What is Iowa getting in four-star Pryce Sandfort?

Four-star Pryce Sandfort just committed to Iowa. Let’s dive into what this commitment brings to Fran McCaffery’s program.

Just two years ago, the San Antonio Spurs drafted Joe Wieskamp at No. 41 in the NBA Draft. The 6-foot-6 wing ended his three-year Iowa career with 1,283 career points and shot 41.2-percent from three.

Wieskamp is the comparison Hawkeye coaches used for Sandfort. He was the player the staff showed Sandfort film of to suggest he would be used in the system.

Sandfort’s game

Pryce Sandfort’s versatility is what really pops off the page after watching him. Playing with D1 Minnesota this summer on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit, his game was like a chameleon from game to game. What I mean by that is defining the different roles he played.

The 6-foot-6 guard can be a connective piece around other high-level players. His ability to create, shoot, and pass, at his size, enables a coach to put a lot of different lineups around him.

Throughout the Adidas Championships, Sandford showed he could take on a featured role within the offense. Sandfort averaged 16.2-points, 6.2-rebounds, and 2.0-assists per game in Rock Hill, South Carolina. He shot 41.3-percent from three.

Still slender, there will be questions about Sandfort’s overall athleticism, both laterally and vertically. Defensively, Sandfort is a good team defender with great instincts. The analytics support the eye test on this.

A look through Sandfort’s Synergy breakdown from this summer’s Adidas Circuit shows the wing gave up 0.658 points per possession. This statistic puts him in the 64th percentile among his peers, which Synergy grades as ‘good.’

Iowa’s 2023 class

Three-star PG Brock Harding
Three-star C Owen Freeman

Final thoughts

Basketball is about creating opportunities, creating shots. Teams at the highest level cannot have too many of these guys on the floor. Especially in Fran McCaffery’s system, that is at its best when it has multiple guys on the floor who can create and knock down shots.

Pryce Sandfort is a connective piece, a player you can put in multiple roles to fit various situations. He is an instinctive team defender on the wing. He is a tough rebounder. And he can initiate offense and knock down shots at a high level.

On3 currently has Sandfort at No. 99 in the 2023 rankings. When you average the other three major scouting company’s rankings of 135, NR, and 135, Sandfort’s industry-standard On3 Consensus is No. 141. The guard will go to a system-fit that has shown success with skilled, versatile players like Sandfort.

The younger brother of rising sophomore Payton Sandfort wanted to go through the recruiting process. Programs like Clemson, Nebraska, and Seton Hall offered. Fran McCaffery locked in, and Sandfort’s familiarity with his home state’s program won out in the end.