My case for Luka Garza being named National Player of the Year
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – The fact I even wrote a column about why Luka Garza deserves serious consideration for National Player of the Year is incredible, considering Garza’s status just four months ago.
Iowa’s 6-foot-11 junior center didn’t even make Athlon Sports’ first, second or third-team preseason All-Big Ten teams, although, he was ironically picked as the most underrated player in the conference.
Iowa sophomore Joe Wieskamp was a second-team pick by Athlon Sports, and that made sense with Wieskamp having made the Big Ten All-Freshmen team last season.
The Muscatine native also tested the NBA Draft process last spring before deciding to return for his sophomore season.
So it was clearly Wieskamp’s team heading into the season because there was no way knowing that Garza was on the verge of stardom.
Garza was expected to play a bigger role on offense without having to defer to Tyler Cook anymore, but nobody, except for maybe Garza and his father, could have expected this much improvement.
Garza’s statistics are staggering, from scoring at least 20 points in 15 consecutive games to surpassing 700 points and breaking Iowa's 50-year old single-season scoring record.
Garza is the first player since Purdue’s Glenn Robinson in 1994 to score at least 20 points in 15 straight Big Ten games. Garza also has led the Big Ten in scoring since November.
Garza is the only men’s college basketball player this season to compile at least 50 blocks, 35 3-point baskets, 35 percent 3-point shooting and 55 percent two-point shooting.
And if Garza gets three rebounds in Sunday’s regular-season finale at Illinois, he will have at least 700 points, 300 rebounds, 50 blocks and 35 3-point baskets in a season.
The last three players to do that were Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky in 2014-15, Kansas State’s Michael Beasley in 2007-08 and former Texas star Kevin Durant in 2006-07.
Combine Garza's individual dominance with Iowa having exceeded expectations despite a depleted roster, and a strong case could be made for the Washington D.C. native to be Iowa's first National Player of the Year in men's basketball.
Iowa coach Fran McCaffery is obviously biased in this case, but he made a strong argument for Garza at a recent press conference.
“I believe the thing that separates him, not to disrespect anybody else that's under consideration, because there's some phenomenal players that put up great numbers,” McCaffery said. “The consistency of productivity, considering the quality of teams in our league and the quality of big guy that he's doing it again I think is what separates him.”
McCaffery is right in saying there are some phenomenal players competing for the award.
My top three choices at this time would be Garza, Kansas sophomore point guard Devon Dotson and Dayton sophomore forward Obi Toppin
You couldn’t go wrong picking any of the three, but Garza’s individual statistics under tough circumstances should give him a slight edge.
Garza has gone from being a good player as a freshman and sophomore to a dominant player as a junior. It’s hard to think of Hawkeye, male or female, who has improved more than Garza has from one season to another.
Former Iowa quarterback Brad Banks, former Iowa running back Shonn Greene and former defensive back Josh Jackson are three that come to mind.
But that’s about it.
The case against Garza would be that Iowa, with a 20-10 record, has too many losses for him to be named the National Player of the Year.
Especially when compared to Dotson and Toppin, whose teams are 26-3 and 27-2, respectively.
However, part of the reasons Iowa has 10 losses, including eight in conference play, is because the Big Ten teams just beat up on each other, whereas in the Big 12, Kansas and Baylor are vastly superior to the other eight teams in the conference.
Dotson is a remarkable talent, one of the best point guards to ever play at Kansas, and that speaks volumes.
But he is also surrounded by a better supporting cast than Garza and he plays in a conference that isn’t as deep or as competitive as the Big Ten, which has eight teams ranked in this week’s Associated Press top 25 poll compared to just two for the Big 12 Conference.
Toppin is also immensely talented, but he plays in the Atlantic 10 Conference, which pales in comparison to the Big Ten.
Garza would appear to be the clear-cut favorite to win Big Ten Player of the Year over Maryland forward Jalen Smith, Michigan State point guard Cassius Winston and Penn State forward Lamar Stevens.
Iowa’s record shouldn’t be as costly for Garza when picking the Big Ten Player of the Year because there is no dominant team in the conference this season.
The top four teams in the conference – Michigan State, Wisconsin, Maryland and Illinois – all currently have either six or seven losses in conference play, and Michigan State is the only one among the four that Iowa hasn’t defeated this season.
The winner of the Iowa-Illinois game on Sunday in Champaign, Ill., will secure a top-four seed and a double-bye in next week's Big Ten Tournament.
And while Iowa’s depleted roster probably won’t figure much in picking the National Player of the Year, it should.
Iowa has played most of the season without starting point guard Jordan Bohannon and starting forward Jack Nunge due to injuries.
Starting guard C.J. Fredrick also has missed several games due to injuries, while freshman forward Patrick McCaffery has only played in two games due to health reasons.
That’s a lot to overcome, and yet, Iowa still is a lock to make the NCAA Tournament, largely because of Garza’s dominance.
I asked Fran McCaffery if Iowa’s injuries should help Garza’s cause.
“It could,” McCaffery said. “I don't know if everybody that is thinking that way is really going to look at it that closely. They're just going to kind of look at him.
“I think it's probably something that should be considered. You deal with us every day, so you understand that. Not everybody else does I'm guessing.”
Former Iowa women’s basketball player Megan Gustafson was an easy choice for National Player of the Year last season due to her individual dominance and her team’s success.
Garza isn’t an easy choice for National Player of the Year, but his statistics compare favorably with all of the other contenders.
He also plays in arguably the toughest conference in the country, and for a team that has been decimated by injuries and was considered an NCAA bubble team at best heading into the season.
That's a lot for the other players to overcome.