3 Weeks to Tipoff (Random Thoughts)

[StormHawk42]

Ok so it's only the exhibition game and we're still 5 weeks from the regular season. But I can't wait to see what the Hawks have in store for us.

Some random thoughts going into the season, feel free to add yours...
1. I think JU is likely an NBA draft pick. Chad Leistekow said yesterday on the radio that with his added bulk, he just looks the part. My question for him is what kind of leader he'll be. It's unique this year for Fran because in the past, he's always had just one senior where he can point to and say "this is your team." He doesn't have that this year so the shared leadership of the seniors will be crucial.

2. Woody playing more minutes is probably necessary, but worries me. One of his best attributes is his defensive physicality and if he has to watch his foul situation to stay in the game, I worry he'll lose some of that edge. Hope he can be an excellent rebounder though.

3. I know Sapp says he expects to be in the starting lineup, but I really think he was best served as Mike's backup last year. He gave the second string consistency and defense that it needed.

4. I've said since the day he got here that Uhl would be a player and for this season, I think he'll be the one that breaks out the most. I think he really does have the skill to be a stud down the road. Also, he looks huge compared to last year.

5. I wonder how Ellingson and Jones will fit in. Both provide instant offense. But will their defense be enough to keep them on the floor regularly

6. Of the 5 freshmen, I think Moss is the most likely candidate for the most minutes but I think Wagner will surprise. We need his bulk and athleticism down low.

7. I think it's now or never for Jok. Can he really be the second scorer this year and then our go-to guy next year? I look for his defense to improve due to taking better care of himself.

8. If there is a "surprise breakout" player of the newbies, I say Hutton. He looks the part, has attitude, athleticism, and defense is his speciality.

9. Unfortunately, I think it's likely at least one, maybe two of the new guys transfers after the season, due to a sheer lack of minutes available. But will not speculate who.

10. Season prediction: 20-10 (11-7) in the regular season. 10 seed in the NCAA. Round of 32 exit. While our athleticism and 3 point shooting should be better, our calling card the last few years has been size and rebounding, both of which will likely take a step back this year. I think the team has enough raw talent to win plenty of games, but re-inventing ourselves will cost us a few.

 

[fivecardstud14]

I think it will be Uthoff's team. Yes there are multiple seniors but he should have the ball in his hands more than anybody, and Fran will tell him it's his team.
I want more minutes for Woodbury as well, but not too much. The past few years, there's always been a center on the floor. In college, I don't think they need that and I want to see more lineups without a true center.
More pressing. I assume after the current senior class is gone, you will see more pressing and frantic defense, playing like the UNLV Rebels. But I want to see some of that this year. Press on D, switch a lot, and run. Fran loves playing 10 guys so hopefully they'll be running and gunning a lot.
I'm excited for the season to start.

EDIT - Half court offense has always seemed to be a weak spot. We heard Uthoff was handling the ball this summer...how about some pick and rolls/pops with Uthoff handling the rock a la Nic Batum/Chandler Parsons/Hedo Turkoglu.

 

[FranklinHawk]

I think it will be Uthoff's team. Yes there are multiple seniors but he should have the ball in his hands more than anybody, and Fran will tell him it's his team.
I want more minutes for Woodbury as well, but not too much. The past few years, there's always been a center on the floor. In college, I don't think they need that and I want to see more lineups without a true center.
More pressing. I assume after the current senior class is gone, you will see more pressing and frantic defense, playing like the UNLV Rebels. But I want to see some of that this year. Press on D, switch a lot, and run. Fran loves playing 10 guys so hopefully they'll be running and gunning a lot.
I'm excited for the season to start.

EDIT - Half court offense has always seemed to be a weak spot. We heard Uthoff was handling the ball this summer...how about some pick and rolls/pops with Uthoff handling the rock a la Nic Batum/Chandler Parsons/Hedo Turkoglu.

