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Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, basically the Phil Steele version of college basketball, named Iowa’s Luka Garza its preseason player of the year for the (presumptive) 2020-21 season.
@IowaHoops @LukaG_55 has been chosen national preseason player of the year in the 40th-anniversary edition of Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook. Here's a preview of the long-form profile we wrote about him in our new weekly newsletter. https://t.co/0ojBtZQGel pic.twitter.com/t7vNxDO9AJ
— Chris Dortch (@cdortch) August 27, 2020
Garza pleasantly surprised the world when he announced his decision to return for his senior season. Thus we expect Blue Ribbon’s designation to be the first of many preseason accolades for Garza as the wheel in the sky turns closer to the period formerly known as basketball season.
Chris Dortch, the man behind BRCBY, wrote glowingly of Garza in a preview of his profile, citing Iowa’s early insistence on Garza helped him make his college decision.
“Lefty loved my game,” Garza says. “When I first met him, at that point, high majors weren’t interested enough to make an offer, except Iowa. So Lefty says, ‘where do you want to go to school? What’s your dream school?” And then he gets on the phone with coach K [Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski] and [North Carolina’s] Roy Williams. I actually got a letter from Duke. That showed how much Lefty believed in me.
In related news, Jordan Bohannon reported seven members of the team have tested positive over the past three weeks. Better now than later.