What we see with Keegan now, you have to wonder what might have been last year.
Mercy.
Mercy.
I can't remember. Who started in front of Keegan last year?
- Thread starter drh1150
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Starting five last year were Garza, Weizy, JBo, CJ when healthy, and Connor. Off the bench was Nunge when healthy then Keegan, Joe T, Patrick, and a little of Ulis and Perkins against the more athletic teams.
Keegan was in a similar situation as Kris this year but when healthy, Nunge is a very good player. Wish we had him this year but understand why he choose the path that he did. Feel bad for the kid and wish him nothing but the best.
Keegan was in a similar situation as Kris this year but when healthy, Nunge is a very good player. Wish we had him this year but understand why he choose the path that he did. Feel bad for the kid and wish him nothing but the best.
By all the constant “why wasn’t Keegan a starter last year”, then why wasn’t he recruited by Duke, Kentucky, and Kansas heard here? It was a different team, different roles, and even more relevant, a different Keegan. Kids get better!
Keegan started when CJ was out, but generally subbed in for Wieskamp.
If we had Nunge, the ceiling on this team would be a lot higher.
I don't remember substitution orders but he was the back up 4. Connor was the starting 4.
If people can’t see that Keegan was still quite raw last year and that his game just took a massive leap, then I don’t know what to say. He was not ready for starter role last year. Had Nunge been helping I think he’d have started over Connor as well.
Does it really matter thank God Keegan came to Iowa. I didn't want him now I see why I'm not a coach . I'm glad I was wrong and look out for Kris
What determines raw vs ready?
His numbers per minute played were among the best in the conference last year.
I think this is a little revisionist history.
Just because he has made a dramatic improvement doesn't mean he wasn't good last year.
Hes was easily Iowas 3rd best player last year by any measureable standard.
I could be incorrect, but Keegan started (not as a starter) at the three, but moved to the four when Nunge went down.
Raw...his body wasn't ready. You could see flashes of his 3 level scoring but it wasn't game consistent. Confidence too seems to be sky high
I think he backed up the 4 and the 5 once Jack went down.
The games he started I think Connor moved to the 3.
No. He was our most athletic player last year. And not close. Of course he needed work, but he was our most athletic player last year. And of course clearly this year.
I can't remember, who starts in front of Kris Murray?
Too soon?
Too soon?
Keegan was 2nd behind Garza in PER last year.
Keegan BIG PER was higher than non-con PER.
Keegan was damn good last year.
Keegan was > Joe Wieskamp.
Keegan was 2nd on team only behind the NPoY.
how on earth can anyone say given his tremendous results that he ‘wasn’t ready’…?
or
that he took a massive leap?
Because they don't really remember last years season and they just know that Keegan has improved a lot.
Theres a reason he was showing up 1st round on mock drafts twoards the end of last year.
I have no interest in arguing about who should have started last year at this point but to say Keegan wasn't capable last year is just false.
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Smokescreen revisionist horseshit to cover for Fran.
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Unsober_Teacher
No, not true...Keegan was fantastic last year and on all B1G Freshman team. He was elected to the sports illusrated preseason all B1G team and NBA draft lists prior to any tape from this year's improvement--i.e. only based on his play last year.
The guy that started every game at 4 over Keegan was CMAC . CMAC was not very good at shooting the ball and too small to rebound/defend the 4 positon. Keegan clearly should have started last year and Kris Murray also should have played some backup PF mintues
Last year, Fran coached a team voted into the Top10 team to a Top32 ncaa finish. That is poor coaching.
I do agree this is all old news and the Friends and Family of Fran will always say CMAC was better option last year, blah blah....Keegan wasn't ready to start, and Kris was not capable of backing up Keegan last year and play like a 6'8 guy with natural defensive skills.
Nunge was healthy for roughly 40% of last season and he started at PF exactly zero percent of the games, so your thought that Nunge would start over CMAC if Nunger was healthy is also incorrect.
