"We have the makeup of a team that can contend in this league and contend on a national level."

[Franisdaman]

I am holding Fran to this!

There are a lot of unknowns and Fran obviously knows more than we do based on what he's seen in practices. Do you trust Fran when he says "...we have the makeup of a team that can contend in this league and contend on a national level."

That quotes comes from this FREE story from SI.com:

Looking ahead to March

The Hawkeyes made it to the NCAA Tournament last season with a 23-12 record, losing to Tennessee in overtime in the second round.

Iowa lost forwards Nicholas Baer and Tyler Cook and guards Isaiah Moss and Maishe Dailey off that team, but Fran McCaffery thinks there is plenty of potential with this team, even with a 20-game Big Ten schedule and a nonconference schedule that includes road games against Iowa State and Syracuse as well as neutral-court games against Texas Tech and Cincinnati.

"The thing that you look at in terms of that is the quality of our league top to bottom, and I said this before, and I'll say it again, it's without question the best this league has been, and this is my 10th year," he said. "Not even close. We had some great teams, some great players, but our league expanded in the time that I've been here, and everybody is really good. And so, can you stay healthy? Can you win some close games? Can you develop some confidence early?

"But we have the makeup of a team that can contend in this league and contend on a national level."

https://www.si.com/college/iowa/basketball/bkc-iowaquotebook-1009/

 

[hawkfan_7]

Guessing they meant Isaiah Moss, not necessarily Maishe Dailey.

 

[Raptorpeeps]

contend
verb
con·tend | \ kən-ˈtend \
contended; contending; contends
Definition of contend


intransitive verb

1: to strive or vie in contest or rivalry or against difficulties : STRUGGLE //with the problems of municipal government
//will contend for the championship this year
2: to strive in debate : ARGUE
transitive verb

1: MAINTAIN, ASSERTcontended that he was rightcontends that the new law would help only the wealthy
2: to struggle for : CONTEST She contended every point, objected to every request …— Margaret Mead




“We have the makeup of a team that can strive and struggle in this league and strive and struggle on a national level.”

Contend for WHAT, Fran?

Said another way, he said nothing. He’s no dummy.

 

[Ballhawk1221]

If we finish above .500 in conference play, this will be a successful season, just based on how much experience we lost and how many question marks we have up and down the roster.

Fran's gotta be optimistic about his team, it's part of the gig.

 

[Hawkatheart]

The make-up of a national contender sounds made-up.

 

[CanadaHawk]

Fran is always Rosy. That’s a given. What can be read beyond that is that the guard court won’t be a defensive liability. Every position appears to have reliable depth. There are offensive stars. I know some will argue these points, but there are legitimate arguments for all of them.

 

[DodgerHawki]

If we finish above .500 in conference play, this will be a successful season, just based on how much experience we lost and how many question marks we have up and down the roster.

Fran's gotta be optimistic about his team, it's part of the gig.

he would probably help himself a bit by being less hyperbolic. When everyone is "killing it" in practice or "lights out shooter" and when the actual reality in games is different than it doesn't really mean a whole lot. I totally understand being supportive of your roster and believing in them, but it also does no one any good to say unrealistic things.

I'm more optimistic about this team than many. If Nunge is good and if either Evelyn or Touissant, or both, are good, then a NCAA berth is possible. My questions:

Can they not be last in defensive efficiency in the conference?
See Point 1.

 

[TampaHawkfan]

So is this team going to finish anything other than dead last in the conference defensively? If so, then maybe I'll buy this. I just think maybe we've lost too much from a year ago but would love to be wrong. Even still.. Gotta learn to play defense. Can't just outscore everyone.

Gotta love this time of year though. Everyone is undefeated and optimistic.

 

[iowalawhawk]

"But we have the makeup of a team that can contend in this league and contend on a national level."

Fran continued "but eventually the UConn women will want their mascara back. Delta Airlines has apologized for the luggage mixup."

 

[Raptorpeeps]

Gotta love this time of year though. Everyone is undefeated and optimistic.

It’s Lake Woebegone in October — every team is above average in the league and NCAA tourney bound.

Lake Reality doesn’t set in until around the end of January.

