***Official 2014 Offseason Thread***

[RecreationalGynecologist]

in watching the NCAAs the thing that really stands out is the guard play. Ogs and Gesell wouldnt get many minutes on any team still playing.

To be fair, Ogs is a zone buster type guy. He's being asked to do more than he should

 

[PipeDaddy]

in watching the NCAAs the thing that really stands out is the guard play. Ogs and Gesell wouldnt get many minutes on any team still playing.

I disagree with this if, and that's a big if, Mikey regains his confidence. He can shoot better than he did at the end of this season. Assuming he had his confidence back I think he could log major minutes at quite a few major conference teams at the 2. Ogs - I'm not sure his defense is good enough.

 

[StinkyMcFadden]

in watching the NCAAs the thing that really stands out is the guard play. Ogs and Gesell wouldnt get many minutes on any team still playing.

I disagree with this if, and that's a big if, Mikey regains his confidence. He can shoot better than he did at the end of this season. Assuming he had his confidence back I think he could log major minutes at quite a few major conference teams at the 2. Ogs - I'm not sure his defense is good enough.

His shot has always been shit. That's not going to change.

It's more of a fling than a stroke.

Eventually, he'll finish one of those drives, though, and that's gonna be a pretty sweet day for all of us when it happens. And I plan to be there, Pipe.

 

[PipeDaddy]

lol, Stink. I'm talking about his mid range game which is pretty decent. His shot from the elbow was absolute money earlier in the season.

 

[howler]

lol, Stink. I'm talking about his mid range game which is pretty decent. His shot from the elbow was absolute money earlier in the season.

Yep, Mikey's the least of my worries. He'll most certainly have his breakout year next season, and Trey's arrival will only help.

 

[Hawkstrat]

lol, Stink. I'm talking about his mid range game which is pretty decent. His shot from the elbow was absolute money earlier in the season.

Yep, Mikey's the least of my worries. He'll most certainly have his breakout year next season, and Trey's arrival will only help.

I hope this is true. I would be on the 'Iowa will be better next year bandwagon,' if I felt better about PG play.

 

[Kerky]

lol, Stink. I'm talking about his mid range game which is pretty decent. His shot from the elbow was absolute money earlier in the season.

Yep, Mikey's the least of my worries. He'll most certainly have his breakout year next season, and Trey's arrival will only help.

I hope this is true. I would be on the 'Iowa will be better next year bandwagon,' if I felt better about PG play.

Have no fear, Trey is here.

 

[valp0]

Said no one at HaLo ever

 

[HiawathaHawk]

Mike would probably start for Dayton and Stanford, get big minutes at SDSU.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

http://thegazette.com/2014/03/26/clemmons-blames-himself-for-disappointing-year/

 

[douglasbader]

http://thegazette.com/2014/03/26/clemmons-blames-himself-for-disappointing-year/

I saw that and still leaves me with the impression he is going to transfer. You basically have 6 guys trying to take minutes at 2 positions next year. Even if you redshirt Ellingson, you still have at least one guy getting squeezed out. Knowing Fran, there is no way that Oglesby is going to see a reduction in minutes as a Senior. Jok is too good not to play and provides Iowa something it desperately needs. That leaves you with Dickerson, Gesell and Clemmons. There simply isn't the minutes for all of them at the PG.

The only thing Fran could possibly do is play Jok or Oglesby at the SF for significant minutes, but you get killed defensively. Also, you have Uthoff, White, Uhl and possibly Atwood taking minutes there.

Again, this all comes down to Gesell as the big fucking problem here. If he would actually play like a PG, then you wouldn't worry much about Clemmons being gone. You would be solid with Gesell/Dickerson at PG, Oglesby/Jok/Ellingson at SG, and Uthoff/Uhl/White/Atwood/Olaseni/Woodbury/Meyer at the PF/C position. Unfortunately, as it currently stands, you have someone that plays 25 minutes per game that has no position, can't currently shoot and has not confidence.

If I am Clemmons and I know Fran, there is no way that Gesell is going to not start or have significantly reduced minutes. Zero chance that no matter how well Clemmons plays that he ever moves ahead of him. His only hope is that Dickerson is a complete bust.

 

[Trey Kohn]

Yep, Mikey's the least of my worries. He'll most certainly have his breakout year next season, and Trey's arrival will only help.

I hope this is true. I would be on the 'Iowa will be better next year bandwagon,' if I felt better about PG play.

Have no fear, Trey is here.

Thanks, buddy!

 

[Match34]

I do think that the chemistry will be improved now that the cool kids have moved on and the team is almost totally nerds, but I'm not sure end-of-game performances will improve at all.

