When you look back at Luka's beginnings at Iowa, nobody saw a future national POY. Not even close. So I'm NOT saying Mulvey will follow Luka's POY trajectory. But I AM saying Mulvey could be a much better player than most people think. I'm looking forward to seeing a much improved player next season, one who will have a very good Iowa career. Opportunity and experience combined with hard work, at least at the college level, can be an awesome combination.
Mulvey and Garza
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I haven't seen enough of Mulvey to even understand what his strengths are, so I have no idea how he may impact the 2022/23 Hawks. It would be incredible if he could match Garza's work ethic.
A lot of guys with his height need a lot of development for the athleticism to catch up to their size.
A lot of guys with his height need a lot of development for the athleticism to catch up to their size.
I remember the first videos I saw of Luka and was very impressed with his footwork around the hoop, but was most excited about his ability to put the ball in the hoop from practically every type of shot he took, no matter how difficult the angle. Honestly, to date, we've hardly seen anything from young Mulvey. I hope he has been working hard on his game as we'll likely need him.
Luka always seemed to dish out more pain than he received, and he received plenty! Not sure if Mulvey is that tough.
Yes he did and he was one of a kind working to make himself better. He wanted it more than most
Yep, I'd add focus, to go with that drive. He also from day 1 had soft hands and a soft shot. Riley looks to be a different type of center, very athletic, but this year the game was too fast for him. I think that changes some this year.
Riley HS video was taken while Riley was still growing. He looks very much like a traditional center with a respectable mid-range shot and good instincts and hands inside. I do not think he will shy from contact.
If Riley works hard, he could become a strong inside defender and rebounder and a good inside scoring threat. Not Luka, that's once in a lifetime for Iowa, but a 15-20 point scorer and 8-12 rebounder. If Filip is really 6'9" and Josh is really 6'10" then Riley is really about 7'1". He's another young Hawk on whom I'm high.
If Riley works hard, he could become a strong inside defender and rebounder and a good inside scoring threat. Not Luka, that's once in a lifetime for Iowa, but a 15-20 point scorer and 8-12 rebounder. If Filip is really 6'9" and Josh is really 6'10" then Riley is really about 7'1". He's another young Hawk on whom I'm high.
Really hard to tell where his development is at. His and Josh’s minutes last year were ridiculously low to get any sense of in game confidence and improvement, as far as I’m concerned.
When Josh was finally given the chance to get more than mop up duty the last 2 minutes of a game he held his own against Purdue in the BIG Tournament. Maybe Riley will have that chance early on this year. They both will be needed.
I think this hits on a really good point...great off season discussion. That point is how much playing time do players get....and that might be based on what is available. So, let me throw this line of thinking out.
1) Kris will be playing a forward spot. With Keegan gone this is where the vast majority of his minutes will be (my guess). Patrick and Sandfort at the other forward with Payton slipping over to play the very limited minutes behind Kris when he isn't on the floor....my best guess.
2) I am guessing that Rebraca is somewhat significantly better this year....so he will play a lot of post minutes unless in foul trouble. Fran did make a remark that he could play some PF.......
Based on 1 & 2 above there should be more minutes available (though still somewhat limited) in the post.., but more than last year.
A couple more wild guesses here...after Josh's transfer portal attempt I think that he is in a position where HE HAS TO GET IN SHAPE both physically and in showing the staff that he is 100% invested in doing what he needs to do to be the best player he is capable of being....IF HE FALTERS in that effort, my other guess is that Riley could surpass him as far as being first in the game and getting more minutes.......we can all guess where that would lead for Josh.....
That's all pure speculation on my part that might be way off base...but it's the off season with no PTL.
I too haven't seen enough to have a read on how Mulvey will develop. I do think it is clear that Luka had much more offensive game. There is a decent chance that Mulvey can be better on the defensive end, especially if he adds muscle. We need Mulvey or JoshO to give us at least 15-20 min of quality BB between them, especially guarding the basket and defensive rebounding.
There was a recent snippet from Kenyon and/or Kris on a podcast that said Mulvey was looking very good and Iowa shouldn't worry about the Center position this year.
Wow, I hope you're right , but that's a pretty high bar for a young man that really didn't accomplish much when he did get a chance last season.
People thought Acie Earl was retarded his RS freshman year. Same with Erek Hansen.
Hopefully he's twice the defender Garza was. Hawks need a paint protector, haven't had one since Woodbury.
There's a reason I said paint protector & not rim protector. Olaseni was a rim protector (his sr year).
Woody had those T-Rex arms. Great interior defender, and a great backstop that saw the whole floor and helped the rest of the team defend as well.
Agree. As far as competing for minutes at backup center, I'd give the edge to Riley. This is why I would like to see the PTL revived. I'd like to see improvement not just from him, but Josh as well. Keeping my fingers crossed for both of them.
You should agree with me more often. You'll be better and happier for it.