 

[DanHawkPella]

Nunge > Cook defensively
Touissant > Bohannon defensively
CJF > Moss defensively

Baer > Patrick defensively

We lost some offense, but gained on defense, so the losses from last year aren't as big as they seem because fans think about offense first, and even on offense Cook and Moss weren't as efficient as one would guess.

Bohannon''s loss, if he doesn't play, would be mostly late game because he can get shots off and has balls of steel, but during the game he is a defensive liablity in the half court and almost worthless in transition due to his size. So I don't think we're as bad off as people think, especially if CJF is better offensively than people are counting on. I also think Nunge will be more efficient on offense than Cook (less turnovers, better outside shooting). We can create some matchup problems with CJF, Wieskamp on the wing, and two bigs who can hit the 3 and post up. Not many teams have that. We just need good PG play. Our bench is pretty deep with Kriener and Pemsl, and Evelyn gives us experienced depth at 2 guard positions. If Bohannon plays, then we are are pretty dangerous team, but we are without him too.

 

[SDHawkDoc]

Fran is consistently positive about his team publicly. If I were a player for him I'd appreciate that.
As an observer over time I've learned that his public pronouncements are to be taken with a heavy dose of skepticism.

 

[CanadaHawk]

Nunge > Cook defensively
Touissant > Bohannon defensively
CJF > Moss defensively

Baer > Patrick defensively

We lost some offense, but gained on defense, so the losses from last year aren't as big as they seem because fans think about offense first, and even on offense Cook and Moss weren't as efficient as one would guess.

Bohannon''s loss, if he doesn't play, would be mostly late game because he can get shots off and has balls of steel, but during the game he is a defensive liablity in the half court and almost worthless in transition due to his size. So I don't think we're as bad off as people think, especially if CJF is better offensively than people are counting on. I also think Nunge will be more efficient on offense than Cook (less turnovers, better outside shooting). We can create some matchup problems with CJF, Wieskamp on the wing, and two bigs who can hit the 3 and post up. Not many teams have that. We just need good PG play. Our bench is pretty deep with Kriener and Pemsl, and Evelyn gives us experienced depth at 2 guard positions. If Bohannon plays, then we are are pretty dangerous team, but we are without him too.

DEFENSE!!! I definitely agree that that will tell the tale of any progression with this team. And the BIG question is if the new quickness in the backcourt (JoeT, BE, CJ) can compensate for the loss of JB’s O.

 

[Auger]

I'm excited to see how Nunge and Garza play off each other. Could create serious matchups. However hopefully these two aren't too slow footed or our D could be in trouble and may keep these two from being on the court at the same time.

 

[perryhawk]

Nunge > Cook defensively
Touissant > Bohannon defensively
CJF > Moss defensively

Baer > Patrick defensively

We lost some offense, but gained on defense, so the losses from last year aren't as big as they seem because fans think about offense first, and even on offense Cook and Moss weren't as efficient as one would guess.

Bohannon''s loss, if he doesn't play, would be mostly late game because he can get shots off and has balls of steel, but during the game he is a defensive liablity in the half court and almost worthless in transition due to his size. So I don't think we're as bad off as people think, especially if CJF is better offensively than people are counting on. I also think Nunge will be more efficient on offense than Cook (less turnovers, better outside shooting). We can create some matchup problems with CJF, Wieskamp on the wing, and two bigs who can hit the 3 and post up. Not many teams have that. We just need good PG play. Our bench is pretty deep with Kriener and Pemsl, and Evelyn gives us experienced depth at 2 guard positions. If Bohannon plays, then we are are pretty dangerous team, but we are without him too.

I respect your opinion and basketball knowledge...everything you said here makes sense. The only thing that I'm not sure of is the comment on Baer being better on defense than Patrick (and I am not a bball player and don't claim expertise). I was hoping you would expand on that point....I see Patrick as longer and with better lateral quickness....Baer had good timing on blocking shots...but I would like to hear your analysis on that comparison.

 

[DodgerHawki]

I respect your opinion and basketball knowledge...everything you said here makes sense. The only thing that I'm not sure of is the comment on Baer being better on defense than Patrick (and I am not a bball player and don't claim expertise). I was hoping you would expand on that point....I see Patrick as longer and with better lateral quickness....Baer had good timing on blocking shots...but I would like to hear your analysis on that comparison.

