Bennett Stirtz (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
You know what they say in basketball- “shooters got to shoot.” You definitely need your sharpshooters to have confidence, and Iowa Hawkeyes point guard Bennett Stirtz has that; in spades.
When it comes to player comparisons, he’s set the bar very high for himself- reigning NBA MVP and NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
In an exclusive with RG.org, Stirtz discussed what makes the Oklahoma City Thunder point guard so special, and what he hopes to emulate: “just how he can get to the rim, shifty, and get to his spots. Obviously, my mid-range isn’t a high volume like him.”
Stirtz obviously has a ways to go to reach the level where SGA resides, but right now he’s the highest level NBA Draft prospect in the Big Ten conference, and one of the best rated guards in the entire 2026 NBA draft class.
He is projected to go somewhere in the middle of the first round, possibly in the late lottery, but maybe even slightly higher than that. When the University of Iowa hired Ben McCollum away from Drake this past spring, Stirtz was one of six players who followed him to Iowa City.
“It’s a testament to the relationship we have with our players,” McCollum said to RG at Big Ten Media Day.
“They wanted to be a part of our program, they wanted to be with our staff still, and play in our system.”
Stirtz Adjusting Quickly
In 2024, Stirtz made the transition from NCAA Division II to Division I when he transferred from Northwest Missouri State to Drake. In going from Drake to Iowa, he has now made the jump from a mid-major program to a power conference team.
“I think as he goes up levels, he gets better,” McCollum added, noting that he believes Stirtz is ready for the league right now, mentioning how the rules and officiating styles work in his player’s favor, because: “the point of NBA basketball is to score a lot of points.”
To be that kind of volume scorer, you’re going to need a true “shooter’s mentality,” and Stirtz discussed how and when he developed his.
“That’s what I learned the most, coming from D2 to D1,” Stirtz said.
“I was in my head a whole lot. When I was shooting a three and was thinking about making it, instead of just shooting it.
And then I kind of changed my mentality, and Coach Mack helped with that: just having that confidence each and every time you shoot the ball, knowing that it’s going in. Even if it doesn’t, keep shooting it.”
We asked Stirtz who his all-time favorite player was, and when he responded with Lebron James, the next question was naturally about “The Decision 2,” which occurred just two days before this interview was conducted.
In the summer of 2010, James staged a reality TV special for which the only purpose was to announce which NBA team he was going to sign with. A very polarizing publicity stunt at the time, Lebron still brought the concept back 15 years later, as he blatantly teased what was anticipated to be a major announcement.
Speculation mounted that it might even be his own retirement.
It was actually nothing more than an advertisement, and as you might imagine, this wasn’t well received.
“That was crazy,” Stirtz responded in a humorous tone while grinning. “What was that?!”
James may not be retiring right now, but he has been in the league for well over 20 years, and during this time, we’ve seen the NBA make a massive shift to a more “small ball” approach. It’s been a guard-centric league for a few years now.
“Yeah, especially,” said the 2025 winner of both the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year and Missouri Valley Newcomer of the Year awards.
“I feel like, if you’re big and can’t shoot, that’s a problem now, and back in the day, it wasn’t.”
Stirtz Discusses His Skillset
Stirtz had a very strong NCAA tournament for Drake this past March, scoring 21 points and dishing out eight assists in the round one opening win over Missouri. He then put up a 21 and four in the elimination loss to Texas Tech in the second round. This helped answer questions about how the Liberty, Missouri native would, or could, fare against stronger opponents.
The promising prospect then discussed what he’s working on to improve his game and to level up once again.
“Defensively would be the main thing,” said Stirtz. “Just being able to get a stop on anyone, at any given moment. I think that’s the biggest step that I can (take).
“Offensively, just choosing my spots, just working on my reads, and just creating shots off the dribble.”
There are NBA scouts who question whether or not he has that top-end athleticism, but Stirtz possesses numerous other positive attributes that more than make up for it.
“I think I can really shoot it,” Stirtz responded when we asked what he thinks his strongest selling points are.
“There’s more space on the NBA court too. So I’m not used to all that space, and I’ve always had the ball in my hands in college. So if I can play off-ball, I can really shoot it out there.
“And then in ball screens too, I can pick and choose my spots. Obviously, get the big involved and pick-and-pop. So just a threat in the ball screen as well.”
In addition to his shot-making, Stirtz brings a high basketball IQ, strong analytics, great ball-handling, a stellar ability to finish at the rim and excellent decision-making to the table. He’s been described as crafty, and you can see that in action whether he’s bringing the ball up to set up the offense, or playing off the ball around the wing. So he has some versatility.
Iowa Hawkeyes basketball has certainly been high-scoring and sometimes even record-setting in recent years under the coach Fran McCaffery, but the program still stagnated under his leadership.
It was time for a new direction, and we now have a fresh start in Iowa City this season. McCollum brings a fun-to-watch, up-tempo style to Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
“He recruits the right guys,” said Stirtz of his head coach. “And I think it’s as simple as that. Like, we don’t have anyone with the ego.
“And I think a lot of teams do; that they just take whoever they want in the portal. Our guys really care about the team and the community and Iowa city as a whole.
They don’t care about themselves, and they’re not here for themselves. They’re here to win games.”