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Big Week for Iowa Basketball

Iowa offered JT Rock on Nov 16, 2021.

He is a legit 7'0"

What is encouraging is that he's already visited Iowa City; he was there the weekend of Sep 4, 2021 (Indiana football game).

As you can see in the tweet that follows, he has a good all around game & his offer list is impressive.

He would be a great addition to Cooper Koch & the 2024 class.




 
Rock visiting today, I believe. Versatile seven footer.

Sanford comes in on Friday and Estrella on Saturday.

A lot of talent in those three. With our current commits, last year's guard duo and if we could get these three - the future would be bright.
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The most encouraging sign for me in recruiting is that the staff has ben able to secure commitments from better PGs (IMO) than they have in the past. Carwright, Gesell and Bohannon were all fine, but I think with Bowen and Harding the talent has really been upgraded there. It has certainly felt like the lack of top PG play has held the program back at times during Fran's tenure.

It does feel like there is an opportunity right now in recruiting to keep the talent level at a place where a 5th place finish in the league is the floor and contending for a title will happen. There's no reason why Iowa can't consistently have results like Wisconsin has had over the past few decades.

The staff has already built a great core group for the 2023/24 classes with commitments from Freeman, Harding and Koch. If they can continue to add players of that caliber to fill out these two classes, the future will be bright in Iowa City.
 
Rock visiting today, I believe. Versatile seven footer.

Sanford comes in on Friday and Estrella on Saturday.

A lot of talent in those three. With our current commits, last year's guard duo and if we could get these three - the future would be bright.
Unfortunately Rock is no longer visiting today--apparently the rule is no unofficial visits can take place in July which the staff and he were confused about, so he is going to wait until later in the fall.
 
Not only that, but the ones Fran has brought in have done very little when it comes to actual results on the court, regardless of their stars.


Fran's recruits have done very little when it comes to ACTUAL RESULTS ON THE COURT?

Seriously?

We all know about Keegan.

And there's this.


Current Iowa Career Scoring List

1 Luka Garza...2,306 (4 yrs: 2018-2021, 127 GP, .546 FG%, 18.2 ppg; 120 three pt goals)

3 Jordan Bohannon...2,033 (5+ yrs: 2017-2019, 10 games in 2020 + 2021 & 2022; 179 GP, .389 FG%, 11.4 ppg; 455 three pt goals)

4 Aaron White...1,859 (4 yrs: 2012-2015, 140 GP, .517 FG%, 13.3 ppg; 61 three pt goals)

8 Roy Devyn Marble...1,694 (4 yrs: 2011-2014; 136 GP, .415 FG%, 12.5 ppg; 134 three pt goals)

10 Matt Gatens...1,635 (4 yrs: 2009-2012; 128 GP, .415 FG%, 12.8 ppg; 239 three pt goals)

17 Peter Jok...1,508 (4 yrs: 2014-2017, 125 GP, .413 FG%, 12.1 ppg, 216 three pt goals)

22 Tyler Cook...1,315 (3 yrs: 2017-2019, 93 GP, .542 FG%, 14.1 ppg; 3 three pt goals)

23 Jarrod Uthoff...1,298 (3 yrs: 2014-2016, 100 GP, .450 FG%, 13.0 ppg; 137 three pt goals)

24 Joe Wieskamp...1,283 (3 yrs: 2019-2021, 97 GP, .467 FG%, 13.2 ppg; 184 three pt goals)
 
Here is a story from just a couple hours ago.

As you will read, 3 "experts" had JP heading to Duke. Now? All 3 have reversed that opinion.

JP has official visits to Iowa, Duke, and Syracuse all within the next 9 days.

Duke is currently hosting 4-star 2023 power forward TJ Power for an official visit.


 
Best player ever in terms of ranking perhaps?

I believe Woodbury was higher. Going back to Alford and Davis we had some higher ranked players, Tyler Smith being the most recent.

If Estrella does come to Iowa, I would say it's the biggest recruiting win for Fran. Woody had UNC after him pretty hard and had a slightly higher rating, but he was an Iowa guy so that evened the field a little bit.
 
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I believe Woodbury was higher. Going back to Alford and Davis we had some higher ranked players, Tyler Smith being the most recent.

If Estrella does come to Iowa, I would say it's the biggest recruiting win for Fran. Woody had UNC after him pretty hard and had a slightly higher rating, but he was an Iowa guy so that evened the field a little bit.
Just looked it up, Woody ended up being ranked #50 in his class by Rivals. Tyler Smith was #43. Estrella is currently #54 but has had a very hot summer with a lot of buzz. Another recruiting service has Estrella as a top 20 guy. So he certainly would be in the conversation for highest recruit ever.
 
