Iowa Womens Bball Portal Targets

[FrankBurns00]

I'm becoming more and more convinced that Iowa will be looking for a grad transfer PG in the portal this summer. With recruit Aaliyah Guyton and Kennise Johnson both down with ACL injuries, I think it only adds to the possibility.

Lets get a thread going on possible targets.

Already starting to see names pop up in the portal, but no obvious targets yet. Maybe someone from the Ivy League since they are not allowed to be grad students??

 

[HawkFritz3]

Drake PG would be perfect. Hope she transfers

 

[HawkHoops80]

Anyone have a scholarship chart available on the women's team? Would love to know how many open spots we'll have to utilize.

 

[FrankBurns00]

Anyone have a scholarship chart available on the women's team? Would love to know how many open spots we'll have to utilize.

We basically have 1 spot open for next season. With all the incoming recruits, really just need a 1 year player for next season

 

[Row55]

Drake PG would be perfect. Hope she transfers

Agreed. Likes physical play and has good assist numbers. I have no idea if she'd consider leaving Drake, they've had success while she's been there

 

[nu2u]

becoming more and more convinced that Iowa will be looking for a grad transfer PG in the portal this summer. With recruit Aaliyah Guyton and Kennise Johnson both down with ACL injuries, I think it only adds to the possibility.

Is there any reason to believe Guyton and Johnson won’t be 100% by November?

In any event, agree that a vet PG transfer would be beneficial.

Side note- Levin looks pretty talented as a ball handler and passer but the B10 is a big step up.

 

[FrankBurns00]

Is there any reason to believe Guyton and Johnson won’t be 100% by November?

In any event, agree that a vet PG transfer would be beneficial.

Side note- Levin looks pretty talented as a ball handler and passer but the B10 is a big step up.

Guyton will probably be back, but just barely and will have been rehabbing all summer instead of developing. That's if everything goes well in the rehab.

Johnson I am less than encouraged that she will be back before January. She just injured it and I don't believe has had the surgery yet. It is also her second ACL, she had one back in HS (not sure if it was the same knee).

 

[FrankBurns00]

Is there any reason to believe Guyton and Johnson won’t be 100% by November?

In any event, agree that a vet PG transfer would be beneficial.

Side note- Levin looks pretty talented as a ball handler and passer but the B10 is a big step up.

I agree on Levin. And Stremlow looks good too! just don't think they want to rely on solely those two.

 

[nu2u]

Guyton will probably be back, but just barely and will have been rehabbing all summer instead of developing. That's if everything goes well in the rehab.

Johnson I am less than encouraged that she will be back before January. She just injured it and I don't believe has had the surgery yet. It is also her second ACL, she had one back in HS (not sure if it was the same knee).

Thanks. Did not know that Johnson had a prior ACL injury, that’s rough. I never had a major injury but two serious injuries to a joint has to be a hit to the psych if you are a competitive athlete.

 

[hawkod]

Drake PG would be perfect. Hope she transfers

I thought about Dinnebier too, but I highly doubt she'd leave Drake.

 

[shikreto]

Is there any reason to believe Guyton and Johnson won’t be 100% by November?

Best case scenario Guyton is on the court by November. That means she misses all summer and fall — she won’t learn the system. She’ll miss strength and conditioning. When the actual season comes around, “practice” becomes rarer and rarer. I don’t see her having time to catch up. Especially since it probably won't be best-case scenario. Many kids take a full year (or more) to get back to form.

Johnson will also miss summer (not as essential for a sophomore but still a critical piece for anyone who hasn’t seen meaningful minutes) and won’t be healthy til even later. And she will now likely regress in the weight room, which is essential for her to be able to get on the floor. She was already someone doubtful to be ready to step up as starting PG….this makes it MUCH harder.

We NEED a veteran PG from the portal. Stremlow and Levin are better than nothing, but it’ll be a bumpy ride.

 

[SunzOutGunzOut]

We basically have 1 spot open for next season. With all the incoming recruits, really just need a 1 year player for next season

Scholarship chart breakdown in here

 

[skydog0784]

I thought about Dinnebier too, but I highly doubt she'd leave Drake.

