Joe Wieskamp says he's returning for junior season at Iowa

Joe Wieskamp delivered Iowa basketball fans some excellent news Saturday afternoon, announcing that he would return to the Hawkeyes for his junior season.

Wieskamp will not explore the NBA Draft process, as he did following his freshman season. Considering he got some initial feedback last year, it was unlikely that he would learn too much new information this time around — especially with the uncertainty surrounding the pre-draft process amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, Wieskamp can plow forward knowing he is going to be a Hawkeye fixture for the 2020-21 season.

"My goal is to play in the NBA, and I'm looking forward to that possibility in the future," Wieskamp said, through the University of Iowa. "However, I'm extremely excited for this upcoming season at Iowa! We have the opportunity to do something really special."

Wieskamp averaged 14.0 points as a sophomore for Iowa, which was 20-11 and about to begin the Big Ten Tournament when the rest of the season was canceled due to the coronavirus. The 6-foot-6 wing player with excellent rebounding and defensive skills was a third-team all-Big Ten pick. He has 823 points in 66 career games at Iowa.

A few weeks ago, first-team all-America center Luka Garza announced he would explore the NBA process but indicated that he was most likely returning to the Hawkeyes for his senior season. Guard Jordan Bohannon continues to await word on whether he'll receive a fifth year of eligibility after December hip surgery; but he should get approval.

If Garza and Bohannon both return to the Hawkeyes, coupled with the returns of Connor and Patrick McCaffery, CJ Fredrick, Jack Nunge and Joe Toussaint, Fran McCaffery's 11th Iowa roster could be his best yet.