)The Athletic's Dana O'Neil thinks Garza's return puts the Hawkeyes in contention for a national title in 2020-21.NBC Sports' Rob Dauster calls Iowa a "top ten team with Final Four potential. From underdog to overachiever: The Luka Garza Chronicles.
The 6-10 senior is now the clear favorite for National Player of the Year honors.
He will retain his eligibility. IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Big Ten player of the year Luka Garza announced Sunday he is withdrawing from the NBA draft and will return to Iowa for his senior season. It would have been way too hard to close the book without the last chapter.”The 6-foot-11, 260-pound center from Washington, D.C., scored 20 or more points in the last 16 games of his junior season, the longest streak by an Iowa player since 1971. It’ll be a series that shows the growth of Luka on and off the court during his high school and college career.
Luka Garza, the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, is withdrawing from the NBA Draft and returning to Iowa. Garza informed McCaffery two days later, his roommates Sunday morning, and the rest of the team later Sunday during a Zoom meeting before holding a news conference at 12:15 p.m. (CT). His 15 double-doubles were the most by an Iowa player since 2002. The 6-foot-11 center from Washington, D.C. averaged 23.9 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game for the Hawkeyes as a junior. “I love this place too much to leave it. But there's been plenty of national reaction to Garza's decision, too.CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein now views Iowa as the 2020-21 Big Ten favorite.Rothstein's colleague at CBS Sports, national writer Gary Parrish, believes Iowa should now be considered a preseason top-10 team.Heck, let's go even higher — ESPN's Jeff Borzello thinks Iowa could even rank in the top Stadium's Jeff Goodman calls Garza the "clear" player of the year frontrunner.Legendary ESPN broadcaster Dick Vitale got in on the action, too, saying Garza's return sets up what should be a big year of basketball in the Big Ten. With Iowa center Luka Garza announcing he will return for his senior season in Iowa City, the Hawkeyes immediately vault into the top of the Big Ten race and, potentially, the pool of teams who can realistically challenge for the Final Four.Garza also immediately projects as a national player of the year favorite.Hawkeye fans around the state were abuzz with the news Sunday.
Either the 6-foot-11 center follows up his record-breaking junior season at Iowa by coming back for his senior year, or he turns professional and keeps his name in the 2020 NBA Draft. His goals are team-oriented. Iowa should be a preseason top-10 team. His 23.9 points per game ranked fifth nationally, and his 26.2-point average in conference games was the highest since Purdue’s Glenn Robinson averaged 31.1 in 1994.“He is willing to bet on himself, which shows tremendous confidence,” McCaffery said. Editors Note: This is part V of "From Underdog to Overachiever: The Chronicles of Luka Garza." Leading up to Garza’s decision, HawkeyeInsider will be doing a complete dive into his career. My message is that any player can do what Luka did if they just took the time to do it. All-American Luka Garza Garza phoned his father, Frank, on July 29 and together they arrived at a decision. RELATED: Luka Garza facing NBA decision with much still unknown. On Sunday, Iowa star Luka Garza … Garza was named Iowa’s third consensus All-American in program history, joining Murray Wier (1948) and Charles Darling (1952). IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Big Ten player of the year Luka Garza announced Sunday he is withdrawing from the NBA draft and will return to Iowa for his senior season.“My heart is in Iowa City,” Garza said.
“Luka has an opportunity to advance himself professionally, but instead, he is thinking more about the program and his teammates. FILE – In this Feb. 20, 2020, file photo, Iowa center Luka Garza celebrates after making a basket during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Ohio State in Iowa City, Iowa. There is no better feeling than having student-athletes here for the right reasons, who want to be great and do it in our program.”With Garza’s announcement, Iowa returns seven players with significant starting experience.“With the overall depth, length, and experience that we have returning I believe we have a group determined to make the most of this season,” Garza said.More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25For more than 90 years, WTMJ-AM has been "Wisconsin's Radio Station".