**2025-2026 Iowa Basketball Season Thread**

[iowa4ever20]

Everyone in the country is going to be after Johnson.

 

[The Dad]

Everyone in the country is going to be after Johnson.

@AZmessDAWG - are you stocked up, buddy?

 

[CamelTones]

Is the Colorado PG the only target ? Or are there other PG/CG targets?

I’m sure there’s others but Barnwell started following him in December so they’ve know about this for a few months.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

Is the Colorado PG the only target ? Or are there other PG/CG targets?

No but it’s tough to know who any are at this point. Many more guys will enter in the breeze 8 days. They’ve known this is coming and the word has been that they have the money needed to get one of the top guys out there. Fortunately guards cost less than bigs.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

@AZmessDAWG - are you stocked up, buddy?

Yeah, man.

 

[Bovert]

Yeah, man.

Did you turn that mutha out last night after the game??

 

[Stu Beagle]

 

[AZmessDAWG]

Did you turn that mutha out last night after the game??

Fasho

 

[Revolver]

 

[Jim Tebow]

Reading the cesspool that is twitter and apparently most hok fans absolutely hate Manyow and Combs. Also near unanimity that Banks is definitely not wanted back. Unbelievable

 

[BBK]

Reading the cesspool that is twitter and apparently most hok fans absolutely hate Manyow and Combs. Also near unanimity that Banks is definitely not wanted back. Unbelievable

Don't read Twitter. It's really best to never read comments under social media articles.

Occasionally I'll have a momentarily lapse of reason and will take a glimpse, and it reconfirms my position that at least 90% of people are very very stupid

 

[Lee Beevers]

Reading the cesspool that is twitter and apparently most hok fans absolutely hate Manyow and Combs. Also near unanimity that Banks is definitely not wanted back. Unbelievable

Jimothy, that’s probably more your retard centric algorithm.

 

[The Dad]

Reading the cesspool that is twitter and apparently most hok fans absolutely hate Manyow and Combs. Also near unanimity that Banks is definitely not wanted back. Unbelievable

 

[BBK]

He might have gotten passed, but for 90% of the season Banks was our 2nd best player.

Ben loves the guy for a reason. I hope he comes back for 1 more

 

[The Dad]

He might have gotten passed, but for 90% of the season Banks was our 2nd best player.

Ben loves the guy for a reason. I hope he comes back for 1 more

Correct. We don’t necessarily want him to be our first, second or third best option, but to not think there’s a spot on the roster for a guy like that is dumb. He’d be an ideal 6th man.

 

[Dr. Zaius]

I trust Ben at this point. Best finish to a season in my lifetime in only his first year. Let him cook.

 

[BBK]

Sounds like they’ll be in the market for a 5

Must be a hell of an article...

 

[Hawk&Balls]

Correct. We don’t necessarily want him to be our first, second or third best option, but to not think there’s a spot on the roster for a guy like that is dumb. He’d be an ideal 6th man.

I feel like we have a lot of really good young talent that needs to play, that I'm okay with older players not taking their minutes

 

[Revolver]

If McCollum wants Banks back, then so should we.

 

[The Dad]

I trust Ben at this point. Best finish to a season in my lifetime in only his first year. Let him cook.

I’d let him boil your bones, WCF style.

 

[Hawkstrat]

I kind of get the Manyawu stuff- I like the guy but he's limited in where he can improve.

But Combs has been pretty good as a secondary ball handler and seems like there is a good chance his productivity increases without Stirtz.

 

[CurdMan]

Alvaro decision will be interesting. Sounds like he prefers to return. Does Ben want to play him alongside a Center? Going to want Koch/Sage/Thompson on the floor as much as possible next year

 

[Lee Beevers]

Jimothy, that’s probably more your retard centric algorithm.

Then again I just saw this:

 

[BillyBob]

Why tf would ppl not want combs or banks to return? Iowa needs guards.

 

[Fletch]

Bonke 11/8 in 25 mpg shooting 35 percent from 3 and 57 percent overall. Also 7’2”. Eat shit Matt Painter

 

[TurdBurgler]

Anton Bonke. would be nice to open up the Oceania portal pipeline.

I wonder if the pear will be ready by next year. He has skills just needs to develop into his body more.

 

[The Dad]

 

[The Dad]

Anton Bonke. would be nice to open up the Oceania portal pipeline.

I wonder if the pear will be ready by next year. He has skills just needs to develop into his body more.

Ready for what?

 

[Debit One]

Combs cannot be the starting PG next year.

Even McCollum's wizardry is insufficient to overcome that.

 

[Debit One]

Banks going to the rim vs. Illinois.

 

[BBK]

Bonke 11/8 in 25 mpg shooting 35 percent from 3 and 57 percent overall. Also 7’2”. Eat shit Matt Painter

LATFG

 

[BBK]

No way we get that dude. Everyone and the mother is going to be on that

 

[Hawk&Balls]

Why tf would ppl not want combs or banks to return? Iowa needs guards.

He's a bandaid. We have/can get younger players that will be better.

 

[BBK]

He's a bandaid. We have/can get younger players that will be better.

