Fran's Letter to the Fanbase

[ynglbc]

Dear Hawkeye fans,


On behalf of our players, coaching staff and staff, I would like to
thank you for your support of Iowa Hawkeye basketball this season.


There's no doubt that Hawkeye fans are some of the most passionate fans
in the country. Not only was Carver-Hawkeye Arena rocking again, but our
fans came out coast-to-coast to support our team. Whether it was early
season games out East in New York City and North Carolina, league games
around the Midwest, or the NCAA Tournament contests in Seattle...
Hawkeye fans represented at every stop. It's motivating for our players
to know that no matter where they play, they have unwavering support.


I could not be more impressed by our guys' effort level this season, athletically and in the classroom. Adam Woodbury, also earned Academic all-conference distinction.


On the court, it was great to see the team finish the regular season
strong with six straight wins and ultimately earn a bid to the NCAA
Tournament for the second year in a row. Not resting on their laurels,
our guys executed the game plan against Davidson to post the largest
margin of victory ever in an NCAA Tournament 7/10 game (83-52).


Winning 22 games and tying for third place in the demanding Big Ten
Conference is an accomplishment our players can be proud of. Success
begins with preparation, and I'm not sure that I have coached a team
that collectively studied and digested scouting reports better than this
year's team. They truly had a business-like approach before each game.


We have been blessed to have tremendous senior leadership from day one. Guys like Zach McCabe,
and Devyn Marble, to name a few, were instrumental in laying the
foundation for future Hawkeye success. This year's senior class of Aaron White will be deeply missed. Their contributions to this program, on and off the court, were immeasurable.


It has been a pleasure to coach another one of the greatest Hawkeyes of all-time in Aaron White.
Without question, his work ethic and determination helped him achieve
his goals. Earning first-team All-Big Ten honors, and becoming the
second all-time leading scorer and third-leading rebounder is a
phenomenal accomplishment.


Kyle Denning's
impact on the program was felt in a different way, as he was pivotal in
helping prepare our team for each opponent by running the scout team.
He earned a scholarship this season after being in a walk-on role his
first three years.


Watching the growth and development of Gabriel Olaseni
the past four years has been rewarding. Gabe's unselfishness and
athletic ability helped him reach his goal of Big Ten Sixth Man of the
Year, in what was an emotional season for him. The benevolent nature of
how Gabe's teammates comforted him upon learning of his father's passing
in November is something that will not be forgotten.


Josh Oglesby
will go down as one of this program's top 3-point shooters, but it's
his compassion off the court that I may remember most. Upon learning of
my son Patrick's thyroid tumor prior to last season's Big Ten
Tournament, it was Josh's idea to make P-Mac/#teampat shirts to show
support.


It's anecdotes like that, that demonstrate the personality of our team.
We are an extended family that care for each other and cherish
representing the University of Iowa.


We look forward to generating more memorable Hawkeye basketball moments
in the years ahead. We thank you again for your continued support for
our program and the Iowa Hawkeyes.


Go Hawks!

Fran McCaffery

 

[StormHawk42]

First, link?

Second, I was a bit worried reading it as it sounds like a "I'm moving on" letter. Good thing it wasn't.

 

[LaoHawk]

Third, Fran promises IA will be a different team next year....

http://thegazette.com/subject/sports/iowas-mccaffery-well-be-a-different-team-20150406

 

[IronFist1776]

Originally posted by LaoHawk:
Third, Fran promises IA will be a different team next year....

What's funny about that? Its true as we'll be smaller albeit faster, more athletic and hopefully better overall. Fran mentioned 3-4 guard sets. I've always wondered what Iowa would look like if they tried that. Well, it looks like Fran's been thinking about that too. Although last night's fix of the game by those corrupt refs really makes you want to give up on sports, its things like this that stir yr excitement for another season.

 

[thewop]

That's great! I really thought there was another motive to the letter. I kept waiting for the paragraph imploring everyone to buy season tickets, or donate to a project or cause, but it never came. How refreshing, very nice to see.

 

[LaoHawk]

It's funny because Fran didn't promise anything last year, so I find it humorous but positive that he's looking up to the next season. Humor is good for everyone, can't take life too serious as fans.

 

[Hawkeyestate81]

Where is this links provided do not show letter.

 

[CanadaHawk]

Originally posted by LaoHawk:
Third, Fran promises IA will be a different team next year....

