Fran McCaffery Explains The Plan With Joe Wieskamp

The Iowa Hawkeyes fell short of a deep NCAA Tournament run in 2021 despite having one of the most experienced rosters in the nation. Now, head coach Fran McCaffery will lose some of his best players and be forced to retool headed into next season.

One Hawkeye that has yet to make up his mind on where he’ll be playing basketball next fall is Joe Wieskamp. The junior wing was Iowa’s second-leading scorer in 2021 and has yet to decide if he’ll return to Iowa City or turn pro.

Wieskamp declared for the NBA Draft after the Hawkeyes were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament, but opted to maintain his college eligibility. According to McCaffery, he’s still testing the waters and trying to see what opportunities he might have in the pros before fully committing to departing Iowa.

“You want him to have the best information he can have,” McCaffery said in a press conference on Wednesday, per Chad Leistikow. “He needs to take whatever time he needs to make his decision.”

Wieskamp proved to be a crucial piece of the Iowa line-up last year. He averaged 14.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, while shooting 49.1 percent from the floor and 46.2 percent from beyond the arc. He became the clear second scoring option behind National Player of the Year, Luka Garza, and helped lead the Hawkeyes to a 22-9 overall record.

In his time in Iowa City, Wieskamp has averaged over 10 points per game in every season and has remained a reliable rebounder, gobbling up over six boards in each of his last two years. With his length and ability to shoot the three, the 21-year-old should be able to at least get a look in the NBA.

Wieskamp’s final decision doesn’t have to come anytime soon. NBA prospects will have until mid-July to withdraw their names from the draft.

[Saturday Tradition]

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