***2024-2025 Iowa Men’s Basketball Season Thread***

[Hawkstrat]

I was definitely encouraging during warmups to see them were as pigment challenged as us. Even had an Asian guy!!

Me happy Iowa winned.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

Utah played even worse on ball defense than Iowa. Just kept spreading them out and going iso.

fucking crackers

 

[HerkyHopeful]

coulda used mulvey today but I'm glad we left brauns on the bench. The mystery minutes for Kingsbury were stupid.

Dembele was good tonight. I don't think Mulvey was needed tonight. The issue with defense and rebounding was 100% on the pick and roll switching (which is Frans defense) and of course Fran's lineups. Traore being out doesn't help. Utah may be the one school with as many head scratching lineups/minutes distribution as Fran. Kingsbury getting significant 1st half minutes, what the fuck.

Refs were maddeningly inconsistent so it was just a weird game with a lot of fouls and travels they let play on. There was a stretch in the first half where it felt like a pickup game. Still don't know what to think of Harding.

Crowd was great tonight. It's a great atmosphere for basketball games and team hung around long afterwards to sign autographs for kids and take pictures. Kirk Hinrich sat a few rows down from me, wasn't expecting that.

 

[Nobody]

Pryce moonlighting as Buddy the Elf

 

[TurdBurgler]

Their #11 reminded me of McCabe. Seemed like he was always involved in critical plays and effectively lost the game for them. Try hard loser.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

I feel like either devries or McCollum could make the sweet 16 with this roster.

 

[CamelTones]

The 5 minute stretch in the first half from the 10 minute mark to the 5 minute mark without a stoppage in play was basically pickup basketball.

Utah only ended up making 7 three point shots but it felt like more since all 7 came from 2 players. With 6 from the shittier Madsen.

They need to get Traore back by the Wisconsin game. He’s got 2 weeks to rest that ankle.

 

[Jim Tebow]

seems likely that Traore's problem is academic and not physical. finals just happened. fran had the weird 'i guess' eyeroll comment when asked about him. i suspect he has to retake one or more "finals" whatever that means for d1 athletes. lord knows there's a ton of hand holding that goes on even at lofty ivory tower ivy league academic institutions like University of Iowa. so to fail really signals a lack of effort/attitude problem more than anything. Hopefully he makes it back.

Other thoughts: Dembele played relatively great tonight. grabbed some rebounds in traffic. had a jump hook in the lane. and continues to be a threat from 3. this is how we need him to play. played confidently. hopefully he can keep this up. he seems to tighten up when playing against actual athletes, however.

Thellwell is rapidly becoming one of my favorite hawks of the fran era. love the way he plays. love his attitude on and off the court. 2/3 from 3 and 7/8 fts. excellent.

jury is still out on brock harding. signs are encouraging. his three point shooting and ft shooting seem to be coming around. his defense is always going to be a significant liability. so he needs to be really, really good in other facets. still too many dumb plays flying into the lane without a plan. only one turnover but 4/13 fielg goal shooting really stands out and throwing wild shit at the rim is only marginally better than a turnover.

cooper koch played 8 minutes but was basically invisible. Hopefully no GRIDS relapses and he can get back to earlier productivity.

dix played well. only critique is he needs to take better care of ball. couple ugly turnovers.

Payton Sandfort - about as well as that guy can play. didn't force anything. he shines when playing against other white basketball players.

Prcye, about what we can expect.

Carter Kingsbury - he out performed cooper koch in about the same minutes. grabbed a rebound and took a charge. Neither scored but Koch did nothing and missed a shot.

Freeman - this dood has rocks in his head. Why does he continually guard guys 30 feet from the basket? the whole pick and roll thing is a huge issue. Fran and the brain trust need to rethink cause switching like they do magnifies owen's foul trouble and exposes harding even more than he intrinsically is by being a midgit.

 

[StinkyMcFadden]

cooper koch played 8 minutes but was basically invisible. Hopefully no GRIDS relapses and he can get back to earlier productivity.

Gay Related Immune Deficiency Syndrome ?

I had no idea he was afflicted. I do recall assuming his father suffered from it.

 

[TurdBurgler]

You put the try hard walk on in becuz you are furious about getting beat on back cuts. The problem is Kingsbury gives up a back cut on his first play. Fran cannot coach defense. Also Kingsbury hit maybe 10% of his warmup 3s.

