Iowa basketball: Three possible departure candidates from men’s squad
By Andrew Wade
Tyler Cook
As it stands today, Tyler Cook is still a member of the Iowa basketball team, but after flirting with the NBA last year, will this be the year he commits for good?
We will likely have a better idea in the next 20 days as the deadline for declaration falls on April 21st this year. If Cook doesn’t sign an agent though, it could be a sign that he is just testing the waters with the intent of coming back which he would have until May 29th to do.
Cook is quite an enigma. At times, he was downright dominant as he averaged 14.5 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game. There were times, specifically down the stretch though, where he looked lost and out of place. Over the last six games of the season (regular season, B1G tournament, and NCAA Tournament) Cook scored in the double-digits just three times while putting up 9, 5 and 0 points in the other three games. More concerning is that he shot worse than 33% in four of those games.
What’s interesting is whether or not he improved his game enough to elevate his stock anymore from last year. The feedback Cook reportedly received was that he needed to develop a better mid-range game, and by all accounts, that didn’t really happen this year. Personally, I would like to also see him better defensively and become a more consistent passer from the post.
The NBA, however, is notorious for valuing traits though. With Cook, will they look past some of the issues and see an athletic forward who can take over a second unit for a team?
Possibly.
A mock draft produced just a few days ago has Tyler Cook being drafted in the upper half of the second round.
If Cook leaves, it will be a huge loss for the Iowa basketball program, but it would free up 1,016 minutes in Fran’s rotation.