Iowa had a poor defense last year, and going small with CMAC made things worse. Instead of shoring up the defense, Fran rolled out CMAC as starter every game last season that CMAC was healthy, and even when he wasn't healthy when NCAA rolled around.
Don’t forget as well at the end of the year after the Oregon game many Iowa fans upset when Fran said after the loss that cmac was playing hurt and need surgery on both labrums. Which begged the question if that’s the case why was he starting let alone playing minutes he was? Very costly against an athletic team like Oregon which obviously having an athlete like Keegan in hindsight made a heck of a lot more sense starting.
I think both points of view have merit. Bottom line though, we were loosing to Oregon regardless last year and no matter the matchup the sweet 16 probably was the best realistic scenario with the benefit of hindsight—all the injuries, fatigue, etc.
“Nunger” played in 22 of Iowa’s 31 games (or roughly 40%) by some logic. He played until Feb 25 at Michigan.
Imagine if Tom Davis had given Brig Tubbs the green light. Oh, what might have been!
Losing to Oregon was not super surprising. They were underseeded as a 7. But they were not this mythical beast that Iowa had to play a perfect game to beat. They turned around and got beat by 14 by USC. Trojans were very good, but Iowa thought defense was optional against Oregon and got what it deserved.
The argument about PT last year is one that won't be settled as long as one side wants to use data and the other wants to use "he wasn't ready" or "the guy starting ahead of Murray brought intangible things." Those are claims that can be neither proven nor disproven. And round and round we go.
Are you saying that the objective numbers produced by Keegan last year are a “smokescreen “…?
What can’t be argued is the Fran has a lotto pick on this 2022 team that last year played behind 2022 bench warmer CMac, even though Keegan’s output was 2nd on team to Garza.
In game#1 don’t forget that CMac had 2 early 1h fouls and early 2h fouls and was benched and Iowa wins
in game #2 CMac was removed from game 2 minutes in to 2h , Iowa down 16, Iowa loses by 15….
btw, Cj as also removed from at same time, with Iowa playing even the remaining 18 minutes
I’m not saying Keegan wasn’t better than anyone expected him to be last year. I’m just saying I thought it was better he come off the bench, especially the first half or so of the season when it wasn’t as clear that he was better than realized.
Only lineup change I would have made last year would have been to start Nunge over Connor, but I suspect that was at least partly because no one was sure how his knee would hold up.
Only lineup change I would have made last year would have been to start Nunge over Connor, but I suspect that was at least partly because no one was sure how his knee would hold up.
So he didn't play behind then, as you stated earlier. I don't like the idea that Keegan was playing behind Cmac any more than the next guy, but Keegan was averaging over 21 MPG our last 12 games. He was playing quite a bit.
As far as the Oregon game, when Cmac left the first half, Iowa was tied 36-36. By the time he came back into the game, for the last defensive possession with 10 seconds left, it was 54-46, then Perkins fouled Duarte on the 3 to go down by 11. Unless it was Connor's fault for sitting on the bench too.
It’s not connors fault, or his fault that he plays as much as he did, or plays when limited by injuries, with out graza to pass to Conor’s value is very limited…
I do appreciate your digging and coming up with details 👍🏻
I was answering/replying to your question/s. I edited the post for clarity.
“how on earth can anyone say given his tremendous results that he ‘wasn’t ready’…? or that he took a massive leap?”
Keegan should have started and seen major minutes all last year. Kris should be starting this year. The only thing in the way was the two coaches son’s PT.
Keegan was good last year and very good at times but to just pick these numbers n insinuate that he was better then Weiskamp would be a leap in my opinion. Look at how Joe was guarded last year and the amount of focus he was getting by the defensive. They game planned Joe and respected Keegan but not even close to the same level of attention.
all 3 advanced metrics PER, win shares/40 min, and had the better offensive defensive ratings / 40 minutes.
keegan was better or far better than Wieskamp, in all 3.
How can you look at the balance of work and then say it is a leap to say Keegan isnt = or better…?
as for game planning, my god they game planned to,double or triple team Garza, no matter what Who was on Joe,he’d help on Garza.