I suspect you're right.

It looks like she's a Pharmacy student and the Drake Rx program is a 6 year program with guaranteed / reserved seat (subject to academic standards being met) into the PharmD graduate program for Drake undergraduates. If she is sticking with Pharmacy and were to leave Drake for IA, she'd have to sit for the GRE, gain admittance, and then enter the 4 year graduate program at IA.

 

[FrankBurns00]

Kaitlyn Chen PG Princeton

Uconn has interest in transfer Chen

Princeton Stats

 

[Row55]

I suspect you're right.

It looks like she's a Pharmacy student and the Drake Rx program is a 6 year program with guaranteed / reserved seat (subject to academic standards being met) into the PharmD graduate program for Drake undergraduates. If she is sticking with Pharmacy and were to leave Drake for IA, she'd have to sit for the GRE, gain admittance, and then enter the 4 year graduate program at IA.

She was just named MVC Player of the Year. Not that it's likely to matter to us.

2024 MVC Women's Basketball All-Conference Team

MOLINE, Ill. – Drake's Katie Dinnebier has been named the 2024 Jackie Stiles MVC Player of the Year presented by Great Southern Bank.

mvc-sports.com

Then there's UNI point guard Maya McDermott, who made first team MVC. But she's 5'6" and slightly built. Sort of a shorter Kamille Whalin, who sometimes had trouble with the more physical B10 guards. And again, no reason to think she isn't happy at UNI.

 

[shikreto]

Please.

 

[hawkod]

View embedded media

Please.

Probably much more likely candidate than Chen; used to tough competition playing in SEC.

 

[FrankBurns00]

Mama Dembele, a grad xfer from Mizzou. Originally from Spain. Averaged 10 pts, 6 ast, and 3 steals. Was All-SEC defense team.

Bio Link

 

[Iowa2525]

Serious question. Does anyone know if bluder is looking at a transfer. Cause all this speculation sounds like a waste of time if they are not actively looking

 

[shikreto]

Serious question. Does anyone know if bluder is looking at a transfer. Cause all this speculation sounds like a waste of time if they are not actively looking

No one knows anything but they absolutely need another option at PG (since our only options are freshmen or non-PGs) if we want our best shot at being a tough out next year.

I also suspect Goodman moved on for this reason. I think it was obvious what the team needed and also obvious she wasn’t going to compete for minutes. Bluder made the right call endorsing the decision (or suggesting it) and Goodman is very selfless for doing it as well.

 

[Tom Paris]

She was just named MVC Player of the Year. Not that it's likely to matter to us.

2024 MVC Women's Basketball All-Conference Team

MOLINE, Ill. – Drake's Katie Dinnebier has been named the 2024 Jackie Stiles MVC Player of the Year presented by Great Southern Bank.

mvc-sports.com

Then there's UNI point guard Maya McDermott, who made first team MVC. But she's 5'6" and slightly built. Sort of a shorter Kamille Whalin, who sometimes had trouble with the more physical B10 guards. And again, no reason to think she isn't happy at UNI.

For me personally, too soon.

 

[Rocket_Fran]

View embedded media

Please.

That sounds like a create-a-character name in a video game. Utah, make it 2! of us por favor

 

[herkhatescy]

Mama Dembele, a grad xfer from Mizzou. Originally from Spain. Averaged 10 pts, 6 ast, and 3 steals. Was All-SEC defense team.

Bio Link

Is she related to our Dembele?

 

[FrankBurns00]

Is she related to our Dembele?

That was my first thought too. She does seems to have a similar path, but they are not brother/sister. Might be a more distant relative????

 

[FrankBurns00]

Princeton and Kaitlin Chen (PG) made it to the tourney. Chen played the entire game and had 17 pts and 6 asst.
She is transferring because the Ivy league does not allow grad students to play and Kaitlin one year of eligibility left.

Princeton goes dancing

 

[kceasthawk]

Princeton and Kaitlin Chen (PG) made it to the tourney. Chen played the entire game and had 17 pts and 6 asst.
She is transferring because the Ivy league does not allow grad students to play and Kaitlin one year of eligibility left.

