New walk-on announced last month....
Iowa adds walk-on hoops player
A long time friendship and coaching relationship has resulted to an addition to the Iowa basketball roster.
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Interesting lineup possibilities.
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Which is exactly what you did.
As has been stated before, Connor was a pretty decent scorer in HS. They couldn't have all been layups.
Former Hanover-Horton basketball standout earns walk-on role at University of Iowa
After an All-State season in 2019 and a year in limbo in 2020, Luc Laketa finally found a landing spot in Iowa City, Iowa.
Not sure why he thought a walk on would get playing time this year.
I think he is hoping to play his way into a scholarship, a la Nicholas Baer.Former Hanover-Horton basketball standout earns walk-on role at University of Iowa
After an All-State season in 2019 and a year in limbo in 2020, Luc Laketa finally found a landing spot in Iowa City, Iowa.www.mlive.com
Not sure why he thought a walk on would get playing time this year.
Those skills do not necessarily translate to college. For example, Connor's jumper is slow. In HS he probably had an extra second or so to launch so he felt much more comfortable, and given his team he was probably a lot more open. At 6'6" he could overwhelm most Iowa competition and his shots were easier and again, he shot with more confidence.
The mystery is how could his shot form be so awful? Dad's a coach, Mom was a really good college player so how do you produce kids with terrible shot form? He's had three seasons to show some scoring ability and hasn't.
Hope I'm wrong but man....
No, I'm taking 3 outliers from the 31 game season and using the other 28 as the norm. That seems fair. Connor's inability to score is a mystery to me, certainly not what people expected when he was signed.
Like I said above, I've been a major defender for the last two seasons but this team is different and cannot play 4 on 5 offense.
Also, as I've said I really hope a miracle happens and Connor lights it up because I really like the kid.
Rebraca shot 37% from 3pt land last year. 36% as a freshman. That is something...
I think Keegan will find his stroke. He has a decent shot and drained them at 38% in prep school.
But yeah we are short on 3pt shooters unless some can step it up. If Sandfort can translate that 48% from 3 to the collegiate level, he'll be a huge bonus at that height
Opponents didn't defend him outside of the paint last year and instead using his man to double Luka.
If he was holding back it was bad move that hurt the team.
But in reality we know he just doesn't shoot the ball well enough to score in the big ten.
Maybe it will improve next year.
Hes not even being defended most of the time and can't knock down shots.
Comparing the High-school competition to college is silly.
Connor is a much bigger and better athlete than the average High-school kid, that is no longer the case in college.
Weird how every personnel post turns into an argument about CMac. It's pretty simple actually. He doesn't have the size or athleticism to play inside or the speed/quickness/shooting prowess to play outside. Unless his shooting improves dramatically in the off season his minutes should be very limited as there are others who possess those other physical attributes necessary to defend and open things up offensively. Now, that doesn't mean this is what's going to happen. If I'm the head coach I'm probably going to play my son more than someone else with similar physical attributes, especially in his senior year. There's also the trust factor and I'm sure that Fran trusts Connor more than anyone else on the court to make good decisions.
I think that there is a lot that goes into this decision and I can see both sides of this.
1) This is a young team and senior/upper class experience will be important to them.
2) Fran started Connor and he played a significant role with last years team (some don't see/understand that)
3) Connor could/can be effective in the right role.
Flip side
1) Connor is coming off of hip surgery and lost a significant amount of practice time. Can he be in the groove and in shape, have his timing down, etc. by October when practice starts. Will others be ahead of him at that time.
2) How much have others improved that would play his position.....who do you start him in front of that isn't a detriment to the potential of this team..not Keegan, not Rebraca in the post, I don't think he should play before Patrick. He won't start at shooting guard ahead of JBO....Ahead of Joe T at the point? Doesn't seem likely.
3) He can affect this team positively by being a players coach...help off of the bench. Point out to Joe T what he can/should do differently or what to look for in certain situations. Talking to Ulis on the bench about PG stuff during the game.
There is a strong contingent that thinks that Connor will start because of his strengths and Fran's comfort level with him on the floor.....it's hard to argue that this isn't the case........it is also tough for me to buy the fact that he will be at 100% when practice starts and therefore will be behind others at every position he would play....does that keep him from starting at the beginning of the season?
If Connor is healthy, I would seriously doubt that he would settle for this role, not do I think McCaffery would bench him to do so.
I agree with that....what I am wondering is if Connor were slow in his recovery and was not ready to go, or well behind the others....would he fill that role?
I think that if CMac wants to be a coach someday, the upcoming year would be a great time to start that process by being a team player and a voach on the floor/bench. He is in a great position to be a mentor to the 1st and 2nd year players.
Agree a lot with Perry's thoughts here and I do see both sides too. I get it that we all wish Connor shot better from the outside and was more of a scoring threat. I see what everyone else sees with the D backing off especially last year.....
Now I know how probably many OSU fans felt watching Aaron Craft but boy did he do a lot of other things very well.
But you just can't discount CMac's 2019/20 season stats and playing hurt last season with both hips.....that friggin hurts and I am certain the injury affected his all-around play, of course, it did.
I know one thing....it's been since Dre Woolridge that I've felt this relaxed with the ball in Connor's hands. He snags the ball on passes to him, loose balls, and rebounds....he will secure the ball and not let anyone take it away or slap it away (think Tyler Cook or many other Iowa players) and has great handles for a big 6'5/6" inch guard, tough for smaller guards to get to his dribble or handle. And in terms of creating extra possessions and getting another good high % shot-off. It seems to me folks do not put enough emphasis on what this skill means to a bb team or bb game but I do.
That said, I sincerely hope Connor shoots better and is more of a bucket maker when he is healthy again and back on the floor because he has a lot of other great BB skills and leadership and I absolutely love the attitude he brings to the floor...this team next year is going to need that attitude.
STATS GP MIN FG% 3P% FT% REB AST BLK STL PF TO PTS
2020-21 31 22.8 32.4 27.7 58.6 3.1 3.6 0.1 0.6 2.6 1.0 3.3
2019-20 31 30.1 34.4 34.0 78.1 4.0 4.0 0.1 1.1 2.6 0.9 6.2
