2024 Iowa PG commit Aaliyah Guyton suffers a torn ACL

2024 four-star point guard commit Aaliyah Guyton has suffered a torn ACL in her right knee and will miss the remainder of her senior season with Peoria High School per Adam Duvall of the Peoria Journal Star. Guyton went down with a non-contact injury to her knee back on December 29th in a matchup against Lincoln High School in the title game of the Manual Holiday Tournament. She will get a second opinion per the report from Duvall, but the initial diagnosis is that she has suffered a significant injury.

Aaliyah Guyton committed to Iowa back on September 25th over Illinois, Nebraska, Michigan State and Pittsburgh. She also had notable offers from Ohio State, Mississippi State, Missouri, Vanderbilt and Wisconsin. ESPN rates her as the #58 player in the country, while Prep Girls Hoops has her as the #1 player in the state of Illinois.

As a sophomore at Peoria during the 2021-22 year, Guyton averaged 20.2 points, 3.4 assists, 2.7 assists and 2.0 steal per game for a Lions team that went 25-4. She was named Big 12 Conference Player of the Year, while was a unanimous All-Big 12 First Team selection and an IBCA First Team All-State selection.

As a junior during the 2022-23 season, Aaliyah averaged 21.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists for a Lions team that finished in third-place at the Illinois Class 3A State Tournament. She has been named Peoria State Journal Player of the Year each of the last two seasons.

“Aaliyah is one of the best point guards in the nation. She has a tremendous skill set. She controls pace and tempo and can score at every level,” said Lisa Bluder back on national signing day when Guyton made things official with the Hawkeyes. “(Aaliyah) simply makes everybody on the floor around her better. We are so proud she chose to be a Hawkeye and can’t wait for our fans to see her play.”

How does this injury impact the Hawkeyes for next season?

There’s no way to know this early how Guyton will recover from this injury, but it is fair to assume that she will miss at least half of her freshman season at Iowa. That means no summer practice, no fall practice, no exhibition game and no playing experience during non-conference play. The most recent example at Iowa, Kylie Feuerbach tore her ACL in early August of 2022 and still wasn’t quite available for the Hawkeyes summer games in Europe during mid-August of 2023.

Meanwhile, there is a chance that both of the true point guards on Iowa’s current roster are gone next season. Molly Davis spent three years at Central Michigan and is on her second year at Iowa, so her eligibility will be exausted at the end of the season. Then, there’s Caitlin Clark. The National Player of the Year can either use her covid year and return for a fifth year at Iowa or go to the WNBA Draft, where she will go #1 to the Indiana Fever. If Clark opts to go to the WNBA, the Hawkeyes could be looking for an underclassman to take over the point guard job.

Sophomore: Kennise Johnson (2023 #13 player in IL by Prep Girls Hoops)

Freshman: Taylor Stremlow (four-star, #88 player in the country by ESPN), Callie Levin (#2 in IA by Prep Girls Hoops)

Even if Caitlin opts for the WNBA Draft, the Hawkeyes are set to be full on scholarships. What does that mean? A couple of things. It means that Lisa Bluder and her staff likely recruited with the intent that one of the four young point guards would take over when Clark departed. The belief is that it would have been Aaliyah Guyton. She is the highest rated out of the four point guards and has been impressive, not only for Peoria, but on the AAU circuit with Mac Irvin Lady Fire.

If Caitlin Clark departs for the WNBA, it will almost certainly be necessary for Lisa Bluder to go into the transfer portal to find a starting point guard. That would require a player entering the transfer portal, but if that happens, the Hawkeyes are still set to return plenty of talent with Hannah Stuelke, Sydney Affolter, Taylor McCabe, Kylie Feuerbach and Sharon Goodman, while Ava Heiden will join as a highly-rated four-star center. A one-year proven grad transfer or senior at point guard would allow Iowa to develop their young guards and get Aaliyah Guyton back to full health.