Princeton goes dancing

Bad fit. No one will be able to spell her first name. Oh the horror.......

 

[HIWILLE]

Kaitlyn Chen PG Princeton

Uconn has interest in transfer Chen

Princeton Stats

Makes you wonder why Uconn would want her. Beucker is back along with six more guards. Connecticut being in Connecticut I’m sure one of them guards played the point in high school. maybe I’m just jealous because we could use her the most for sure 🙂. It sounds like she’s pretty damn good.

 

[ICWestfan]

Best case scenario Guyton is on the court by November. That means she misses all summer and fall — she won’t learn the system. She’ll miss strength and conditioning. When the actual season comes around, “practice” becomes rarer and rarer. I don’t see her having time to catch up. Especially since it probably won't be best-case scenario. Many kids take a full year (or more) to get back to form.

Johnson will also miss summer (not as essential for a sophomore but still a critical piece for anyone who hasn’t seen meaningful minutes) and won’t be healthy til even later. And she will now likely regress in the weight room, which is essential for her to be able to get on the floor. She was already someone doubtful to be ready to step up as starting PG….this makes it MUCH harder.

We NEED a veteran PG from the portal. Stremlow and Levin are better than nothing, but it’ll be a bumpy ride.

I'm late to the party. When did Johnson break her knee?

 

[shikreto]

I'm late to the party. When did Johnson break her knee?

It happened very quietly. Right before either the Indiana or OSU game, I think Kyle tweeted that she was listed as not available/out for the season.

We weren’t sure what the nature of the injury was...then on Reddit someone mentioned that she confirmed on TikTok that it was an ACL.

 

[chesapeake bay dog]

I'm becoming more and more convinced that Iowa will be looking for a grad transfer PG in the portal this summer. With recruit Aaliyah Guyton and Kennise Johnson both down with ACL injuries, I think it only adds to the possibility.

Lets get a thread going on possible targets.

Already starting to see names pop up in the portal, but no obvious targets yet. Maybe someone from the Ivy League since they are not allowed to be grad students??

Bumpity

 

[shikreto]

I can guarantee Maryland and Indiana will both reach out to Chen. Both need a PG and have pieces that can compliment her. Abbi Meyers was a Princeton -> MD transfer and she loved Maryland. She ended up being a first round W pick, which was not an expectation when she was at Princeton. Uconn has multiple Gs that can handle the ball so I’m not sure why they’d go for her but then again OSU didn’t rly need Celeste Taylor (OSU’s PG is also graduating btw).

The thing we’ll have to contend with of course is whether Iowa is still as much of a persona non grata to transfer candidates as it was last year. There was so much Iowa exhaustion last year (leading to jealousy) and IMO that was a major reason the top candidates just weren’t interested in Iowa at all (didn’t even return calls).

I DO recall however Abbi Meyers doing an interview last year, right before the game versus Iowa and she said she was very excited to share the court with Clark (I think she said it was “an honor” — hardcore MD fans didn’t like that lol) so there didn’t seem to be much animosity there. Hopefully that’s a sign of their culture and a lack of resentment.

I get the sense that Ivy grad transfers tend to want to go big in their final year…the crowds and eyeballs this year, along with the non-con schedule for next year, would align with that.

 

[fish1hawk]

Playing time has to be a factor for portal point guards . The possibility at Iowa seems obvious

 

[nu2u]

There was so much Iowa exhaustion last year (leading to jealousy) and IMO that was a major reason the top candidates just weren’t interested n Iowa at all.

I’m not buying “Iowa exhaustion” as a major reason that Bluder didn’t land a quality transfer.

….and to the extent that you are right then Bluder might as well not try because Iowa WBB has absolutely saturated sports and network news coverage this season (and it’s about to be turned up to blast coverage this pos-season).

 

[hawkod]

I can guarantee Maryland and Indiana will both reach out to Chen. Both need a PG and have pieces that can compliment her. Abbi Meyers was a Princeton -> MD transfer and she loved Maryland. She ended up being a first round W pick, which was not an expectation when she was at Princeton. Uconn has multiple Gs that can handle the ball so I’m not sure why they’d go for her but then again OSU didn’t rly need Celeste Taylor (OSU’s PG is also graduating btw).

