Iowa's Bennett Stirtz drawing rave reviews as potential first-rounder

This past season, Iowa shocked the entire world when it made the program's first Elite Eight in nearly 38 years.

The cornerstone of that squad? Bennett Stirtz.

“[Bennett is] a high-level worker, and any organization will be better for it,” says Iowa assistant Connor Wheeler, who was also at Drake with Stirtz.

He’s one of the craftiest shot-creators in the entire class, and Stirtz, a former Division Two product, didn’t shock anyone with his All-American performance this season. 

“Best way I can sum it up, he’s a winner,” Wheeler said. He also mentioned that nothing Stirtz did is shocking and that his play will translate to the next level.

Stirtz averaged 19.8 points, 4.4 assists, and 2.6 rebounds. The stat that stands out is his minutes. According to Iowa Athletics, Stirtz played 40 minutes or more 17 times this season and set a program record with 1,396 minutes played—an iron man.

According to sources, Stirtz was lights out during the pre-draft process and killed a bunch of his workouts. Among his workouts: Warriors, Bulls, Hornets, Thunder, Raptors.

I asked Wheeler about the person Bennett Stirtz is and how he goes about his work on a day-to-day basis. He said: 

“Awesome kid, great family. His consistency and his focus on getting better each day.”

In closing, Stirtz still has that D2 mindset, and everyone I’ve spoken to about him has given extremely positive reviews and has no doubt that he will see tons of success in the NBA.