The Iowa Hawkeyes have watched yet another player decide to enter the NCAA transfer portal.
The Iowa Hawkeyes may have a new head coach in Ben McCollum, but the team is still reeling from the departure of several key players to the transfer portal. Chris is the latest player to announce his decision to enter the portal, marking the eighth Iowa player to do so since the firing of long-time head coach Fran McCaffery.
A 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward, arrived at Iowa as a highly regarded three-star recruit but saw limited action during his freshman season. In 11 games played, Tadjo averaged just 1.7 points and 1.2 rebounds per contest, contributing five minutes of play per game while shooting an efficient 50 percent from the floor. Despite his limited role, his decision to transfer further adds to the list of changes following McCaffery’s dismissal.
Tadjo was one of two scholarship players to join the Hawkeyes last year, alongside Cooper Koch, who also entered the transfer portal earlier. With both players opting for new opportunities, the Iowa roster continues to see significant turnover as McCollum prepares for his first season in charge.
Since taking over the reins of the program, McCollum, formerly of Drake, has already brought in a major addition to the Iowa roster. Bennett Stirtz, a standout guard who led the Missouri Valley Conference in scoring this past season, joined the Hawkeyes through the transfer portal. Stirtz’s addition is a key early success for McCollum, who is looking to rebuild the program after a tumultuous year.
Under McCollum’s leadership, Drake enjoyed tremendous success, finishing with a 31-5 record and earning an NCAA Tournament berth, where they were eliminated by Texas Tech in the second round. McCollum now faces the challenge of rebuilding an Iowa program that finished with a disappointing 17-16 record last season, including a 7-13 mark in Big Ten play. The Hawkeyes failed to make the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year, marking a stark contrast to the three straight tournament appearances they had under McCaffery.
As the Hawkeyes continue to adjust to a new coaching regime, the departures of Tadjo and other key players signal that McCollum has a significant rebuilding task ahead. However, with the addition of Stirtz and a fresh outlook on the team, Iowa fans will be watching closely to see how McCollum’s tenure unfolds in the coming months.
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