Head coach Fran McCaffery tabbed three players in particular to start this season. The other two starting slots are wide open.

By Adam Hensley
[email protected]

Iowa basketball coach Fran McCaffery hasn’t completed his starting lineup for the Hawkeyes’ exhibition game against William Jewell Friday night.

McCaffery isn’t too worried, and neither should Hawkeye fans be. The Hawkeyes have their deepest team in his tenure at Iowa, albeit with a roster full of youth.

“Do I have something in mind? Probably,” he said. “I think we have to give everybody a chance to kind of establish themselves.”

Three players have solidified themselves as starters: sophomores Jordan Bohannon, Isaiah Moss, and Tyler Cook.

After those three, the remaining two starting spots are wide open, but whomever the coach selects, the players have faith in whatever rotation is on the floor.

“We’re going to have five guys on the floor who can shoot the ball, kind of like Golden State,” sophomore point guard Bohannon said. “Everyone can shoot the ball. It spaces the floor.”

Not looking at the freshmen, Iowa could end up playing Brady Ellingson or Nicholas Baer at either guard or forward, depending on how McCaffery positions Moss, who’s capable of playing both positions.

Baer has earned the right to start. He started in 10 of Iowa’s 34 games last season but finished the year coming off the bench — a sixth-man role in which he thrived.

The reigning Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year was the only player in Division-1 basketball last season (and the first Big Ten player in the past 25 years) to tally more than 250 points, 45 steals, and 45 3-pointers.

He’s an “instant spark” off the bench, his coach says, and even though he thrived coming off the bench, he could end up starting Friday.

“He can come in at any position essentially, certainly a 2, 3, 4, but not so much 1 and 5. But he can come in for the 5 man and move somebody else to the 5 spot,” McCaffery said. “So he gives us that kind of flexibility.”

RELATED: Freshman come into Iowa men’s basketball season with big opportunity

McCaffery could take things a step further and play with a bigger lineup if he choses to move Cook from his traditional under-the-basket role; the famous rim-rattler saw action on the wing this off-season and expects it to continue as the season starts.

Cook said he feels much better handling the ball and shooting the ball — two things that could open up the floor and really gives McCaffery flexibility at creating a potent lineup.

Forwards Ahmad Wagner, Ryan Kriener, Dom Uhl, and Cordell Pemsl all saw quality minutes last season. While Wagner (18 starts last season) and Pemsl (14) have more starts under their belts, Kriener and Uhl could easily work their way into rotations.

“Coach does a great job at divvying up the minutes,” Kriener said. “Everyone’s battling. Top down, we’re really deep. If someone’s having an off game, chances are there will be someone having a good game to help.”

The freshmen, however, shake things up.

The two 6-11 twin towers, Luka Garza and Jack Nunge, give Iowa big bodies down low, but they also have an excellent shooting touch for guys their size.

“Both of them are tremendous players,” McCaffery said. “They’re incredibly versatile. They come ready. It’s not like we have to develop them.”

Garza and Nunge, like McCaffery said, are guys who Iowa can play now; the Hawkeyes don’t need to wait on their development.

When Iowa traveled overseas for its four-game tour in Europe, Garza flashed his potential. He averaged 22.5 points and 10.3 rebounds while shooting 70 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free-throw line.

During those games, Nunge scored 6.8 points and grabbed 5.3 rebounds per game while leading the team in blocks (1.75).

The freshmen add two more big men into McCaffery’s forward logjam. It’s a good problem to have, though, not just at forward position but all-around with Iowa’s depth.

Players such as Baer, Cook, Moss, Garza, and Nunge are versatile enough for McCaffery to move around in order to find the perfect recipe for a starting lineup worthy of competing among the Big Ten’s best late in the season.