didn’t call a time out? I had just talked to my son about the fact that he seems to use his TO very well and then he didn’t.
It’s really a tough call. You want to see the players work through the droughts, but at some point you have to take the timeout before the TV timeout hits. I thought McCaffery took some excellent timeouts after made-shots by Iowa later in the half. It allowed them to get a defense set and also to get some offensive plays ready. I thought those timeouts were spectacular by McCaffery. It’s a really tough choice for a coach to make when it comes to timeouts when another team is making a run. If the opponent reels off 8 points in less than a minute, a timeout should be called. The run by Ohio State was over such a long period of time, though, so it’s tough to say when that timeout should have been called.
Tags: Big Ten, Hawkeye Basketball, Hawkeye Nation, hawkeyenation.com, Iowa basketball, Justin VanLaere, Mailbag
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