Hawkeyes offer 2021 big man

The Covid-19 pandemic has hurt a lot of basketball prospects in the Class of 2021 who might have already been flying a little bit under the radar.

Some prospects were quick to get discovered, while others, like Andrew Morgan, have been slower to pick up steam on the recruiting trail. That all changed for the 6-foot-9 big man from Minnesota on Tuesday when Iowa extended a scholarship offer, his first from a high major school.

“If we were playing this spring, I really believe that Andrew would have had a good number of high major offers, so I am really happy and commend Iowa for giving him a chance and offering this week instead of waiting to see him live,” said Willie Vang, his coach with the Minnesota Heat AAU program. “We were texting last night and he was pretty excited about the Iowa offer.”

Vang has been a strong believer in Morgan, who is a sturdy and athletic big man with a strong game in the post.

“I’ve always believed he could play at the Big Ten level,” he said. “He can score with his back to the basket and has the ability to step out and shoot the ball out to the three point line with pretty good confidence. He’s also athletic enough that he can switch out on screens and does a good job on the defensive end of the floor.”

Prior to the Iowa offer, Morgan had already been offered by South Dakota State and North Dakota State. Since his recruitment isn’t fully formed, Morgan is going to take his time and see if a live period this fall emerges and continue to assess his options.

“I don’t think he’s in a hurry and that makes sense. I think he’s still early in the process and wants to see if we can get some live periods so schools can come and watch him play. I think the Iowa offer will get more schools taking more interest,” Vang said.