Just my perspective, and it very well could be Jarrod, but I don't think the "leader" of them team and the primary option on offense have to be the same person. JU will certainly be option 1 on offense, but Woody could also end up being the emotional leader of the group.

 

[fivecardstud14]

Just my perspective, and it very well could be Jarrod, but I don't think the "leader" of them team and the primary option on offense have to be the same person. JU will certainly be option 1 on offense, but Woody could also end up being the emotional leader of the group.

Agree, I was strictly talking primary option on offense but no doubt Woodbury can/will be the "emotional leader."

 

[hawkeyepower100]

Saw a photo of the team and Jok just looked huge. Like lots of muscle added I expect big things from him this year. Showed signs of it last year I think he can be a great scorer.

 

[CanadaHawk]

Ok so it's only the exhibition game and we're still 5 weeks from the regular season. But I can't wait to see what the Hawks have in store for us.

Some random thoughts going into the season, feel free to add yours...
1. I think JU is likely an NBA draft pick. Chad Leistekow said yesterday on the radio that with his added bulk, he just looks the part. My question for him is what kind of leader he'll be. It's unique this year for Fran because in the past, he's always had just one senior where he can point to and say "this is your team." He doesn't have that this year so the shared leadership of the seniors will be crucial.

2. Woody playing more minutes is probably necessary, but worries me. One of his best attributes is his defensive physicality and if he has to watch his foul situation to stay in the game, I worry he'll lose some of that edge. Hope he can be an excellent rebounder though.

3. I know Sapp says he expects to be in the starting lineup, but I really think he was best served as Mike's backup last year. He gave the second string consistency and defense that it needed.

4. I've said since the day he got here that Uhl would be a player and for this season, I think he'll be the one that breaks out the most. I think he really does have the skill to be a stud down the road. Also, he looks huge compared to last year.

5. I wonder how Ellingson and Jones will fit in. Both provide instant offense. But will their defense be enough to keep them on the floor regularly

6. Of the 5 freshmen, I think Moss is the most likely candidate for the most minutes but I think Wagner will surprise. We need his bulk and athleticism down low.

7. I think it's now or never for Jok. Can he really be the second scorer this year and then our go-to guy next year? I look for his defense to improve due to taking better care of himself.

8. If there is a "surprise breakout" player of the newbies, I say Hutton. He looks the part, has attitude, athleticism, and defense is his speciality.

9. Unfortunately, I think it's likely at least one, maybe two of the new guys transfers after the season, due to a sheer lack of minutes available. But will not speculate who.

10. Season prediction: 20-10 (11-7) in the regular season. 10 seed in the NCAA. Round of 32 exit. While our athleticism and 3 point shooting should be better, our calling card the last few years has been size and rebounding, both of which will likely take a step back this year. I think the team has enough raw talent to win plenty of games, but re-inventing ourselves will cost us a few.

Nice thoughts StormHawk. Here's my 2 cents right now.
JU is the obvious star of this team but Woody and MG being 4-year starters and Clemmons having carved out his own niche as a leader makes it really a group effort leadership-wise for this team. Because they'll have the ball in their hands the most on O, MG and JU might be more prominent there and probably Woody on D.

Can't imagine Woody averaging 30-35 minutes and that's for the fouling, not the endurance. If he does end up averaging that much, he will definitely be a different and better player than we've seen for 3 years. He will have to be more productive than we've ever seen for him to be on the floor that much.

Interested to see what Clemmons' role will be on this team beyond PG. He shot well from 3 last year because he was selective. But I have doubts about him being a real scorer as a starting SG. This could open up some minutes for IM and AF.

Fran gushed about Jones' shooting the most and since he's already said that Jones' minutes are tied to his shooting and rebounding, that could bode well for him. If Jones makes a push for minutes, we'll see more of JU at the 3. We already know Uhl will get good floor time and could take important steps forward as a player.

