Looks like Howe and Dochterman stepped in it here.
LOL.........nothing finalized yet, per Matt W.
GO HAWKS
LOL.........nothing finalized yet, per Matt W.
GO HAWKS
Cook leaving
- Thread starter Bearhawk0505
- Start date
You realize, that sooner or later Tyler was leaving Iowa either with a diploma or not.
Yes, other teams had to "scheme" for him as they did for Jordan, Joe, Luka, and anyone else that put on an Iowa uniform.
The real travesty is that Cook was Fran's most athletic recruit and knowing at some time within the 4 year window at Iowa, the coaching staff did nothing to recruit a player with the same athletic ability as Tyler had.
Even if a recruit of Tyler's physical nature had to reshirt a year to even out the classes or improve on his basketball skills, and there's a lot of them out there, our short sited coaching staff failed on that agenda. That in a nut shell is unexceptionable.
As far a bashing Tyler I guess it's because we can see how athletic he is and except for gaining experience from being at Iowa for 3 years he didn't really improve in the areas that make him NBA viable. He did many things on the basketball court as a Junior as he did as a Freshmen and had us all thinking what the f**k.
If he does leave, I can say that Tyler was a good Hawk and represented the university with honor. Once a Hawk, always a Hawk!
Good luck to him...next man in!
Again, I'll say it. As a Hawkeye fan, I'd be deflighted to see
Tyler in Hawkeye Black n Gold again, next year.
Tyler in Hawkeye Black n Gold again, next year.
You would think so reading the posts on this board, but I would bet over 90% of Iowa Basketball fans would like Tyler to return for what could be a pretty special year.
No I didn't realize Cook was going to leave Iowa one way or another. Thank you for clearing that up for me.
I'd like him to come back. Do you seriously not think he would make next years team better?
I will chime in on this subject. Cook would make the team better IF he is used properly. He should be on the block aggressively fighting for position. With the ball in that position, he is a threat to score or pass if he draws a double team. If his man is playing him too tightly, bring him away from the basket and start back-dooring him. Cook with the ball on the perimeter is pointless, he can’t shoot. When he has the ball out there, everyone else stands around and the offense bogs down. His handles are also too loose, another reason to keep him close to the basket.
So, just another bag of wind speculating. Tyler needs to think through his priorities, and his likelihood of being drafted probably hasn't changed much.
The sad thing in this thread, to me at least, is it appears everyone implicitly understands that the chances of Tyler improving his employable skills with another year at Iowa are slim to none.
This, in a nutshell, is what makes me a critic. I simply do not understand, especially with football being so good at player development, how basketball wouldn't find a way to make this an integral feature of its "brand", too.
This, in a nutshell, is what makes me a critic. I simply do not understand, especially with football being so good at player development, how basketball wouldn't find a way to make this an integral feature of its "brand", too.
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I will strongly agree with this, especially in Cook's case. All we heard last offseason was that he was working on ball handling and outside shooting. Complete and total horseshit.
If his goal is to play ball professionally then he should go. He is not going to improve his stock/game with another year in college ( any college). He is what he is at this level. At least in the pro's he can practice 24x7, have access to pro coaching, be surrounded by other pros, etc.
What have you watched all season? Clearly not Iowa basketball. Who led the comeback against TN? Cook. Who was the only guy that showed up a lot of nights when the guards were locked down and Garza went on his hiatus? Cook. If Fran had better talent around him Cook wouldn't be asked to be a poor man's version of Draymond Green but Fran doubled down on another PG who can't create which resulted in Cook forcing the issue a lot.
By that logic every Iowa football player who left early (Fant, Hockenson, Hooker, Nelson) were only focused on improving their NFL stock than helping Iowa. How do you know he couldn't wait to leave Iowa? Who cares if that is indeed true? For Iowa to be good at basketball, they are going to have to recruit players who didn't grow up dreaming of being a Hawkeye. Every college player at the Division I level likely sees the college time as a stepping stone to the future, not the end goal.
