Iowa WBB Class of 2026 Recruiting Thread
- Thread starter BraydonRoberts5
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Not sure how tall Mallegni is but she can really shoot.
Wondering if Bluder's retirement may help with Greenway and some of the other 2026 recruits. I'm sure that Bluder's age was being used against Iowa in recruiting, telling players that Lisa would retire during their playing years.
With Jan taking over, that issue goes away.
This upcoming season is a huge year recruiting wise. If Iowa can be a host site again in the NCAA tourney, then the top recruits will keep Iowa on their radar
With Jan taking over, that issue goes away.
This upcoming season is a huge year recruiting wise. If Iowa can be a host site again in the NCAA tourney, then the top recruits will keep Iowa on their radar
I do strongly agree that we need size. Bigs should be the top priority for Jan, IMO. Either Hays or Krstevski would be my top choices for our next commit of any kind. For them to sign tho, they’d need to be okay with the possibility of coming off the bench behind Heiden (tho that’s not a sure thing). At least they would have to be okay with averaging closer to 20 minutes than 40.
But that said, a Top 15 PG would go a long way to improving the outlook for the team in a few ways:
- Raising our ceiling: With Kussow on the floor, we would have two Top 15 players at the 1 & 3 with a few athletic Top 60 caliber recruits able to float around from 1-4. That’s an impressive back court. I’m not worried about Heiden holding down the 5, so a Top 15 PG could very well be the difference between this team being a perpetual Sweet 16 / Elite 8 team and possibly an Elite 8 / Final Four team
- Positional distribution: Guyton is a great add for PG but if we’re lucky enough to have someone even better, that will mean materially better results. Guyton could then become a more athletic, aggressive SG in the vein of Gabbie Marshall. Even if she relegated to the bench behind Deal or Mallegni at the 2, that is the kind of depth teams like Maryland usually have. It also provides insurance against injuries. I know I’m not the only who hopes to never again have to rely on a tight rotation of 5-6 players in big games.
- Redundancy: It’s worth pointing out that Guyton has also suffered a very serious injury. Her recovery could be slow, she may never fully recover, or she may be injured again. It would be foolish to turn down a top 15 recruit in any situation, but even moreso when your starting PG is dealing with such a major health issue. UConn just landed Caitlin Chen from Princeton — they didn’t need another PG. She won’t start. But she will be insurance in case Paige or Azzi are injured again — thereby raising their floor.
I should note that an elite PG doesn’t have to be Kussow — there are a lot of elite PGs/CGs in the mix — including Skinner, Lewis and Greenway (I’d rank them in that way, from most impressive get to least, but I’m open to discussion….Kussow would probably be #2). We really just need one though — and I’m sure Jan would take any of them in a heartbeat.
Finally, if we could land Hays/Krstevski (big if) and then a Top 15 PG (big if) I would then also hope we could add a tall wing/guard that could play the 4 in Iowa’s system. I think a top PG is more important than a top PF solely bc Bluder believes that as well.
But in this imaginary world where we continue to recruit at a high level, the missing piece of the puzzle would be a 6’2+ W/F who can be the next Warnock. This is a difficult position to come by bc most programs don’t utilize a position like this. I think any of Speiser, Jones, Bjorn, or Koupal could fill that role the way Warnock, Martin and Affolter have tho. Warnock was recruited as a guard before playing the 4. Martin only played the 4 bc of necessity but that worked out fantastically. Even Syd at 5’11 plays the PF (well) when needed.
None of them are categorized as classic forwards (and all but Speiser are normally listed as G, and project as SFs) but that doesn’t preclude them from Jensen’s systems. Bc of this peculiarity of Iowa’s system, we have more options than are obvious. Beyond new recruits, Mallegni, Deal, or Houston may all be able to fill in and play well.
That said, size at any position would of course be nice. We fortunately have two seasons with Hannah left so Jan has some time. Trinity Jones would be my top pick to fill this role (and there’s mutual interest there). I read a write up about her saying she is technically a guard but is extremely versatile and could play 1-4 (largely due to her size). That could bode very well for her potential fit at Iowa.
Speiser and Bjorn would be outstanding adds to fill this role, but I sense both are trending away..
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I firmly agree and I think she is smart enough to know what people are saying about her. I believe she made the right call at the right time. We may lose some recruits (McGaughy comes to mind) but I think it was best to rip the bandaid when she was at her peak. Jan can start fresh with new kids and avoid accusations about longevity. Her short tenure will also help cushion the fallout from bumps on the road. Bluder would inevitably be ripped to shreds on social for losing any number of games. Jan will be given more grace, and a successful season will seem much more impressive.
I’m tentatively cautious that Bluder’s retirement is a plus for Greenway. Tbh a lot of ppl aren’t rly impressed too much by her — she can come off as rough, bristly, just not the most friendly. Jan doesn’t have that problem. And of course the impending retirement may have just been a dealbreaker.
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I wouldn't read that much into it without an offer. I think it would be similar to the Koupal situation where the staff is clearly interested, but waiting on another target first. If an offer comes after the visit, then that might be more of a sign.
I recall when McCabe committed she said the coaches told her (and presumably others) they were only taking 1 more commit in the class and it would go to whoever committed first.
Since then, I've presumed anyone that gets an offer is a priority target and anyone that visits without an offer is a secondary target.
I think the offer will happen on the visit, assuming both sides think it would be a good fit. I do think this means that a 25 combo guard is unlikely.
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