Jok is certainly a key offensive player for this team. He has the capability to be a volume scorer. But how consistent will he be at it this year? If he can be consistent, we'll run more. If he can't, we'll go through Woody more in the half-court.

Numbers and experience tell me that there will be transfers on this team. However, because of the seniors, newbies have to know that possibilities for big minutes are in the future, not this year. Also, so many new guys seem just happy to be here.

 

[lovedwatchingLester]

Just bought my ticket for the Sioux Fall's exhibition game. I really believe even Fran hasn't put in stone yet any rotational plan, which IMO is really good . I bet he goes to bed at night thinking what if ? Having said this I also would bet he smiles to himself thinking this is a good problem to have right now. Tight now my guess is letting things play out in practice and looks at each players strengths and area's they need to improve. This year he has lots of options at the wing, next year he adds much in the front court. He may ask a player to red shirt but he may not. Williams IMO needs to play this year to get his feet wet at the point but could use some muscle on his 6 6" frame. I think this goes for likely the most talented recruit Moss as well. Hutton and Wagner and Fleming look to me physically ready for the B1G right now from what I saw in the PTL. Jones and Ellingson will play this year likely in the regular rotation unless the freshman prove to be superior on the floor(imo this will be the case), but if it isn't significantly better then my guess is Fran will take the year Ellingson has in Fran' s system and the 2 years of Juco ball that Jone' s has played will be the difference in who plays the most. Baer is a big question for me, he fits a need on this team, has a great knack for being in the right place at the right time. He has great instincts for the game, he isn't a scholarship player and he absolutely needs to add muscle and stamina, but again he will fill a need up front so maybe he makes the most if it and gets some back up minutes this year. The Soukup brothers will make practices competitive along with Ukah. The rest of the team Uthoff, Woodbury, Gessel, Jok, Clemmons, and Uhl will get and deserve the bulk of the minutes obviously as they have been there and proven they have what is necessary to compete night in and night out in The B1G and the tournament and nothing can replace getting that experience. Ok not sure what I have missed but I am so looking forward to both exhibitions as they should be telling how Fran has assessed this year's team and then just improves on the product as the season rolls on.

 

[DanL53]

My expert opinion? Ok, I have to explain it like this......

The Hawkeyes are the Sioux, Cheyenne, whoever else it is Custer happens to be looking for. Custer's in an all fired up hurry to meet them in battle as:

1) He feels he needs some good publicity after making a fool of himself a couple times since the Civil War. He's an ambitious guy and actually thinks about running for President. But, he needs something big to get attention.

2) He believes, erroneously, that Indians always prefer retreat over a real battle.

Me? I'm just an Indian Scout working for him and I'm standing on the "trail" of the Indians.

Me, "Custer, this trail is as wide as if a huge herd of buffalo came through! There are a butt load of angry Sioux and Cheyenne not far ahead."

Custer, "You don't know Jack. We press on."

Me, "I quit. Have a nice day!"

See, the point is, I don't know but the veterans returning had a lot to do with 12-6 in the Big Ten last year. And all the stereotypical "signs" are there. A bunch of seniors. McCaffery type recruits all over the place and I don't know who, but you have to figure some are going to really surprise as that is par for the course around here.

I'm seeing the "signs". All good. As wide as a freaking buffalo herd! I don't suppose there are any opposing coaches out there dumb enough to expect a cakewalk playing Iowa. But if there are? Great! Have a nice day!

P.S. I also see chips on our guys shoulders...huge, defiant chips.

 

[CanadaHawk]

One more thing I noticed Fran say near the top of his interview was that he was preparing for this year and next. We lose a lot of scoring after this year. The biggest potential newbie scorers to me look like IM, AF, and Jones. That could mean some minutes.

 

[Quintana]

I'm seeing the "signs". All good. As wide as a freaking buffalo herd! I don't suppose there are any opposing coaches out there dumb enough to expect a cakewalk playing Iowa. But if there are? Great! Have a nice day!