From the article LaoHawk cites, Fran says:


















"Pete's
got to take another jump. He took one last year. I'd like to see him take
another jump and be an all-league-caliber player, a 15-, 16-point scorer. I
think that's well within his capability."




If Jok actually does average 15-16pts/game in 2016, I predict there will be absolutely no problem with Iowa getting back to the NCAA tourney.

We'll be a different team

 

[Servbot24]

Jok can absolutely do that with a confidence boost and improved ball control.

 

[whatsup12579er]

If Peter can average 14-16, Jared 17-19, Mike 8-10, Woody 8-10 and Dom 6-8 we should be a pretty good team. I don't think any of those numbers are too unreasonable to expect.

 

[ynglbc]

I think Fran has a vision that we're going to be pretty good next year. Even though we have alot of freshmen coming in they're players that played against tougher competition during the year. I think they're already at a higher level than most freshman coming in.
Fran going to 3-4 guard sets tells me that we'll be shooting more 3's next year. With Jones we'll have another inside presence besides Woodbury. Pemsyl will be here in 2016, currently at 6-8 240lbs. I think we're not in as bad of shape as what it appears.

 

[CanadaHawk]

Originally posted by whatsup12579er:
If Peter can average 14-16, Jared 17-19, Mike 8-10, Woody 8-10 and Dom 6-8 we should be a pretty good team. I don't think any of those numbers are too unreasonable to expect.

I'll buy MG at 8-10 as a senior. Woody at 8-10 too as a senior, the only established post player with increased minutes. Dom, with the big jump in PT he's likely to get, I can see getting 6-8, although it's uncertain what his progression is going to be- maybe higher- or maybe he's just going to be an energy guy? JU at 17-19 and PJ at 14-16 might be their ceiling. I'm thinking 14-17 from JU and double figures for Jok would be more possible. As I said, if I knew PJ would be getting 15-16/game in 2016-17, I'd say we just need to be talking about seeding for next year's tourney.

For the team going forward, it seems weird to be talking about this Jones kid as a done deal. But assuming we do get someone like him in the rotation, that would be a reasonable situation going into the season. The seniors, Jok, Uhl, and the last signee could be a core rotation to start the fall with the frosh breaking in when they're ready. And yeah, we need more bigs for 2016 but Pemsl is a nice start. The PTL should be fun to watch to see the skills we have coming in.

 

[Bulldogs1974]

people will think i'm crazy but I see uhl scoring 10-12 next season. 50% fg, 35% 3pfg, and 75% ft. His handles are better than Aaron whites. The only thing i see limiting him is how well can he finish with contact at the rim. If he puts 5-10 lbs of muscle on watch out....

 

[BeepBeepInMyJeep]

Uthoff could still use some more bulk, but his athleticism for his size and ball handling is exceptional. If he develops a bit more capability from 8 feet on in toward the rim and takes the drives more often when available, he will be damn near unstoppable at times and could certainly get to ~20 ppg.

 

[torbee]

Originally posted by BeepBeepInMyJeep:
Uthoff could still use some more bulk, but his athleticism for his size and ball handling is exceptional. If he develops a bit more capability from 8 feet on in toward the rim and takes the drives more often when available, he will be damn near unstoppable at times and could certainly get to ~20 ppg.

I think Uthoff has the potential to have a Sam Dekker-like year next year.

 

[seer_hawk]

Originally posted by ynglbc:
I think Fran has a vision that we're going to be pretty good next year. Even though we have alot of freshmen coming in they're players that played against tougher competition during the year. I think they're already at a higher level than most freshman coming in.
Fran going to 3-4 guard sets tells me that we'll be shooting more 3's next year. With Jones we'll have another inside presence besides Woodbury. Pemsyl will be here in 2016, currently at 6-8 240lbs. I think we're not in as bad of shape as what it appears.

Don't let kilroy fool you. There's no "y" in Pemsl, and the March article I read about him indicated he's 235 lbs.

Even though AAU has changed the competition level for many players, I do think it's a bonus that several newcomers have played against top competition in HS, and HS practice, and also played on some very successful teams. Basabe and White played in urban area's and they were ready to contribute right away. Ellingson played in the Milwaukee area, Hutton and Moss Chicago, and Fleming played almost 50 games for a top prep school in Virginia. Wagner's team won the large division Ohio State Championship, Fleming's team finished 1 game short of undefeated, and Moss's team was rated a Top 10 HS. There's a good chance they will all be ready to contribute next year because of that experience.