Why can't both things be true? A player in college can be focused on improving their NBA stock and on helping their current team (Hawkeyes). One can lead to the other. Nothing I saw from Cook this year told me he didn't care about how Iowa performed. If that were the case, wouldn't he just have not played the second half of the Tennessee game? Hawks were out of it, so don't risk injury. He didn't do that.
I hope Tyler comes back, but I don’t expect it. I think he has improved his game, but most of the work has gone into skills he’s very lacking in. If he’d been given advice to focus on areas that he could potentially dominant in like rebounding he might be closer to NBA ready instead of trying to be a point forward. IMO he has no impact talent that the NBA can’t find in others who have additional skills.
signed Aaron White, Jarrod Uthoff, Devyn Marble, Anthony Clemmons, Luka Garza, Nicohlas Baer, Matt Gatens etc.....Stupid
If Cook were the same exact player he is but white and from Iowa, this thread would look very, very different. Best of luck to you, TC.
What this really means is that he isn't ready to announce yet. He has decided.
Good luck to the kid. I liked watching him and the team will miss him. Not many athletes with his size, strength, and athleticism suit up in a Hawkeye uniform.
Good luck with this sentiment. I agree with you but it’s not a popular opinion and posted as such.
I was just talking about your reference about Wadley, absolutely no one wanted Wadley to leave early. That kid gave %110 all the time. Tyler has always seemed the nba was what he was all about, that he could give 2 sh*** less about helping iowa. That's all I was referring to.
I knew this would come…
First, there are always exceptions. Some guys will develop simply because they refuse not to, or because they come into the program with a very solid skill base and develop due to their having a solid foundation. Meaning with a solid foundation entering college, physical development due to training and aging, plus time on the floor and exposure to B1G competition, there is going to be some type of incremental development.
White
Basically the same player freshman year to senior year. Freshman year: great instincts for offensive rebounding, good instincts for gambling on defense, willing shooter of open threes. Not much game off the dribble. Sophomore and junior years, same deal, except went through extended stretches where he wouldn't even look at open threes, teams daring him to in fact, and offensive spacing was a real problem as a result. Rebounding and defense pretty much the same player, often actually seemed less aggressive. A little stronger, though. Senior year a bit more well-rounded, still no off-the-dribble game, no rip game either way. Reticent to look at the three until second half of the year when it seemed like holy shit, I need to start shooting these things to open shit up for teammates. I watched White extremely closely during his career. Loved him but also constantly thinking he was evidence something was not right with the program as it relates to player development. A kid who knocked down threes as a freshman shouldn't go into three-ball hiding for the next two-plus seasons. I know, crazy to say all this given his statistical rankings.
Uthoff
This kid represents my argument that he came in with a very polished skill set and simply needed to mature physically and get minutes.
Marble
Watch his high school video and watch video of his senior year at Iowa. Same player, just physically mature to do the same things at the next level. It's not easy to point to any one aspect of his game and attribute it to something unique or noteworthy Iowa is doing as it relates to player development.
Sapp
Came in as a freshman, played great. He grew up in a basketball culture that prepped him to fearlessly compete right away. I can relate having come up in Peoria's incredible basketball culture (which has deteriorated, sadly). Sort of regressed then committed to finding his way. Why the regression? And, once getting back on track, how much more in the way of actual skill-improvement was evidenced? As far as I can tell he did what he came in able to do, albeit with incremental improvement arguably due to physical maturity and experience.
Luka
This guy came in with great footwork, great motor, great work ethic, good feel for the game. He could be anywhere, in any program, and he is going to make himself the best player he can be.
Baer
Baer definitely got better, especially late this year—evidenced by his shot prep, shot readiness, and solid percentage. That development late this year I feel like could have, maybe even should have happened a year or two ago. Remember he's a fifth year guy.
Gatens
Holy shit his senior year was awesome. Lick screwed him up. Hard to tell exactly how to use him to judge Fran & staff as far as player development. Sometimes a guy has the skill base and the mental makeup to thrive under big-bright-green-light circumstances.
I loved watching every player you listed. Hell, I love watching every player who reps Iowa.