P.S. I also see chips on our guys shoulders...huge, defiant chips.

buffalo chips?

 

[CanadaHawk]

buffalo chips?

That would make me not want to go near them.

 

[buttermypancakes]

I think it will be Uthoff's team. Yes there are multiple seniors but he should have the ball in his hands more than anybody, and Fran will tell him it's his team.
I want more minutes for Woodbury as well, but not too much. The past few years, there's always been a center on the floor. In college, I don't think they need that and I want to see more lineups without a true center.
More pressing. I assume after the current senior class is gone, you will see more pressing and frantic defense, playing like the UNLV Rebels. But I want to see some of that this year. Press on D, switch a lot, and run. Fran loves playing 10 guys so hopefully they'll be running and gunning a lot.
I'm excited for the season to start.

EDIT - Half court offense has always seemed to be a weak spot. We heard Uthoff was handling the ball this summer...how about some pick and rolls/pops with Uthoff handling the rock a la Nic Batum/Chandler Parsons/Hedo Turkoglu.

Agree with you on our half court offense being stagnant but I guess that's the case for most of college basketball. I can't think of many guys that are long enough to guard Uthoff in the post and quick enough to guard him out to the 3 point line. Let things runs through him.

I do think with the new additions we may not have to rely on Uthoff as much as we think. We should have the shooters to space the floor even more with Uthoff at the four and I'm hopeful Moss/Hutton/Williams can create off the dribble and add a dimension we haven't had in a while.

 

[CentralIAHawk]

Agree with you on our half court offense being stagnant but I guess that's the case for most of college basketball. I can't think of many guys that are long enough to guard Uthoff in the post and quick enough to guard him out to the 3 point line. Let things runs through him.

I do think with the new additions we may not have to rely on Uthoff as much as we think. We should have the shooters to space the floor even more with Uthoff at the four and I'm hopeful Moss/Hutton/Williams can create off the dribble and add a dimension we haven't had in a while.

 

[CentralIAHawk]

One thing that has not been mentioned is that, as great a Hawkeye as Aaron White was, there will be some benefit that comes from his departure (to go along with the losses). I believe the primary benefit will be an improved half-court offense. The fact is that Aaron White was much, much better in the full court. In the half court, his value was primarily as a garbage type of player. It was only when he hit 3-point shots that he actually was a contributor in the half-court set, and that didn't happen often.

For most of the past two seasons, with AW playing on the perimeter, every time he touched the ball it allowed the opponents defense to do a bit of a reset. Not only was he not a great shooter, but he also was not a great passer. His skillset just honestly wasn't very well suited for playing out on the wing...thus his lack of signing on in the NBA.

Because of that, I expect our half court offense to be improved, regardless of who takes Aaron's place in that spot of the rotation. Add to that the fact that the report is "more athleticism, better 3-point shooting." Does anyone else recognize that typically those two things work in opposition to each other. If you want to be a better shooting team, then you normally have to sacrifice athleticism.

Because of those two facts, I honestly think we will be a much better team if NONE of the newcomers is a contributor this year. If Fran starts: Woody, Uthoff, Jok, Clemmons and Gessell, then I think we are way better than last year. That is not only because of the two facts above, but also because they are all now upperclassmen, knowing exactly what it takes to win at this level. Also, they will likely be improved in their own regard this year.

Add to those 5 starters: Uhl (it appears he will be much better, I love that kid's motor on the offensive end), Ellingson (Hard to believe he would bring less that JO, and I am not a JO hater) & Baer (I remember a day when that kid would start).

I hope the newcomers are as great as advertised, but frankly, I would predict us competing for the conference championship this season, even if they were all a bust.

Just my two cents.

Go Hawks!