Baer was the only above average Iowa defender last year based on the advanced analytics (steal %, block%, how his man shot when guarding him, etc.) I see now way Patrick is better than him defensive. Baer also had a non-stop attitude, which if the whole team would play like that would make Iowa at least average defensively.

The others, we'll see. Cook was not as bad defensively as some say. Touissant has more physical tools and Bohannon will never be considered a good defender, but Touissant still has to do it. I'm interested to see what the season brings.

 

[BirdistheWord]

If we are better defensively and shoot a high percentage from 3...We can be a tourney team.

 

[iabcuda]

I didn’t read that much hyperbole this time. I thought Fran said

“On paper, they ‘Look’ like a team that can compete at this level. We’ll see if they can.”

 

[DanHawkPella]

I respect your opinion and basketball knowledge...everything you said here makes sense. The only thing that I'm not sure of is the comment on Baer being better on defense than Patrick (and I am not a bball player and don't claim expertise). I was hoping you would expand on that point....I see Patrick as longer and with better lateral quickness....Baer had good timing on blocking shots...but I would like to hear your analysis on that comparison.

I was trying to be fair but I think like you do that Patrick’s length and pretty quick jumping will be pretty effective as well. Baer could guard PFs but I’m not sure Patrick can. Baer has very good advanced defensive stats and almost twice the blocks per min as Cook, so it’s a pretty high bar to meet, but I do think Patrick can get close. Patrick’s ball handling and passing is better than Baer tho.

 

[hooper56]

I was trying to be fair but I think like you do that Patrick’s length and pretty quick jumping will be pretty effective as well. Baer could guard PFs but I’m not sure Patrick can. Baer has very good advanced defensive stats and almost twice the blocks per min as Cook, so it’s a pretty high bar to meet, but I do think Patrick can get close. Patrick’s ball handling and passing is better than Baer tho.

Patrick’s value on defense is at the top of the press. May be the best we have seen. We should force some turnovers and bad decisions because of that.

 

[DanHawkPella]

Good point Hooper, had seen that mentioned recently and that makes sense.

 

[bdg8]

They said Kirk had a quiet confidence about his team as well

 

[Raptorpeeps]

Patrick’s value on defense is at the top of the press. May be the best we have seen. We should force some turnovers and bad decisions because of that.

“Maybe the best we have seen” ? Lol Really?

What, exactly are you basing this on? Have you seen him play against Big Ten competition? Where? When?

Or is this just hopeful, idle speculation? Which is fine as long as you say so rather than declaring it like some kind of seasoned expert.

 

[iabcuda]

Hooper said “may be” not “maybe “.

May be = could be.

Maybe = probably.

 

[BlackNGoldBleeder]

Patrick’s value on defense is at the top of the press. May be the best we have seen. We should force some turnovers and bad decisions because of that.

Chris Street was the best at the top of the press.

If PMac is half of that, Iowa fans should be tickled.

 

[Legend12]

“Maybe the best we have seen” ? Lol Really?

What, exactly are you basing this on? Have you seen him play against Big Ten competition? Where? When?

Or is this just hopeful, idle speculation? Which is fine as long as you say so rather than declaring it like some kind of seasoned expert.

He said the same thing about Christian Williams, if that helps.

 

[BBHawk]

He said the same thing about Christian Williams, if that helps.

And Aaron White. Not always wrong.

 

[Legend12]

And Aaron White. Not always wrong.

White was not better than Street at the top of the press.

 

[BBHawk]

White was not better than Street at the top of the press.

I agree.

 

[Y2KG21]

How about Fran saying:sorry but things aren't looking good. As you already know, we've lost some key players and it's going to be difficult to compete in this conference. I'm not sure we can keep our head above water in the nonconference schedule. Our neighbors to the west are going to eat us live. I just hope we improve a little throughout the year. Just saying, if you're coming to the games don't expect the same effort as last year. This is not last year's team. These guys can't shoot, can't dribble, can't guard and on top of that, they are lazy.

 

[owenhawk]

So is this team going to finish anything other than dead last in the conference defensively? If so, then maybe I'll buy this. I just think maybe we've lost too much from a year ago but would love to be wrong. Even still.. Gotta learn to play defense. Can't just outscore everyone.

Gotta love this time of year though. Everyone is undefeated and optimistic.