 

[Hawkstrat]

Iowa Basketball ‏@IowaHoops 20m
Mike Gesell, a finance major, is 1 of just 9 #I am a giant douche student-athletes that competed in a winter sport to post an unblemished GPA. #Hawkeyes

 

[RecreationalGynecologist]

That is pretty impressive

 

[douglasbader]

That is pretty impressive

He is the only men's basketball player in the country to do this.

 

[douglasbader]

I thought there was an article last year where it said Gesell got his first B ever.

 

[Ben Kenobi]

I thought there was an article last year where it said Gesell got his first B ever.

Aaron White must have been banging Gesell's TA.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

I do think that the chemistry will be improved now that the cool kids have moved on and the team is almost totally nerds, but I'm not sure end-of-game performances will improve at all.

Remember that rumor last year that Woody was going to be academically ineligible?

 

[HiawathaHawk]

That is pretty impressive

He is the only men's basketball player in the country to do this.

Holy shit

 

[Match34]

When I play an RPG, I usually try to max out my attack levels as quickly as possible, because that's the style I prefer. I only have limited time and resources, though, so it comes at the cost of lower levels in areas such as defense or agility or speech or magic or sneaking. So while I enjoy having a perfect 99 rating in one-handed attacks, it would probably be better for me overall if I dialed it back down to a 90 or 85 and spread some of those skill points to other areas.

Point being, maybe Mike could put down his books for a little bit and practice those free throws.

 

[HiawathaHawk]

Mel season/career review: http://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/basketball/2014/3/26/5544552/2013-2014-season-in-review-melsahn-basabe

 

[douglasbader]

I do think that the chemistry will be improved now that the cool kids have moved on and the team is almost totally nerds, but I'm not sure end-of-game performances will improve at all.

Remember that rumor last year that Woody was going to be academically ineligible?

You mean the rumor that AZMESSDAWG!! made up to troll the board?

 

[Slidewilly]

I haven't read all that much of what Dochterman writes. Mostly I see his tweets. However, between some of what I heard on his recent podcast, his "Iowa basketball player leaving" tweet and the way the Clemmons article is written, his credibility is a bit diminished in my eyes.

Take, for example, these two consecutive sentences in the linked article:

Sentence #1: "It’s a crowded backcourt." No, it isn't. Iowa fans have been so starved for true guards for so long that fans might be excused for making that kind of a statement, but someone who makes his living writing about the sport shouldn't. How does a backcourt that on the whole was as inept as ours was last season suddenly become "crowded" when by far the best player in it is gone, and of the two players we've added only one has a pedigree arguably as good as those returning?

What it really is, is a backcourt with an average number of scholarship players that is begging for two, three or even four guys to step up and play like solid Big Ten guards--and not one of them has done it over the course of a full season yet. That's not a "crowded" backcourt. Objectively, it's an area of relative weakness. A player with above-average ability and above-average confidence should look at it as a wide-open field. If Clemmons leaves, it won't be because our backcourt is "crowded." It'll be because he's pissed off at Fran, or has concluded he really isn't good enough to play at this level. If he leaves, my money would be on the former.

I'm a fan, so I have high hopes that a number of guards will step up, but it's a joke to call ours a "crowded backcourt."

That brings me to sentence #2: "Clemmons, a Lansing, Mich. native, declined to answer the transfer question directly." After his little stunt with the tweet about an Iowa player leaving, which turned out to be a reference to Stokes, I have no reason to believe that Dochterman wouldn't finesse the actual substance of the interview a bit to grab the attention of readers. I don't know all of what Clemmons said or how he said it. But is if he's a confident player, and isn't completely fed up with Fran, he should stay. His competition is hardly daunting.

 

[Ben Kenobi]

Backcourts can be crowded with average talent.

 

[rodg12]

http://thegazette.com/2014/03/26/clemmons-blames-himself-for-disappointing-year/

I saw that and still leaves me with the impression he is going to transfer. You basically have 6 guys trying to take minutes at 2 positions next year. Even if you redshirt Ellingson, you still have at least one guy getting squeezed out. Knowing Fran, there is no way that Oglesby is going to see a reduction in minutes as a Senior. Jok is too good not to play and provides Iowa something it desperately needs. That leaves you with Dickerson, Gesell and Clemmons. There simply isn't the minutes for all of them at the PG.

The only thing Fran could possibly do is play Jok or Oglesby at the SF for significant minutes, but you get killed defensively. Also, you have Uthoff, White, Uhl and possibly Atwood taking minutes there.