From what I've gathered, Ben isn't like that and doesn't want to run a program that way

 

[Jim Tebow]

Combs cannot be the starting PG next year.

Even McCollum's wizardry is insufficient to overcome that.

He was literally a starting pg on an elite 8 team 1 day ago. He's great as complimentary to a lead guard. Frankly he showed great potential as a scorer in the last bit of the season. He shot over 40% from 3. Would have been probably the best all around guard of the franmac era, sans devyn marble. Pretty similar to Clemons.

All the retards shitting on combs, manuyow and/or to a lesser extent banks need to reassess their lives.

 

[Hawk&Balls]

From what I've gathered, Ben isn't like that and doesn't want to run a program that way

I don't disagree and he will absolutely be back if able.

 

[AZmessDAWG]

Alvaro decision will be interesting. Sounds like he prefers to return. Does Ben want to play him alongside a Center? Going to want Koch/Sage/Thompson on the floor as much as possible next year

Stability in the roster seems pretty important (cpt obvious) but especially with the stuff that McCollum does with all the different coverages he throws at teams (like he described in the NYT article. Talking abt at NWMST his guys knew what he wanted almost immediately but at Drake and Iowa he has to simplify it….for now)

 

[BillyBob]

He's a bandaid. We have/can get younger players that will be better.

What younger guards do we have that are better? Who can Iowa legit get and afford thru the portal? They have maybe enough of a bag to get 1 solid guard via portal. Koch and Sage aren’t playing the 1 or 2 spot.

 

[The Dad]

I’m hearing rumblings from the western metro that McCollum Jr is getting awfully close to stepping into the Stirtz role.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

Stability in the roster seems pretty important (cpt obvious) but especially with the stuff that McCollum does with all the different coverages he throws at teams (like he described in the NYT article. Talking abt at NWMST his guys knew what he wanted almost immediately but at Drake and Iowa he has to simplify it….for now)

Right. At USC where it’s a bunch of “space and iso” , you can roll the dice on just trying to accumulate talent and hoping it works. Even this year, total underachievement.

Ben has shown that the whole will be greater than the sum of the parts. The one year transfer with a little more talent might not be an upgrade over a guy like Combs with another year in the system.

 

[Debit One]

I’m hearing rumblings from the western metro that McCollum Jr is getting awfully close to stepping into the Stirtz role.

Tell Wade to STFU.

 

[BBK]

I’m hearing rumblings from the western metro that McCollum Jr is getting awfully close to stepping into the Stirtz role.

 

[CurdMan]

Stability in the roster seems pretty important (cpt obvious) but especially with the stuff that McCollum does with all the different coverages he throws at teams (like he described in the NYT article. Talking abt at NWMST his guys knew what he wanted almost immediately but at Drake and Iowa he has to simplify it….for now)

Agreed and that is the perfect blue print long term for Iowa.

I personally hope all of the rotational guys return. There’s a lot of hype right now surrounding Alvaro from his NCAAT performance but people who have actually paid attention throughout the year know he wasn’t consistent. We’ll find out how much Ben values him soon, because I’m sure he would have plenty of suitors on the open market

 

[Kerky]

Don't read Twitter. It's really best to never read comments under social media articles.

Occasionally I'll have a momentarily lapse of reason and will take a glimpse, and it reconfirms my position that at least 90% of people are very very stupid

Regardless of topic, the most stupid and naive among us are also the most vocal in the realm of social media, in part b/c of the allowance of anonymity.

 

[Hawk&Balls]

What younger guards do we have that are better? Who can Iowa legit get and afford thru the portal? They have maybe enough of a bag to get 1 solid guard via portal. Koch and Sage aren’t playing the 1 or 2 spot.

I feel like that's part of the problem. Where does he play? He's not really a.guard, you're not going to play him at sg. He wants to get inside or drive and score at the rim, and against anyone with size he has a hard time.

 

[UnKnOwN_SeRb]

Ready for what?

Yes!

 

[The Dad]

I feel like that's part of the problem. Where does he play? He's not really a.guard, you're not going to play him at sg. He wants to get inside or drive and score at the rim, and against anyone with size he has a hard time.

He plays the exact role he plays today, but as a 6th. With the movement and ball movement of this offense enough space can be created for a guy like that. You’re not going against teams like Illinois every night. Even in the douche. And he showed against FL that he can be effective against big teams.

 

[Hawk&Balls]

Then yeah, that's fine

 

[shoot-the-three]

Stability in the roster seems pretty important (cpt obvious) but especially with the stuff that McCollum does with all the different coverages he throws at teams (like he described in the NYT article. Talking abt at NWMST his guys knew what he wanted almost immediately but at Drake and Iowa he has to simplify it….for now)

Combs is going to be fine next year as will the offense. While the offense will look similar, tweaks will be made for the skill set of who is playing. They don't need anyone to step into the "Stirtz role" because that role won't exist anymore.

 

[The Dad]

Combs is going to be fine next year as will the offense. While the offense will look similar, tweaks will be made for the skill set of who is playing. They don't need anyone to step into the "Stirtz role" because that role won't exist anymore.

If we can get a PG who can get to the rim, look the fuck out. And according to Waukee NW Fanatic.com, that player is already on the roster.