By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Ever since he announced that he would test the NBA Draft process, I’ve gone back and forth on whether Tyler Cook will return to Iowa for his junior season.

Right now, I’m leaning towards him not coming back based on recent chatter, but felt just the opposite as recently as a week ago.

We’ll have an answer by Wednesday at the latest because May 30^th is the deadline for a player to withdraw from the NBA Draft in order to retain college eligibility.

You could make a strong case that the 6-foot-9, 255-pound Cook should return to Iowa because the odds of him being selected in the two-round NBA Draft appear slim based on all of the rankings, player evaluations and mock drafts.

By returning to college, Cook could improve his skills, while moving closer to earning a degree. He also would have the chance to help Iowa regain the momentum and respect as a program that was lost last season when the Hawkeyes finished 14-19 overall and just 4-14 in the Big Ten.

On the other hand, turning pro would allow Cook to start chasing his dream since childhood of playing in the NBA.

But unless he gets drafted in the first round where contracts are guaranteed, Cook’s transition to professional basketball won’t come without risks.

The St. Louis native would have been long gone by now if he felt confident about being selected in the draft.

Some teams might say they love your talent and are very interested, but that still doesn’t mean those teams will use one of their two picks on you.

Cook was expected to work out for at least six NBA teams, including the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets.

He has declined interviews since announcing in March that he would test the draft process, so it’s hard to know what Cook is thinking right now.

I’ve been told by a source close to Cook’s situation that he doesn’t want to play professionally overseas next year. Cook still is a kid in many ways, so it makes sense that he would prefer the comfort of home and family over a foreign country.

There is also a belief that a prospect sort of gets lost on the NBA radar by playing overseas, an out-of-sight, out-of-mind type of thing.

Cook could avoid that by playing in the G League, which serves as a developmental league for the NBA.

But it’s hard to know where he stands as a G League prospect because only 60 players get selected in the NBA Draft and there are several rankings with at least 150 of the top NBA prospects on which Cook isn’t listed.

Cook can dunk with the best of them, but he lacks a consistent medium-range jump shot and struggles on defense. He also wouldn’t have a size advantage if he played power forward in the NBA, but he currently lacks the perimeter skills to play small forward at that level.

Cook could work on his game in college, or in the G League where he wouldn’t have to deal with academics.

He just has to do what he feels is in his best interest.

The biggest concern should Cook return to Iowa would be whether he is fully invested in the team or just using it as another year to audition for the NBA.

Iowa struggled with chemistry on the court last season and the only way to fix that is for all the players to be on the same page and striving for the same goals as a team.

Cook choosing to return also could impact Iowa’s roster because it might cause a current front-line player to leave the program this summer in search of more playing time elsewhere.

This coming season is huge for the Iowa program and for head coach Fran McCaffery. A repeat of this past season would be a disaster.

The fact that Iowa played so poorly this past season might have Cook thinking that it’ll happen again next season, and largely at his expense.

Some already are saying that Iowa will be better off without Cook, but that seems more like damage control and spin at this point.

Iowa certainly has some nice pieces to build around besides Cook, namely 6-11 sophomore center Luka Garza and junior point guard Jordan Bohannon.

But to dismiss Cook, who led Iowa in scoring last season, as addition by subtraction would be just silly and unfair.

It also would be wrong to assume that Cook is gone just because he still hasn't announced his decision so close to the deadline. Nebraska forward Isaac Copeland didn't announce his decision to return for his senior season until Sunday.

A decision of this magnitude takes time and depends on the schedule of your workouts with NBA teams. Cook was reportedly still having workouts this past week.

I was asked an interesting question shortly after posting this column about the chances of Cook withdrawing from the draft, but still not returning to Iowa. 

Anything is possible, but I can't imagine that Cook would make a decision that forces him to have to sit out next season in college, as would be the case if he transferred to another school. 

McCaffery said he thinks Cook could develop into a potential NBA first-round draft pick with another year of playing in college. That seems like a reach and is self-serving, but McCaffery is known to lay the praise on thick at times.

If I were to predict right now I’d say Cook won’t return to Iowa for his junior season. But I also wouldn’t be surprised if he did return.

So yeah, I lack conviction either way.