Again, this all comes down to Gesell as the big fucking problem here. If he would actually play like a PG, then you wouldn't worry much about Clemmons being gone. You would be solid with Gesell/Dickerson at PG, Oglesby/Jok/Ellingson at SG, and Uthoff/Uhl/White/Atwood/Olaseni/Woodbury/Meyer at the PF/C position. Unfortunately, as it currently stands, you have someone that plays 25 minutes per game that has no position, can't currently shoot and has not confidence.

If I am Clemmons and I know Fran, there is no way that Gesell is going to not start or have significantly reduced minutes. Zero chance that no matter how well Clemmons plays that he ever moves ahead of him. His only hope is that Dickerson is a complete bust.

I could actually see Oglesby as being better guarding 3s than 2s. His lack of foot speed wouldn't be as big a detriment there. Pete has enough size to hold his own there as well. Plus, it's not like Aaron White was a plus defender at the 3 last year. I suppose it would hurt us on the boards, and maybe that's what you meant by the bolded, but as far as just defensive ability, I don't see a three guard line-up being that big of a detriment. There have been teams in the tourney trotting out 3 guard lineups this year.

 

[Hawk4Life25]

If Willie doesn't commit I think white needs to play the 4...however his rebounding style worries me...he's the tip it out to himself try and out jump a huy type of rebounder. Not physical enough but it's unlikely to change going into his senior year.

 

[douglasbader]

Anyone who doesn't thing the backcourt is crowded at Iowa is fooling themselves. The definition of a crowded backcourt isn't so much that you have a ton of super talented players there, but you have more than enough players returning that played significant minutes.

Iowa has 6 players on scholarship for 2 positions. It is a crowded backcourt.

 

[Mustangs989]

I think Ogs/Jok will get about 10 min a game at the 3 position. This of course is assuming Uhl isn't an immediate contributor and we don't get Atwood.

 

[douglasbader]

Either way, just like last year, as it stands right now there are going to be at least 12 capable players on scholarship. That means at least 3 of them will get little to no minutes.

You know that group won't include White, Woodbury, Olaseni, Uthoff, Jok, Oglesby or Gesell.

That means that Dickerson, Clemmons, Ellingson, Uhl and Meyer are fighting over the last 2 spots for significant minutes. If you break it down further, you would easily be able to establish that Ellingson and Meyer are going to be eliminated from that group. You also know that Uhl appears to have high level athleticism and is at a position with less competition, so he likely gets 10 minutes per game unless he is a total bust. So that leaves one more position left with Dickerson and Clemmons fighting over it.

It played out exactly that way this year once Oglesby came back. The math worked out to 3 players being out of luck, and that ended up being Clemmons, Meyer and Jok. Now imagine if you somehow land Atwood. You are looking at at adding another player to that group sitting out, likely Uhl.

Total speculation, but I wonder if that didn't at least contribute to the bad chemistry down the stretch. Even before the losing started, you had a few guys who appeared to be unhappy and disgruntled on the bench. There simply isn't enough minutes on a healthy team to spread around to 13 capable scholarship players.

 

[Gushawk]

I'm not sure I want Ogs guarding 3s often. Wisconsin's similarly sized guys do it ok, but they seem less soft. I think he'd get abused on boards and in the post.

Unfortunately, neither our 2s are going to be good man defenders, which is why I'd like Gessell to get a fair number of minutes there.

 

[douglasbader]

We are also going to get a couple of surprises. Oglesby ended up playing much better this year than he did the year before. A guy like Gesell who seemed to have a lot of mental problems this year might completely regain his form and have a great shooting year. Clemmons could have a turn around. Dickerson could end up being terrible.

This is going to be an interesting off-season. Hopefully everyone stays healthy and even more true competition this year than there was last year.

 

[Slidewilly]

Anyone who doesn't thing the backcourt is crowded at Iowa is fooling themselves. The definition of a crowded backcourt isn't so much that you have a ton of super talented players there, but you have more than enough players returning that played significant minutes.

Iowa has 6 players on scholarship for 2 positions. It is a crowded backcourt.

By your definition, most teams in America have crowded backcourts. It's not a meaningful standard.

 

[douglasbader]

Anyone who doesn't thing the backcourt is crowded at Iowa is fooling themselves. The definition of a crowded backcourt isn't so much that you have a ton of super talented players there, but you have more than enough players returning that played significant minutes.

Iowa has 6 players on scholarship for 2 positions. It is a crowded backcourt.

By your definition, most teams in America have crowded backcourts. It's not a meaningful standard.

No, you are being obtuse, especially when talking about Dickerson and his talent level coming in. If this were a Top 25 - 5* player coming to Iowa in their current situation, then it wouldn't be a crowded backcourt.