 

[DanL53]

One thing that has not been mentioned is that, as great a Hawkeye as Aaron White was, there will be some benefit that comes from his departure (to go along with the losses). I believe the primary benefit will be an improved half-court offense. The fact is that Aaron White was much, much better in the full court. In the half court, his value was primarily as a garbage type of player. It was only when he hit 3-point shots that he actually was a contributor in the half-court set, and that didn't happen often.

For most of the past two seasons, with AW playing on the perimeter, every time he touched the ball it allowed the opponents defense to do a bit of a reset. Not only was he not a great shooter, but he also was not a great passer. His skillset just honestly wasn't very well suited for playing out on the wing...thus his lack of signing on in the NBA.

Because of that, I expect our half court offense to be improved, regardless of who takes Aaron's place in that spot of the rotation. Add to that the fact that the report is "more athleticism, better 3-point shooting." Does anyone else recognize that typically those two things work in opposition to each other. If you want to be a better shooting team, then you normally have to sacrifice athleticism.

Because of those two facts, I honestly think we will be a much better team if NONE of the newcomers is a contributor this year. If Fran starts: Woody, Uthoff, Jok, Clemmons and Gessell, then I think we are way better than last year. That is not only because of the two facts above, but also because they are all now upperclassmen, knowing exactly what it takes to win at this level. Also, they will likely be improved in their own regard this year.

Add to those 5 starters: Uhl (it appears he will be much better, I love that kid's motor on the offensive end), Ellingson (Hard to believe he would bring less that JO, and I am not a JO hater) & Baer (I remember a day when that kid would start).

I hope the newcomers are as great as advertised, but frankly, I would predict us competing for the conference championship this season, even if they were all a bust.

Just my two cents.

Go Hawks!

Welcome to the board.

 

[CanadaHawk]

One thing that has not been mentioned is that, as great a Hawkeye as Aaron White was, there will be some benefit that comes from his departure (to go along with the losses). I believe the primary benefit will be an improved half-court offense. The fact is that Aaron White was much, much better in the full court. In the half court, his value was primarily as a garbage type of player. It was only when he hit 3-point shots that he actually was a contributor in the half-court set, and that didn't happen often.

For most of the past two seasons, with AW playing on the perimeter, every time he touched the ball it allowed the opponents defense to do a bit of a reset. Not only was he not a great shooter, but he also was not a great passer. His skillset just honestly wasn't very well suited for playing out on the wing...thus his lack of signing on in the NBA.

Because of that, I expect our half court offense to be improved, regardless of who takes Aaron's place in that spot of the rotation. Add to that the fact that the report is "more athleticism, better 3-point shooting." Does anyone else recognize that typically those two things work in opposition to each other. If you want to be a better shooting team, then you normally have to sacrifice athleticism.

Because of those two facts, I honestly think we will be a much better team if NONE of the newcomers is a contributor this year. If Fran starts: Woody, Uthoff, Jok, Clemmons and Gessell, then I think we are way better than last year. That is not only because of the two facts above, but also because they are all now upperclassmen, knowing exactly what it takes to win at this level. Also, they will likely be improved in their own regard this year.

Add to those 5 starters: Uhl (it appears he will be much better, I love that kid's motor on the offensive end), Ellingson (Hard to believe he would bring less that JO, and I am not a JO hater) & Baer (I remember a day when that kid would start).

I hope the newcomers are as great as advertised, but frankly, I would predict us competing for the conference championship this season, even if they were all a bust.

Just my two cents.

Go Hawks!

Like the optimism. We do need someone new to contribute. But it certainly doesn't have to be everyone, despite all the glowing predictions. With Woody, Uthoff, Uhl, Jok, Sapp, MG almost certainly part of the core rotation, we just need one more consistent contributor to go a sure 7 deep and there are more than enough candidates. The 8-9 spots in the rotation probably will change as the year goes on, maybe even the 7-spot.