Look, I'm not saying Fran and staff are doing nothing. I just feel like far, far too many guys leave pretty much the same player—especially skill-wise—as when they arrived. I can make reasonable arguments to support my thesis for all of the guys you listed. Gesell is an easy one, too. How he struggled shooting the three throughout his career baffles me. Work ethic—phenomenal. Yet he was like White—practically unwilling to even look at an open shot. Those teams drove me crazy because with just a little more floor spacing, holy shit they could have been tough to beat. But teams dared them to shoot, and, painfully, they pretty much wouldn't shoot.
Maybe I'm spoiled by Ferentz's program and by my own basketball experience. Knowing Iowa Basketball isn't going to get a bunch of top-100 guys, I want it to be known as one of the best player development programs around. I think it's probably average at best, and I think the results bear this out. I know this sounds crazy, but just because somebody has a good or even great career, doesn't necessarily represent great player development. Somebody on every team has to take the most shots, somebody is going to going to be the best rebounder. Those numbers add up and start to look good.
I look at Moss as a prime example. How he can't create a shot for himself (or others) with some level of consistency, in year four in the program, is concerning. He goes several games in disappear mode. It's because he's pretty damn easy to guard, still. In year four. The signs he showed late this year of a little bit of pull-up game, my god, why does it take so long? This is late in year four. He still doesn't get low, compact, rip and blow a guy up for pressuring him. He's a damn man now, this should be something he can do at this point.
I do think the worm is turning a little. I do see signs of guys turning weaknesses into not necessarily strengths, but not obvious weaknesses. And I'm a nitpicker by nature.
So Iowa fans who criticize Tyler Cook for some of his faults as a player are racist? What a weird stupid thing to say with absolutely no evidence to back that up. And this was directed more so at the poster who brought the point up, not you. Just surprised you agree with it.
If you think Devyn Marble and Jared Uthoff didn't improve at Iowa and their stats only improved because of physically maturing you simply don't know a lot about basketball
Exactly. By this logic, no one ever improves ever in college, they were who they were in high school, just better.
As an Iowa fan, I hope like crazy this isn't true. But based on the responses from a segment of the fan base I do wonder. I get people criticizing his game, that happens to anyone. But making judgements about his character based on nothing whatsoever is baffling.
Not only do I not believe this, I don't think I said this in the black-and-white terms you inferred. I'm not arguing that there is no player development. I thought that was pretty clear.
Is that what I said? There have been unfounded criticisms about TC away from basketball that are completely baseless. Why is that?
Talk about making a point that could never be proven
I'm not sure I understand this reasoning. There is a lot Cook could improve on at Iowa...including his shot from within 15ft, cutting down turnovers, defense, rebounding, etc. Cook has the athleticism needed to play at the next level, its the skill development that needs some work. The exact opposite of say, Fred Russell turning pro with a year of eligibility remaining in football. Fred wasn't going to get any taller with an extra year, he was maxed out physically, so you could kind of appreciate why he made the move he did. On the other hand, Cook has a lot of room to grow and would benefit from another year but can also appreciate his desire to jump start his professional career if that is in fact what he chooses to do. If Cook comes back and displays a fairly consistent 15ft jump shot while averaging 17 and 10 with a few assists and cutting down on teh turnovers, you don't think a playoff caliber NBA team wouldn't consider him at the end of the first round? I think he could definitely improve his draft position if strides are made in his sr. year. Sure the NBA might not look favorably at his age, but the more skilled he is the better chance he has of actually making a NBA roster.
This isn't directed at you Fan in Black, but a general comment on the board. Its pretty incredible to read/see/hear the amount of hate Cook gets from fans. I think perhaps some of it results from his obvious talent and desire from fans for him to excel, and when he falls short at times, the critical carl's come out of the woodwork. The guy has obvious talent, seems like a genuinely good kid, good teammate, etc. If he chooses to pursue his dream, would hope fans simply thank him for his contributions and wish him the best. No reason for all the critical commentary including but not lmited to the tone of folks cutting him down, saying he has no shot, etc. He was the first out of state top 75 kid to pick Iowa in a while (since Tyler Smith perhaps) and for the most part lived up to that high school ranking.