And lol about GRIDs, had to look that up.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

seems likely that Traore's problem is academic and not physical. finals just happened. fran had the weird 'i guess' eyeroll comment when asked about him. i suspect he has to retake one or more "finals" whatever that means for d1 athletes. lord knows there's a ton of hand holding that goes on even at lofty ivory tower ivy league academic institutions like University of Iowa. so to fail really signals a lack of effort/attitude problem more than anything. Hopefully he makes it back.

Other thoughts: Dembele played relatively great tonight. grabbed some rebounds in traffic. had a jump hook in the lane. and continues to be a threat from 3. this is how we need him to play. played confidently. hopefully he can keep this up. he seems to tighten up when playing against actual athletes, however.

Thellwell is rapidly becoming one of my favorite hawks of the fran era. love the way he plays. love his attitude on and off the court. 2/3 from 3 and 7/8 fts. excellent.

jury is still out on brock harding. signs are encouraging. his three point shooting and ft shooting seem to be coming around. his defense is always going to be a significant liability. so he needs to be really, really good in other facets. still too many dumb plays flying into the lane without a plan. only one turnover but 4/13 fielg goal shooting really stands out and throwing wild shit at the rim is only marginally better than a turnover.

cooper koch played 8 minutes but was basically invisible. Hopefully no GRIDS relapses and he can get back to earlier productivity.

dix played well. only critique is he needs to take better care of ball. couple ugly turnovers.

Payton Sandfort - about as well as that guy can play. didn't force anything. he shines when playing against other white basketball players.

Prcye, about what we can expect.

Carter Kingsbury - he out performed cooper koch in about the same minutes. grabbed a rebound and took a charge. Neither scored but Koch did nothing and missed a shot.

Freeman - this dood has rocks in his head. Why does he continually guard guys 30 feet from the basket? the whole pick and roll thing is a huge issue. Fran and the brain trust need to rethink cause switching like they do magnifies owen's foul trouble and exposes harding even more than he intrinsically is by being a midgit.

Good thoughts Jim.

Im still hopeful on Harding. If he can figure out what shots are good shots for him to take and cut down on the turnovers on plays he was used to making but can’t now bc of the athletes he’s going against, I think he can be a solid PG option.

Idk why they are guarding the ball screen the way they are. It’s inconsistent. Sometimes they switch, sometimes they Ice, sometimes it’s drop. Pick one way and stick with it. IMO, 22 feet and in, simple hedge and recover with help on the backside. We don’t need to hedge or switch when that screen gets set higher than that. Just get under the fucking thing and if they want to pull up and shoot a 23+ pull up 3, let them.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

One stat I noticed is that we have gone from #318 and #308 in 3pt% defense the last two years to #18!!!! this year. I’m guessing thats an outlier at this point but I also think Thelwell, Brock, and pryce are much higher effort guys on the perimeter. Pryce will still get blown by and Brock can’t stop anyone inside of 15 feet, but there’s been far more attention to that end of the court.

I still feel like we lose some scrub every game though.

 

[tcondon]

Iowa has 3 regulars with defensive rating numbers better than average per 100 possessions.

Owen Freeman 98.5
Drew Thelwell 99.4

No surprise with those two. The other?

Brock Harding 99.6

 

[StinkyMcFadden]

The other?

 

[L. Wade Childress]

It would be really annoying to be guarded by Brock on the perimeter. He is legitimately athletic and quick, particularly his hands. He should be playing cornerback.

it would be great to be guarded by him in the lane.

 

[CamelTones]

Utah missed 2 desperation 3s as the shot clock expired last night. I had no idea that was something that actually happens.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

Utah missed 2 desperation 3s as the shot clock expired last night. I had no idea that was something that actually happens.

don’t worry, they still banked in a couple from the wing.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

Dix is going to have some big NIL offers next year. Not sure he has a size to be a pro but some blue blood is going to pay him.

 

[HerkyHopeful]

Dix is going to have some big NIL offers next year. Not sure he has a size to be a pro but some blue blood is going to pay him.

A good strength training program would do wonders for him taking his game to the next level

 

[Gushawk]

Gay Related Immune Deficiency Syndrome ?

