He’s sketchy at best with the ball in his hands. He is not a good dribbler. Do some of you watch any other basketball.
2022-2023 PG Starter
- Thread starter ObeseMuffins
- Start date
He was decent. In our run, he was consistently getting to the basket.
There is a difference between driving to the paint and bringing it up against pressure
Good point. It's kind of like NBA teams valuing draft picks more than the actual players. At this point, Ulis is a known commodity and Bowen is the mysterious shiny toy.
Late in the season, Fran trusted him to bring it up the court. He had one bad turnover against Indiana.
That guard grouping is not good enough to get iowa where they want to be. The only guy who might become a guy to worry about for the other team is Tony Perkins. And to do that, he's gonna have to jump some levels. There were way too many games last year where our guards were God awful. I don't expect much consistency from them next year either. Guard play has been pretty mediocre during Frans time at iowa. Guards matter most in March.
No, what I said was he was not a PG and that's true. Combo guard, sure but most guards today are. That's not what he was recurited to be, nor was drafted/played pro as. Different players through Frans era have brought the ball up and had PG duties here an there but that doesnt make them a PG. Perkins borught the ball up at times this year but I dont see anyone calling him a PG.
Just a question ... did you feel the same way caring about Iowa basketball last year after Luka and Wieskamp went to the NBA and Nunge and CJ transferred?
I understand your thought process. Most of the teams in the tournament look very athletic compared to Iowa and emphasize defense in a way we have not seen under Fran. However, Iowa's teams have been entertaining and they seem to come up with players who are under recruited to come and play above expectations.
I believe Fran is who he is and the program is what it is under him. However, I am hoping that some of the incoming players (including maybe a player or two we don't know yet) can come in and make us feel like Iowa is continuing to be competitive in the Big 10. I would not mind a change in the coaching staff to have some different voices, but I am not sure that will happen at this point.
The real question is ... can this program take that next step with more than one win in the NCAA Tourney? I think it is fun to think it is possible ... no matter how hard it is to see now.
I also understand if someone disagrees. No hard feelings.
I would like to see Ulis step up next season. Four athletic guards would be great.
Ulis seems to be the odd man out right now. Somewhat surprising due to his HS accolades and bloodlines. I thought we were getting a serviceable PG who may not start right away, but had the talents to eventually play decent minutes in the conference. He hasn't shot the ball well, although his defense has been pretty good. Have to wonder if he'll stick around with another PG coming in.
I didn't catch that but it is great news, if nothing else than for the kid's health. Pretty nasty injury.
Ulis is a Jr next year with the potential for anothe Covid-19 year. Even if he isn’t a starter, he will be playing quite a bit at the 1-2 with Joe and Tony. Those 3 give Iowa a very good defensive backcourt . If he gets his offense on track (he was pretty good offensively in HS), he could eventually start over Joe. He's long, rebounds well, and is a very good ball handler. I think he'll stick with Iowa but who knows.
Gesell was probably Fran's last top PG prospect he landed, and he did start from Day 1. The talent has been upgraded from Fran's first few teams, but I still wouldn't be surprised to see Bowen take the reins pretty early on.
I think Perkins is the best option at PG. Joe T was great off bench. I expect Bowen to push for playing time.
Start Sandfort at the SG position.
PG- Perkins
SG- Sandfort
F- Patrick
F- Kris
C- Transfer
PG2- Joe T
SG- Dix or Perkins in certain situations
G- Connor
F- Rebraca
C- Mulvey or Ogundele
I worry about scoring in the second unit. That was the one huge benefit of Kris coming off bench in second unit.
Perkins is not our starting point guard next year. Not a chance in Hell. He's a 2 guard or a small forward, nowhere close to our starting point guard.
I agree. If Cmac returns and with Jbo gone it's probably more likely that Cmac play point than Tony. I wouldn't be too surprised to see a lineup of:
1 Cmac/Joe
2 Tony/Ulis
3 Pmac/Sandfort
4 Kris/Sandfort
5 Rebraca/Josh
It will be interesting to see what happens portal-wise over the next couple months.
In this thread, I've seen the term "capable of bringing the ball up" being used interchangeably with PG. I mean, if the other team isn't pressuring, most guys can "bring the ball up". However, for the opponents that want to heat you up, there is a different level involved. There is also a big difference between a combo that is primarily handling the ball and a true PG (which is getting rarer and rarer to find). Similarly, being able to shoot the 3 does not make one a SG. You have to be able to guard the other team's SG.
You laugh, but Fran trusts Cmac more than anyone else on the team. He was the first man off the bench during the final stretch of the season. With Jbo gone the door is now slightly open for Fran to insert him back into the starting lineup. You know he's not going to start him over Kris, Pmac, Perk or Filip so....
Agreed. CMac before Tony at the point, although not necessarily starting ahead of Joe. CMac started at PG two years ago before Nunge got hurt and Fran moved him to the 4.
It's hard to imagine CMac returning for a sixth season unless it's finally to be the point guard. Probably won't happen, though, unless Joe and/or Aron leaves.
I kind of see it the other way. I think Cmac coming back might push Joe or more likely Ulis out the door as they see the writing on the wall and are looking for more playing time.
BirdistheWord
HB Legend
Perkins is not a point guard but is "serviceable" bringing it upcourt against moderate or light pressure. He is pretty good driving to the hole. His game would translate really well if he were about 6'6"
I think Tony plays SG pretty well at 6'4". He is more of a combo guard at that, but he is a very strong driver who can make teams pay when they sag off of him. He can rebound with the best. I think we are just seeing him scratch the surface of what he can do.
That's possible, too. But because it would be for a sixth season, I'm inclined to think it's more likely CMac would be pulled back rather than pushing someone else out. Unless Fran doesn't think any of the other three (Joe, Ahron, or Bowen) is capable of leading the team at point.
If Fran thinks 6th year Connor at 2 pts, 1 rebound 1assist a game and a “coach on the floor” should be our starting pt guard next year he should be fired immediately. And both Ulis and Joe should transfer.
I doubt both would transfer. I would also be surprised if both stayed I guess. As I understand it, Joe and Patrick are close or is that not correct?
Followed the url at the bottom right of the vids to look for game stats. Didn't have stats on that site, but these games were from 12/27 through 12/29.
CMac rarely comes in to replace a guard - he generally replaces a wing. I can't remember him being on the floor without at least one of Jordan, Joe, Ahron or Tony, and usually 2 of them. With Jordan definitely gone next year, if CMac comes back, he'll probably see more time backing up PMac and Kris. Iowa is going to need all the minutes that Tony, Joe and Ahron can give.
I think Connor’s great value is that he’s an all purpose player….he did typically come in for one of the forwards, he guarded guys in the post (just rewatched MSU game and he played some defense against Bingham and did pretty well) and on occasion played some at guard. Having a utility guy on your bench is extremely valuable for a coach….especially someone as unselfish as Connor.
You're correct on that. Connor spent most of this season backing up Pmac and to a lesser extent Keegan. There were very limited minutes available at the point between JBO and Joe. That changes with Jbo leaving. Cmac's lack of offense doesn't lend itself towards the 2 and Perkins solidified his spot there so his minutes are likely increasing. Cmac's lack of size is a disadvantage inside and we can assume that Kris, Pmac and Sandfort's minutes are all going up at the 3 and 4. If Fran lands a big that locks up the 5 spot. That's why it wouldn't surprise me if Fran played Cmac at the point. He hasn't shown all that much trust in Joe to date and Connor's two strongest traits are passing and ball security. Fran trusts his decision making more than anyone else on the team.