 

[DanL53]

Like the optimism. We do need someone new to contribute. But it certainly doesn't have to be everyone, despite all the glowing predictions. With Woody, Uthoff, Uhl, Jok, Sapp, MG almost certainly part of the core rotation, we just need one more consistent contributor to go a sure 7 deep and there are more than enough candidates. The 8-9 spots in the rotation probably will change as the year goes on, maybe even the 7-spot.

Nail hit on the head. Nice post Canada. I'm so excited for our newbies...but than last year I was excited about Uhl (and still am) and he only played about 10 mpg. Patience with the new guys, and some will contribute early, others later, but this year there are older guys still wearing Hawkeye uniforms.

 

[LifelongHawk]

Importance of 4 year starter at point is completely lost in this thread; Mikey will run the show.

 

[HellaHawk]

We've seen Fran play 10 before, and I think that is pretty likely this season, at least by the time Big Ten play rolls around. However, I think the rotation could be 11 when we have players get into foul trouble. We have 13 scholarship players, which means 3 are not likely to see many mins. I think its almost certain that the following players will play:

1) Woodbury (C)
2) Uthoff (PF/C)
3) Gessell (PG)
4) Clemmons (PG)
5) Jok (SG/SF)
6) Uhl (PF/C)
7) Jones (SF/PF)

That leaves 6 players (Williams, Moss, Flemming, Hutton, Ellingson, and Wagner) fighting for three to four spots.

I say you play Wagner when we are in foul trouble. You play Hutton when we need a defensive stopper. You redshirt Williams. I think Williams will be great, but I don't see how he gets many minutes playing behind Gessel and Clemmons at the 1. And you play the best two of Ellingson, Flemming, and Moss.

Fran has shown willingness to change lineups in the past (see Jok last year) so I think you could see some shifts in minutes throughout the seasons as players develop in practice. Hopefully, we can preserve chemistry even if that happens.

 

[C/Seahawk]

We've seen Fran play 10 before, and I think that is pretty likely this season, at least by the time Big Ten play rolls around. However, I think the rotation could be 11 when we have players get into foul trouble. We have 13 scholarship players, which means 3 are not likely to see many mins. I think its almost certain that the following players will play:

1) Woodbury (C)
2) Uthoff (PF/C)
3) Gessell (PG)
4) Clemmons (PG)
5) Jok (SG/SF)
6) Uhl (PF/C)
7) Jones (SF/PF)

That leaves 6 players (Williams, Moss, Flemming, Hutton, Ellingson, and Wagner) fighting for three to four spots.

I say you play Wagner when we are in foul trouble. You play Hutton when we need a defensive stopper. You redshirt Williams. I think Williams will be great, but I don't see how he gets many minutes playing behind Gessel and Clemmons at the 1. And you play the best two of Ellingson, Flemming, and Moss.

Fran has shown willingness to change lineups in the past (see Jok last year) so I think you could see some shifts in minutes throughout the seasons as players develop in practice. Hopefully, we can preserve chemistry even if that happens.

Under normal circumstances I would agree that Williams is a great redshirt candidate. However, with mike and sapp graduating, I doubt Fran wants to battle next year with two untested rookies at point. As a result I think Williams will play this year unless it's absolutely clear after a month of practice that he isn't anywhere near ready to fill a reserve roll.

 

[The Sleeping Dog]

Dan, you don't want to be one of Custer's scouts at the Little Big Horn; they all got killed too. Your G2 sounds more like the naval intel guys that predicted the date and location of the Pearl Harbor attack. That way the story ends without a fatal head wound for being more or less right.

 

[DanL53]

Dan, you don't want to be one of Custer's scouts at the Little Big Horn; they all got killed too. Your G2 sounds more like the naval intel guys that predicted the date and location of the Pearl Harbor attack. That way the story ends without a fatal head wound for being more or less right.

I gotcha, I need a better comparison. I like yours.

 

[trail888]

Personally I know Isaiah Moss came in late but he appears to have much more game than any of the other freshman I'm sure he'll see plenty of the court by Big Ten time.