By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Has Payton Sandfort played his final game for the Iowa men’s basketball team?

If you would have asked me that question before he entered the 2024 NBA draft process, I would have said, ‘of course, not.’

I didn’t take it too seriously when Payton Sandfort announced that he would explore the draft process.

The 6-foot-7 junior from Waukee has nothing to lose by going through the NBA Draft process while maintaining his college eligibility.

The NBA Draft Combine, which starts on Sunday in Chicago, is an opportunity for players to showcase their skills in front of scouts and evaluators.

Testing the draft process worked for former Iowa forward Kris Murray in the spring of 2022 as he would go on to become a first-round pick in the 2023 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers.

I just assumed that Payton Sandfort would gather information, show NBA scouts where his game stands right now and then return to Iowa for his senior season.

And while that is still my belief, it is no longer my assumption.

Payton Sandfort has until May 29 to make a final decision, and to keep making a case for why an NBA team should pick him in the two-round draft.

The fact that he is among the 78 players invited to the NBA Draft Combine certainly would suggest that he is on the NBA’s radar.

Payton Sandfort might lack NBA quickness, but he is far from being slow of foot.

He is a legitimate 6-foot-7, and he can shoot threes off the dribble, off screens and from a stationary position.

He also plays with a mentality in which he believes every shot he takes is going in, even if he has missed a bunch in a row.

Payton Sandfort was known mostly as a streak shooter in his first two seasons as a Hawkeye, but he expanded his game this past season and made history by recording the first triple double in program history with 26 points 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a win over Penn State.

A triple-double doesn’t just happen by accident.

It takes skill and versatility.

When I think of current NBA players that would draw comparisons to Payton Sandfort, former Michigan forward Duncan Robinson comes to mind.

I would’ve given Robinson little chance of making an NBA roster when he left Michigan.

But he just finished his sixth season with the Miami Heat and has averaged double figures in scoring in four of his six seasons.

Robinson is also one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA, and that certainly has helped him become an impact performer.

If a player does one thing exceptionally well, it helps their chance of sticking in the league.

Robinson, who is listed at 6-7 and 215 pounds, is almost identical from a size standpoint to Payton Sandfort, who is also listed at 6-7 and 215 pounds.

It only takes one team to like a player enough to pick him in the first round, and perhaps there is a team thinking seriously about picking Payton Sandfort.

He still seems more likely to be picked in the second round, if at all.

But what if he performs well at the combine?

Fran McCaffery, meanwhile, is in a tough situation, because of course, he wants what is best for Payton Sandfort, but also what is best for his team.

And what’s best for Iowa is for Payton Sandfort to return next season, obviously.

Fran McCaffery already is without Tony Perkins, Ben Krikke and his son, Patrick McCaffery, from last season’s team, along with sophomore guard Dasonte Bowen.

That’s a lot of points, rebounds, assists and leadership that will have to be replaced.

Iowa landed former Morehead State guard Drew Thelwell from the transfer portal in April and will host former Manhattan forward Seydou Traore on a visit on Sunday.

The 6-7 Traore averaged 11.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game last season. He shot 43.3 percent from the field, 25.6 from three and 80 percent from the free throw line.

Fran McCaffery said recently on the Hawk Fanatic radio show and podcast that he still wanted to sign a frontline player from the portal.

Iowa fell short in landing Massachusetts forward Matt Cross, who recently committed to Southern Methodist University after having visited Iowa.

Fran McCaffery needs another piece to build around Big Ten Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman on the frontline.

But what Fran McCaffery needs perhaps more than anything is for Payton Sandfort to return next season.

The NBA will have a lot to say about that.