True but the two of the main 3 guys they lost (I’m not including Dailey) were two of the team’s poorest defenders consistently (and it can be argued the 3rd - Baer - was a better help defender and not necessarily great individual defensive player). And while Bohannon has many good qualities, Defense is not one of them. It’s not unrealistic - and really probably pretty probable - that the guys stepping in are an upgrade defensively.

 

[CanadaHawk]

True but the two of the main 3 guys they lost (I’m not including Dailey) were two of the team’s poorest defenders consistently (and it can be argued the 3rd - Baer - was a better help defender and not necessarily great individual defensive player). And while Bohannon has many good qualities, Defense is not one of them. It’s not unrealistic - and really probably pretty probable - that the guys stepping in are an upgrade defensively.

Like your point about Baer’s strength being as a help defender. There are better on ball defenders now on the roster. The fact that they’re new this year is both worrying and interesting as we’ll see how they all fit together with the established players.

 

[Raptorpeeps]

There are better on ball defenders now on the roster.

What have you seen that supports this conclusion?

 

[owenhawk]

What have you seen that supports this conclusion?

It would be hard to be worse on ball defenders. If the are worse, then yeah that is not a good sign.

 

[Roy L Fuchs]

I am holding Fran to this!

There are a lot of unknowns and Fran obviously knows more than we do based on what he's seen in practices. Do you trust Fran when he says "...we have the makeup of a team that can contend in this league and contend on a national level."

That quotes comes from this FREE story from SI.com:

Looking ahead to March

The Hawkeyes made it to the NCAA Tournament last season with a 23-12 record, losing to Tennessee in overtime in the second round.

Iowa lost forwards Nicholas Baer and Tyler Cook and guards Isaiah Moss and Maishe Dailey off that team, but Fran McCaffery thinks there is plenty of potential with this team, even with a 20-game Big Ten schedule and a nonconference schedule that includes road games against Iowa State and Syracuse as well as neutral-court games against Texas Tech and Cincinnati.

"The thing that you look at in terms of that is the quality of our league top to bottom, and I said this before, and I'll say it again, it's without question the best this league has been, and this is my 10th year," he said. "Not even close. We had some great teams, some great players, but our league expanded in the time that I've been here, and everybody is really good. And so, can you stay healthy? Can you win some close games? Can you develop some confidence early?

"But we have the makeup of a team that can contend in this league and contend on a national level."

https://www.si.com/college/iowa/basketball/bkc-iowaquotebook-1009/

NO CHANCE! This team wouldn’t win a YMCA league. Vandy has more black guys and they’re a shit team too!

 

[Hawks2405]

Fran’s recruiting:

 

[Ladell-hawk]

Nunge > Cook defensively
Touissant > Bohannon defensively
CJF > Moss defensively

Baer > Patrick defensively

We lost some offense, but gained on defense, so the losses from last year aren't as big as they seem because fans think about offense first, and even on offense Cook and Moss weren't as efficient as one would guess.

Bohannon''s loss, if he doesn't play, would be mostly late game because he can get shots off and has balls of steel, but during the game he is a defensive liablity in the half court and almost worthless in transition due to his size. So I don't think we're as bad off as people think, especially if CJF is better offensively than people are counting on. I also think Nunge will be more efficient on offense than Cook (less turnovers, better outside shooting). We can create some matchup problems with CJF, Wieskamp on the wing, and two bigs who can hit the 3 and post up. Not many teams have that. We just need good PG play. Our bench is pretty deep with Kriener and Pemsl, and Evelyn gives us experienced depth at 2 guard positions. If Bohannon plays, then we are are pretty dangerous team, but we are without him too.

I like your optimism , but we have no idea if Nunge is a better defender than Cook, nor do we know that CJF is a better defender than Moss. I think there are still plenty of defensive question marks on this team..

 

[BBHawk]

Fran’s recruiting:
Dick video clip.

Do you have to be a dick?

 

[hooper56]

Fran’s recruiting:

Which recruits have you been unhappy with?

 

[DanHawkPella]

I like your optimism , but we have no idea if Nunge is a better defender than Cook, nor do we know that CJF is a better defender than Moss. I think there are still plenty of defensive question marks on this team..

Agree, with the caveat that there is a low bar relative to Moss and that Nunges advanced stats his freshman year were as good or better than cooks iirc.