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Iowa basketball: How Ahron Ulis commit impacts 2020 recruiting

By Andrew Wade

COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: Head coach Fran McCaffery of the Iowa Hawkeyes reacts during the second half against the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: Head coach Fran McCaffery of the Iowa Hawkeyes reacts during the second half against the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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The Iowa basketball team got some exciting news as they nabbed their first 2020 commit in point guard Ahron Ulis. Here are the impacts of that commit.

Landing Ahron Ulis was an underrated signing for the Iowa basketball team. The three-star point guard has been steadily rising up recruiting rankings but decided to commit early in the process before even playing his senior year. What isn’t being talked about though is the ripple effect Ulis’ commitment has on the rest of the Iowa basketball team’s efforts.

As of right now, it looks like the Iowa basketball team will have three open scholarships at the conclusion of the 2019-2020 season. The biggest impact is obviously that Ulis will be taking one of those spots, leaving two open scholarships for the Hawks. Keep in mind that this is incredibly fluid after we saw what transpired this past offseason. If a player or two transfer or a player or two declares early, this will open up more scholarship spots for the Hawks to bring in recruits.

This also changes who the Hawks are going to be recruiting. After expressing interest in Norwalk, Iowa point guard Bowen Born, the Hawks no longer have a need for his services, and as such, have stopped recruiting the in-state prospect.

This is according to Matthew Bain of the Des Moines Register.

"I checked in with Norwalk point guard Bowen Born earlier this week. He said that after Chicago three-star point guard Ahron Ulis committed last week, Iowa called him to let him know that Ulis filled their point guard need in 2020."

The only other true point guard on the radar for the Hawks where there appears to be mutual interest is Chicago product Tyler Beard who is also seriously considering Butler, Purdue, and West Virginia. There is no word yet on the recruitment of Beard, but my guess is it has cooled significantly with the signing of Ulis.

The other big ripple effect is in regards to the recruitment of a few of the Iowa basketball team’s other top targets. As we saw with Deuce Hogan and Swarm 2020, landing the first commit is the hardest and from there, dominoes begin to fall.

Next. Iowa football players who could be first round picks in 2021. dark

With the point guard in tow, the Hawks will continue to target a big-man and likely a wing player to fill the last two spots.