The thing we’ll have to contend with of course is whether Iowa is still as much of a persona non grata to transfer candidates as it was last year. There was so much Iowa exhaustion last year (leading to jealousy) and IMO that was a major reason the top candidates just weren’t interested in Iowa at all (didn’t even return calls).

I DO recall however Abbi Meyers doing an interview last year, right before the game versus Iowa and she said she was very excited to share the court with Clark (I think she said it was “an honor” — hardcore MD fans didn’t like that lol) so there didn’t seem to be much animosity there. Hopefully that’s a sign of their culture and a lack of resentment.

I get the sense that Ivy grad transfers tend to want to go big in their final year…the crowds and eyeballs this year, along with the non-con schedule for next year, would align with that.

Am I remembering correctly that Dembele has requested no contact?

 

[Jack Slice]

Am I remembering correctly that Dembele has requested no contact?

I have not seen that. Iowa would make a ton of sense as it has been mentioned Dembele would like a shot at WNBA. Even without CC, the Iowa brand should be pretty visible to media next year. And I think we will be more competitive than folks on this board thought a few months ago.

 

[chesapeake bay dog]

I know it's a long shot but watching Drake WBB championship now and Katie Dinnebier is a joy to watch.

 

[shikreto]

I’m not buying “Iowa exhaustion” as a major reason that Bluder didn’t land a quality transfer.

….and to the extent that you are right then Bluder might as well not try because Iowa WBB has absolutely saturated sports and network news coverage this season (and it’s about to be turned up to blast coverage this pos-season).

Well to be fair it was really a mixture of exhaustion and a backlash to racist fans IMO. But everytime I mention that, a bunch of racist apologists come out of the woodwork and deny that possibility (even though it's rather obvious to everyone else).

I also think the potential difference of course between last year and this year is that a LOT of the "exhaustion" wasn't so much even about Iowa but specifically Clark. Clark exhaustion/resentment was (is) very real among countless student athletes out there who believe she takes up FAR too much oxygen in the room, overshadowing countless other athletes. Those people probably wouldn't want to play in her shadow OR support the team that they'd been rolling their eyes at for months. I don't know why else Morrow or Betts wouldn't even return a call from the Swarm CEO about what they could offer (his quote, not mine)....feels rather open and shut.

In any case, now that Clark's on her way out...hopefully the calculus might be a little different....

 

[creslin_hawk]

Well to be fair it was really a mixture of exhaustion and a backlash to racist fans IMO. But everytime I mention that, a bunch of racist apologists come out of the woodwork and deny that possibility (even though it's rather obvious to everyone else).

I also think the potential difference of course between last year and this year is that a LOT of the "exhaustion" wasn't so much even about Iowa but specifically Clark. Clark exhaustion/resentment was (is) very real among countless student athletes out there who believe she takes up FAR too much oxygen in the room, overshadowing countless other athletes. Those people probably wouldn't want to play in her shadow OR support the team that they'd been rolling their eyes at for months. I don't know why else Morrow or Betts wouldn't even return a call from the Swarm CEO about what they could offer (his quote, not mine)....feels rather open and shut.

In any case, now that Clark's on her way out...hopefully the calculus might be a little different....

I think Betts wanted to go to UCLA, I still dont get why people expect that she would come to Iowa when her former HS team-mate and friend was projected to start at the position whe would be taking? How many people on this board would do that to thier friends?

 

[HIWILLE]

Kaitlyn Chen PG Princeton

Uconn has interest in transfer Chen

Princeton Stats

We could meet her in second round game

 

[hawkod]

I have not seen that. Iowa would make a ton of sense as it has been mentioned Dembele would like a shot at WNBA. Even without CC, the Iowa brand should be pretty visible to media next year. And I think we will be more competitive than folks on this board thought a few months ago.

Players Entering Transfer Portal, As of March 2024

In the past, we've had two threads: Players entering the portal Players Choosing Schools. Generally, the top line goes first, so here we go... My first entry, via Raoul, comes from Clemson.

the-boneyard.com

From the UConn General Women's Basketball site.