Just looked it up, Woody ended up being ranked #50 in his class by Rivals. Tyler Smith was #43. Estrella is currently #54 but has had a very hot summer with a lot of buzz. Another recruiting service has Estrella as a top 20 guy. So he certainly would be in the conversation for highest recruit ever.
If Estrella did choose Iowa, would that reduce our chance to land Power?
 
If Estrella did choose Iowa, would that reduce our chance to land Power?
I doubt that it would have an impact on Power--they don't really play the same position and would be able to co-exist.
Looks like Duke and UNC have prioritized Power hard. I would imagine that will make for an uphill battle, but we will see if Fran can get him to do a second visit.
 
I’m trying not to get too excited but I’m starting to think there is a real good chance JP becomes a Hawk. Syracuse doesn’t worry me that much - they’ve lost their luster I think.

Is JP the recruit that he and his entire family really likes Garza or was that another recruit (I can’t quite remember which one it was)?
 
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I’m trying not too excited but I’m starting to think there is a real good chance JP becomes a Hawk. Syracuse doesn’t worry me that much - they’ve lost their luster I think.

Is JP the recruit that he and his entire family really likes Garza or was that another recruit (I can’t quite remember which one it was)?
Your memory would be correct. Also of note:

 
I doubt that it would have an impact on Power--they don't really play the same position and would be able to co-exist.
Looks like Duke and UNC have prioritized Power hard. I would imagine that will make for an uphill battle, but we will see if Fran can get him to do a second visit.

The NCAA allows a recruit to make only 5 official visits to D-I schools, limited to one per school. TJ officially visited the weekend of Oct 8, 2021. If TJ Power visits Iowa a 2nd time, he would have to pay his own way.

Iowa has a lot going for them when it comes to TJ:

* Fran was in on TJ way before anyone else. Iowa offered on Aug 27, 2020.

* According to Rivals, Iowa is the first school he visited.

* Courtney Eldridge & the Boston/BABC connection: TJ Power (2023), Dasonte Bowen (2022), Josh Ogundele (2020) & Iowa Assistant Coach Courtney Eldridge (1998) are all part of BABC (Boston Amateur Basketball Club).
 
On 3 has JP Estrella as the #18 prospect in the country.

Timeline of JP's 5 Official Visits:

* July 28, Iowa

* Aug 4, Syracuse

* Has already taken official visits to Marquette & Tennessee

* July 31--Canceled his official visit to Duke



Estrella scouting report

JP Estrella has good size, and he moves well. Competitive on the block, he understands angles and has good footwork. The skilled forward can step out and knock down shots off the catch. He is a good area rebounder, and he works hard on the defensive end. He will need to continue adding weight, and he is going to need to work on the lateral quickness. There is a lot of toughness and fight in him. There is a lot to like here as a stretch big with toughness and some pop.


Full Story:

 
The NCAA allows a recruit to make only 5 official visits to D-I schools, limited to one per school. TJ officially visited the weekend of Oct 8, 2021. If TJ Power visits Iowa a 2nd time, he would have to pay his own way.

Iowa has a lot going for them when it comes to TJ:

* Fran was in on TJ way before anyone else. Iowa offered on Aug 27, 2020.

* According to Rivals, Iowa is the first school he visited.

* Courtney Eldridge & the Boston/BABC connection: TJ Power (2023), Dasonte Bowen (2022), Josh Ogundele (2020) & Iowa Assistant Coach Courtney Eldridge (1998) are all part of BABC (Boston Amateur Basketball Club).

They are allowed visits both their Jr and Sr seasons. So Power could visit again, I believe after August, on another official visit.
 
Noted in the Lounge that Estrella has grown 8 inches since freshman year, so at 6'11" if he had another 1-2" in him that would make him pretty unique.

Even without more height, he's a great stretch 4 who crashes the boards really well and has a very good touch around the rim with one handers and keeps the ball very high with quick release off rebounds or high passes. Has good pivots from the low post and a half hook but does tend to be right hand dominant when shooting around the hoop and lacks lower body strength to be effective against stronger players at the moment. That should come, but right now Freeman is better in the post and Estrella is likely better facing up, thus the good fit together.

As his body muscle mass catches up to his growth spurt, he should be able to add a lot more of Garza's moves inside the arc. He's a good mid range shooter too so the Sikma reverse pivot into a high ball position shot or drive would be great for him in the mid-post, or a fall away Nowitzki type move off the low block, or using that half hook. As mentioned he is very adept finding angles for shots when he's close around the hoop and flipping them in with 1 hand - better than almost all big guys I've seen recently. Just no upper body strength yet.
 
They are allowed visits both their Jr and Sr seasons. So Power could visit again, I believe after August, on another official visit.

I am pretty confident in saying that prospects only get 1 official visit per school. TJ took his official visit to Iowa the weekend of Oct 8, 2021. So, if he visits Iowa a 2nd time, he/his parents would have to pay their own way.

