Can a program win with only State of Iowa talent?

[swarthmoreCY]

I know this discussion has been brought up before, and the answer likely is that it cannot. However, I think a team made up of the following would have a chance to do pretty well- even if HB was just a Top 150 player. The team would need the freshmen guards to be ready to play right away.
Seniors:
Bubu
May
Cougill

Juniors:
HB
McCabe
Doug
Will Artino
Wright

Soph:
Uthoff
Olgesby

Freshmen:
Staten
Paige
Woodbury

Perhaps Creekmur and/or Buss for Olgesby and/or Wright. I know it would never happen... we have seen that the great players tend to leave the state, and the rest are split between 3-4 programs.

Also, what is the word on James Harrington? Is he is a pretty good football player as well?

[singsing]

I don't know why you couldn't win with a team of Iowa players. I don't think you need to speculate on future players because you don't know if they'll stick it out (Pomlee for example), but looking at players who are already playing I think you could put a pretty good team together. A decent starting five would be:

Ali Farokhmanesh
Jason Bohannon
Matt Gatens
Brennan Cougill
Jordan Eglesder

Other players I can think of on D1 rosters would be Kaleb Korver, Grant Gibbs, Eric May, Alex Dorr, Bubu Palo. I'm sure there's more out there, but can't think of them right now.

[Aaron Jacobs]

There is also Zach Bohannon who plays for Air Force and Jordan Printy plays for Indiana State

[RhoadsRage]

Yes they could win, but not the NC or even the elite 8 for that matter.

[Rural]

I don't know why you couldn't win with a team of Iowa players. I don't think you need to speculate on future players because you don't know if they'll stick it out (Pomlee for example), but looking at players who are already playing I think you could put a pretty good team together. A decent starting five would be:

Ali Farokhmanesh
Jason Bohannon
Matt Gatens
Brennan Cougill
Jordan Eglesder

Other players I can think of on D1 rosters would be Kaleb Korver, Grant Gibbs, Eric May, Alex Dorr, Bubu Palo. I'm sure there's more out there, but can't think of them right now.

This is where this type of thing goes off the tracks. You list Cougill in your first five names and myself and others question if he's even D1 caliber. Not that some couldn't be useful players, but everybody you listed will never have to worry about being named in a "difference-maker" list.

[singsing]

This is where this type of thing goes off the tracks. You list Cougill in your first five names and myself and others question if he's even D1 caliber. Not that some couldn't be useful players, but everybody you listed will never have to worry about being named in a "difference-maker" list.

Yeah, watch the national championship tonight and tell me how many difference makers Butler's got. UNI in the Elite Eight for that matter. You win basketball games with a good team concept. There's a lot of difference makers sitting home tonight watching the ball game.

[deadeyededric]

I think you would win pretty consistently. You have to get EVERY player for that to work. A h.s. class's like 91, 93, and Horner and Haluska's class coulda been real good.

[khaal53]

There's some good classes every now and again, that if strung together would be alright. 2002 comes to mind with Haluska, Bruner, Horner, Ben Jacobson, and Nate Funk...I'm sure I'm missing others.

[cyclonenum1]

Yeah, watch the national championship tonight and tell me how many difference makers Butler's got. UNI in the Elite Eight for that matter. You win basketball games with a good team concept. There's a lot of difference makers sitting home tonight watching the ball game.

Actually Butler has two difference makers...Hayward and Mack. And I wasn't aware that UNI made the Elite 8...guess I missed that.

You win basketball games in the NCAA tournament with a good team concept that has quality players running that team concept. Go back and look at the Final Four teams over the last 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 years and you will see that most of the teams had NBA caliber players on their team.

Hayward and Mack are NBA caliber players.

The answer is...NO...you could not compete in a power conference with Iowa kids alone.

[cyismydog]

Yeah, watch the national championship tonight and tell me how many difference makers Butler's got. UNI in the Elite Eight for that matter. You win basketball games with a good team concept. There's a lot of difference makers sitting home tonight watching the ball game.

Butler's got two studs in Mack and Hayward, and Howard is no slouch either.

[Knownothing]

If they got all the kids from Iowa they could win a National Title.
Grant Gibbs
Harrison Barnes
Doug Mcdermott
Uthoff-Although he sucks. Just find the thread tha says that
Gattens

A lot of factors would have to go into it. They would all have to stay for 4 years.

[swarthmoreCY]

Actually Butler has two difference makers...Hayward and Mack. And I wasn't aware that UNI made the Elite 8...guess I missed that.

Hayward and Mack are NBA caliber players.

The answer is...NO...you could not compete in a power conference with Iowa kids alone.

I agree with Hayward and Mack being difference makers (perhaps NBA players), but as recruits they were not different than many of those listed in-state players.

[singsing]

Actually Butler has two difference makers...Hayward and Mack. And I wasn't aware that UNI made the Elite 8...guess I missed that.

You win basketball games in the NCAA tournament with a good team concept that has quality players running that team concept. Go back and look at the Final Four teams over the last 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 years and you will see that most of the teams had NBA caliber players on their team.

Hayward and Mack are NBA caliber players.

The answer is...NO...you could not compete in a power conference with Iowa kids alone.

My bad..Got a little ahead of myself with wishful thinking on the UNI bit. You're right about most teams having NBA caliber talent, but this doesn't omit the state's players because several have made it to the NBA. I think you've forgotten guys like Jeff Hornacek, Fred Hoiberg, Loren Meyer, Nick Collison, Raef Lafrentz, Kirk Hinrich and a few others I don't wish to look up. The states got talent, but doesn't have the population to put out dozens of D1 players each year like California or Texas. If you had to put a team together over a four year period Iowa could most definately field a team that could compete with the best out there.

[Cydar]

My bad..Got a little ahead of myself with wishful thinking on the UNI bit. You're right about most teams having NBA caliber talent, but this doesn't omit the state's players because several have made it to the NBA. I think you've forgotten guys like Jeff Hornacek, Fred Hoiberg, Loren Meyer, Nick Collison, Raef Lafrentz, Kirk Hinrich and a few others I don't wish to look up. The states got talent, but doesn't have the population to put out dozens of D1 players each year like California or Texas. If you had to put a team together over a four year period Iowa could most definately field a team that could compete with the best out there.

Hornacek is from Illinois. But the State of Iowa has produced players talented enough to have a shot at the NBA. We just have to figure out how to keep Roy Williams out of this state.

[DaddyMac]

I bet you could.

But you might tend to be more to the more mediocre end of the spectrum in many years, than the really special team end of things.

You'd have to find those kid that go the mid-major route to be good players (Korver's, Farokmanesh and a host of others), and couldn't afford to miss. And every now and then you'd get a good class, or a sting of good players over two or three classes to have a pretty solid squad.

If you were able to keep the top two or three kids from Iowa EVERY YEAR - you'd have a pretty good playing 8, more seasons than not.

I suppose it depends on what you mean by "able to compete". Right now for ISU, it's a pretty open criteria.