I had no idea he was afflicted. I do recall assuming his father suffered from it.

my wrassla best friend once told JR he needed to try to get a fucking rebound every once in awhile while pissing next to him at The Union. JR didn’t object.

 

[Fletch]

Dix has a real chance to play in the NBA

 

[L. Wade Childress]

Larry Kittles

 

[AZmessDAWG]

Dix has a real chance to play in the NBA

What?

 

[Lee Beevers]

What?

I believe @Fletch is indicating that he believes Joshua Dix could potentially play basketball in the NBA.

 

[KitKatApples]

The NBA is the National Basketball Association. A professional basketball league.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

Don’t get me wrong JD is probably my favorite player on the team. No. Fucking. Way. Will Josh Dix be on an NBA roster. Ever.

 

[Hawkstrat]

Dix is sort of the reverse bohannon in a way. Jordan was a much better ball handler than he got credit for, but he wasn't athletic or strong enough to really do much with it. Dix is pretty sloppy with the ball, gets his pocket picked on occasion and really struggles bringing the ball up court against pressure, but he's athletic enough to get to places on the court where he can score in the half court.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

Dix is sort of the reverse bohannon in a way. Jordan was a much better ball handler than he got credit for, but he wasn't athletic or strong enough to really do much with it. Dix is pretty sloppy with the ball, gets his pocket picked on occasion and really struggles bringing the ball up court against pressure, but he's athletic enough to get to places on the court where he can score in the half court.

Agree. Not gonna play in the NBA but I agree.

 

[Herbie2]

Agree. Not gonna play in the NBA but I agree.

What about the WNBA?

 

[Kamala]

What about the WNBA?

Not in MAGA America

 

[The Dad]

Don’t get me wrong JD is probably my favorite player on the team. No. Fucking. Way. Will Josh Dix be on an NBA roster. Ever.

Iowa basketball fans are retarded.

 

[HerkyHopeful]

If Wieskamp couldn't last in the NBA, Dix won't. Joe was really fucking good at the end of his career at Iowa

 

[Geese]

Dix in the NBA LOLOLOL

 

[Billy Butters]

If Wieskamp couldn't last in the NBA, Dix won't. Joe was really fucking good at the end of his career at Iowa

Dix is much better at creating his own shot and doesn't necessarily need a shot fake to do it. I disagree with the Hawkstrat's ballhandling comment. I've always been impressed with how comfortable Dix is handling the ball against physical defense in the half court and still getting to his spot. He is quicker than Weiskamp and has more of an NBA game but probably is still a little too small.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

JFC

 

[YugoslavianMountainHound]

Dix is much better at creating his own shot and doesn't necessarily need a shot fake to do it. I disagree with the Hawkstrat's ballhandling comment. I've always been impressed with how comfortable Dix is handling the ball against physical defense in the half court and still getting to his spot. He is quicker than Weiskamp and has more of an NBA game but probably is still a little too small.

Safe to say you love Dix.

 

[Herbie2]

Dix reminds me of Drazen Petrovic, except he has a better handle. No way he lasts until RD 2 when he comes out.

 

[L. Wade Childress]

Dix reminds me of Drazen Petrovic, except he has a better handle. No way he lasts until RD 2 when he comes out.

on the steering wheel?

 

[BBK]

Don’t get me wrong Dix is probably my favorite player on the team

 

[KitKatApples]

lmao

 

[AZmessDAWG]

I typed that thinking someone is gonna respond to that

 

[StinkyMcFadden]

View attachment 59051

 

[Jim Tebow]

Dix's go to is the mid range ellbow jumper. He would be laughed off the court in the L. iowa fans get excited when a guard can dunk and isn't routinely blocked by the penus of of other, more athletic players. However not being blocked by big swinging penoeae is hardly a reliable indicator of success in the L (that's what insiders call the NBA).

disclaimer: I am a huge fan of Dix and how he penetrates. Fun to watch and gets me very excited.

 

[Uli Kunkel]

 

[Greg Obrecht]

That’s neat.

 

[BBK]

I'd prefer it was about 1.4

 

[Gushawk]

George Raveling is rolling in his grave.

 

[nolookpass]

Iowa basketball, just add a couple casseroles and you have a Lutheran church potluck

 

[BBK]

I love Fran, but if we lose to Nebrantska at home, it's time

 

[brantshawks]

I know they're 12-2, but...the fuck.