Let me know if this is wrong but here is my source:

NCAA Official Visit Rules

Each division level has its own set of rules surrounding official college visits. Division I has the strictest regulations. The following are the rules you need to know:

* The NCAA allows a recruit to make only five visits to Division I schools, limited to one per school. Official visits to DII and DIII schools are also limited to one per school, but there is no limit on total amount of visits.

* Due to a rule update by the NCAA, effective May 1, 2019, official visits can begin August 1 before the athlete’s junior year of high school (exceptions follow). For almost all sports, this bumps up the official visit date.

* Each official visit may be up to 48 hours long, or the span of one weekend.

* The school can pay for the following for you and your parents/guardians: transportation to and from the campus, lodging throughout your visit, three meals per day and three tickets to a home sports event. An official visit can also include having an on-campus lunch or dinner that is purchased by the coach.

* Schools may pay for a recruit’s transportation to and from campus. However, they can only provide transportation for parent/guardians if they travel in the same car as the recruit. Flights and separate bus or train tickets may not be purchased for parents.

* D1 football recruits can begin taking official visits starting April 1 of their junior year of high school.

* D1 women’s basketball recruits may begin taking official visits in April of their junior year of high school, beginning the Thursday following the Women’s Final Four tournament.

* D1 softball and baseball recruits may begin taking official visits September 1 of their junior year of high school.



Source:

 
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I’m trying not to get too excited but I’m starting to think there is a real good chance JP becomes a Hawk. Syracuse doesn’t worry me that much - they’ve lost their luster I think.

Is JP the recruit that he and his entire family really likes Garza or was that another recruit (I can’t quite remember which one it was)?
I'd rather compete against Syracuse 2022 than Duke. Losing Filipowski last year was a heartbreaker. I feel good about Estrella, but also acknowledge Syracuse has a HOF coach, and one of the best venues.

I don't think it's an accident we are competing for some of the same players as Syracuse. In their heyday they always had long players on the floor, and Fran seems to gravitate to those type of players. Fran also has connections to the East.

Does location matter? Unless Estrella is from New Hampshire, he left home for a BBall opportunity. Where is he originally from, and will that impact his choice?

I don't know if it's the entire family, but I've read his mom is a big Garza fan.
 
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I'd rather compete against Syracuse 2022 than Duke. Losing Filipowski last year was a heartbreaker. I feel good about Estrella, but also acknowledge Syracuse has a HOF coach, and one of the best venues.

I don't think it's an accident we are competing for some of the same players as Syracuse. In their heyday they always had long players on the floor, and Fran seems to gravitate to those type of players.

Does location matter? Unless Estrella is from New Hampshire, he left home for a BBall opportunity. Where is he originally from, and will that impact his choice?

I don't know if it's the entire family, but I've read his mom is a big Garza fan.

In case anyone missed it, this is a good story from Tom Kakert. Iowa offered JP Estrella on Dec 16, 2021.

"One place I really want to get to is Iowa....My interest in Iowa is pretty high. I want to get there and see the campus and spend more time with the coaches.”

“My mom is a big fan of Luka Garza and Iowa did a great job with him and really helped him develop into a great player.”



The full FREE story is here:




 
Does location matter? Unless Estrella is from New Hampshire, he left home for a BBall opportunity. Where is he originally from, and will that impact his choice?

JP has always been on the East coast. Syracuse is his only East coast top option (Iowa, Marquette and Tennessee are his other top options).

His junior year (2021-2022) he played at South Portland High School in Maine (they are a public school).

His senior year (2022-2023), of course, he will be playing at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire.
 
I am pretty confident in saying that prospects only get 1 official visit per school. TJ took his official visit to Iowa the weekend of Oct 8, 2021. So, if he visits Iowa a 2nd time, he/his parents would have to pay their own way.

Let me know if this is wrong but here is my source:

NCAA Official Visit Rules

Each division level has its own set of rules surrounding official college visits. Division I has the strictest regulations. The following are the rules you need to know:

* The NCAA allows a recruit to make only five visits to Division I schools, limited to one per school. Official visits to DII and DIII schools are also limited to one per school, but there is no limit on total amount of visits.

* Due to a rule update by the NCAA, effective May 1, 2019, official visits can begin August 1 before the athlete’s junior year of high school (exceptions follow). For almost all sports, this bumps up the official visit date.

"One visit per school per year."
Recruits can take a second official to a school, they just can't be in the same recruiting year.
 
A week from now JP will be officially visiting Syracuse. That will be Estrella’s 2nd trip to Syracuse. He took part in Syracuse’s Elite Camp last year. After the camp, he received a scholarship offer (it was his first offer from a Division I school).

He recently took part in the NBA Top 100 camp.

Last year, Estrella averaged 20.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game at South Portland (Maine) High School. He will be attending Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H., for his senior year.

 
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