If Cook comes back we should be primed to have a great season, but the nice thing is we've got an experienced and deep roster that should be able to handles his early departure. Garza, Kriener, Pemsl and Nunge taking up the minutes at the 4 and 5 spot seems pretty appealing to me, keep Cook in the mix and its downright dangerous and exciting at the same time.
Thanks for giving us a solid 52-85% effort most games Tyler. Best of luck to you.
*I give his pro career about 2.5 years....hope he finds someone trustworthy to invest his earnings. A college degree will never come this cheap again.
*I give his pro career about 2.5 years....hope he finds someone trustworthy to invest his earnings. A college degree will never come this cheap again.
I just meant that I don't think he can improve enough at the college level to raise his NBA stock. That's just my opinion from observing him for 3 years. He needs work like most prospects.. He may be better off doing that in the NBA, overseas or in G league. He can concentrate on his game full time and he will get professional coaching. And he will be surrounded by other pro's. It may push him into a role that showcases his talents better. Its just speculation. I wish he would come back. He can do all of this a year from now. But its not life so I wish him the best. I wasn't meaning to trash him at all.
I am probably in the minority here but I think Tyler could be a good shooter. His form is pretty good, he just needs to work on consistency and get some confidence. That comes from practicing/shooting regularly. He would have that opportunity after college.
No it would not. I have been hard on Cook this year but that’s because as the alpha dog and the guy who wants to be “the guy”, he didn’t live up to those expectations. Plain and simple. Has nothing at all to do with race.
It’s on him and it’s on Fran for in my opinion, he allowed Cook too much freedom to work on his weaknesses in game and to allow him to handle the ball on the perimeter, which led to poor decisions, turnovers/missed shots and stagnant offense.
I would love to have Cook back as long as him and Fran took a different approach for what is best for the team, not what was best for Cook’s future.
And everyone loves to pat Cook on the back for 1/2 of a good half against Tennessee (no matter that Cook was probably the main reason Iowa was down 20+ in the first place) but that just highlights the issue. It’s not that I expect him to play at that level all the time but I do expect that EFFORT all the time. And anyone being honest knows that he didn’t give full effort all the time because it was obvious on the court. I’m not sure why he should get kudos for bringing it for 10 minutes when there are guys who are lesser athletes and basketball players who bring it all the time and have led comebacks and big runs?
Yes he’s the best athlete and yes his stats are good but for his points and rebounds, how many 50/50 balls did he get beat out on by the other team outhustling the superior athlete that led to points for the other team? How many times did he get rebounded over that led to offensive putbacks and second chances even though he is a superior athlete? How many times did his nonchalant defense lead to points that offset his production?
And for being the “guy” on this team, he often came up short in the big moments with missed FT’s and shots and crucial TO’s. Sine would even say he choked a number of times.
Cook seems like a good kid and sounds like a quality person off the court who has represented Iowa very well. It just seems like his goals don’t necessarily jive with the goals for the team (and realistically my main concern as a fan is what the team does).
I said that I think the team will be more efficient and crisp without Cook (assuming Cook wasn’t going to adjust from his approach this year) next year and running through 1-2 combo of Wieskamp & Cook and I’ll stand by that.
Add in Woodbury, Ellingsen and Gessell just off the top of my head. I don't remember people being racist towards Marble, Jok and Olaseni to name a few.Yeah, go back and see some Josh Ogelsby threads a couple years back.
When you have no valid points to make in an argument just play the race card, question someone's fanhood or my personal favorite "What level do you coach at?" Then of course you put the ignore feature on the person you are debating with.
Not every critique of an individual has to be of racist intent, regardless if it is made from a white person about a black person or visa versa. Maybe it's just a bad take on something? An idiot does not have to be a racist.
He isn't going to the NBA this year. And he wouldn't be going to the NBA next year if he stayed. Might as well go to Europe and make some cash a year earlier.
Exactly right. Woodbury was beaten up way worse then Cook on this board.
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