The reality is that Dickerson was a lightly recruited player that has gained interest far above his level because he is a JUCO PG and teams are desperate in the Spring to get anyone with a pulse. For him, coming into Iowa, this is a crowded backcourt. You have 2 positions open with 4 guys that have played significant minutes and 3 of them have started at some point. Add in Ellingson and now Dickerson, that is a crowded backcourt.

 

[Hawkstrat]

In context, it's pretty clear that Dochterman was saying that there are more players than open spots. He wasn't making some statement of quality.

 

[Slidewilly]

There are more players than open spots at almost every position on most teams. Unless some qualitative assessment of the players' relative skills is involved, it's a meaningless statement to say a position is "crowded." In the context of the story, the writer used that term to imply that it might be a factor in whether Clemmons would return. That's not just a matter of numbers. The truth is our backcourt is wide open as no one has played well enough to have a strong claim to the minutes for next season. Someone will obviously get them, perhaps only by default, but none of the players can look at the situation and say "he's in" or "I'm out."

We also have at least four guys who could compete for minutes at the 3, three guys who could compete for minutes at the 5, and five guys who could compete for minutes at the 4. My God, what a crowded roster! I shudder to think what a surfeit of talent we'll have if we sign someone like Atwood who could increase those numbers at two positions.

I'm not the one being obtuse here.

 

[Hawkstrat]

Oh...Cykowilly.

 

[douglasbader]

There are more players than open spots at almost every position on most teams. Unless some qualitative assessment of the players' relative skills is involved, it's a meaningless statement to say a position is "crowded." In the context of the story, the writer used that term to imply that it might be a factor in whether Clemmons would return. That's not just a matter of numbers. The truth is our backcourt is wide open as no one has played well enough to have a strong claim to the minutes for next season. Someone will obviously get them, perhaps only by default, but none of the players can look at the situation and say "he's in" or "I'm out."

We also have at least four guys who could compete for minutes at the 3, three guys who could compete for minutes at the 5, and five guys who could compete for minutes at the 4. My God, what a crowded roster! I shudder to think what a surfeit of talent we'll have if we sign someone like Atwood who could increase those numbers at two positions.

I'm not the one being obtuse here.

Wow, you are being really, really stupid about this.

How do you not get that the backcourt wouldn't be crowded for Chris Paul, but it is really crowded for Anthony Clemmons?

Also, LOL if you think that Fran is going to completely abandon Gesell and he isn't one of the players who has a strong claim to minutes. Same thing with Oglesby. Have you been watching Iowa Basketball the last 4 years?

 

[6deuce]

http://thegazette.com/2014/03/26/clemmons-blames-himself-for-disappointing-year/

I agree with Doug. Still think Clemmons is done. Would love to see him stay, come back as a junior and light it up. Dude has the skills to do it.

 

[Shawneemicks]

I'm envisioning a lineup that includes the trio of Jok, Ogs & White as possibly the worst trio of defenders anyone in the country could put on the floor.

The good news is that Gabe may block 500 shots because of all the traffic strolling down the lane unchecked.

 

[FrodoTBaggin]

Yes. The worst trio of defenders in the country. I'm sure that's totally accurate, Shawnee. Thanks for the analysis.

 

[Jayhawki]

I'd set the over/under on wins for next season at about 17.

And I'd probably take the under.

 

[Shawneemicks]

Jayhawki is totally Tweener from Prison Break.

I've been way off, I'm sure they'll win way more than 17.

 

[Jayhawki]

I've never seen Prison Break

Of course Iowa will win more than 17

 

[Bob]

That is pretty impressive

He is the only men's basketball player in the country to do this.

spend more time working on your jumper and less time doing math, nerd

 

[CUIHAWK]

Backcourts can be crowded with average talent.

You should see Halo Hoops.

 

[Dr. Zaius]

Heard a rumor from someone close to the program that Fran might be looking at the Boston College job. Could be complete bullshit, but anybody else hear that?

 

[douglasbader]

Heard a rumor from someone close to the program that Fran might be looking at the Boston College job. Could be complete bullshit, but anybody else hear that?

Lol at "close to the program". This was some stupid rumor posted on TOS a few days ago.

You didn't hear it from anyone close to the program and in fact you don't even know anyone "close to the program".

Dr. Zaius is a liar and a scumbag.

 

[Dr. Zaius]

Ok. Heard it from a guy that travels with the team, not from TOS.

 

[douglasbader]

Ok.

Ok is right and you know it. If you truly knew someone "close to the program" you wouldn't come on Halo fishing to hear if that was true, you would trust them if they were truly close.

You don't have to name names, but who the fuck do you know that is "close to the program" that told you that? Staff member? Someone in the athletic office?

Liar and a scumbag!!