The first year of the Ben McCollum Iowa era was an overwhelming success, as the Hawkeyes finished with a 24-13 record and made a run to the Elite Eight. McCollum is now viewed as one of the hottest head coaches in college basketball, and his name will surely come up for some massive openings in the near future. However, while McCollum is an awesome coach, let’s not forget that he has had Bennett Stirtz, one of the best point guards in the nation, with him at his last three stops — Iowa, Drake, and Northwest Missouri State. 

Stirtz is a special player and deserves a lot of credit for McCollum’s success. And now, the 6-foot-4 guard will try his luck in the pros, where his game — and analytic profile — could make him a steal in the 2026 NBA Draft. 

Stirtz is often profiled as a high-level shooter and creator. Knocking down 2.6 triples per game — with a bunch of them being difficult off-the-dribble attempts — and shooting 84.8% from the line is no joke, and Stirtz also averaged 4.4 assists per game despite playing for one of the slowest teams in college basketball (62.4 Adjusted Tempo - third-slowest in NCAA). 

Stirtz has a gorgeous jumper and infinite range, and he only needs a sliver of space to get his shot off. Also, when he moves off the ball, he’s absolutely deadly in catch-and-shoot situations. He knocked down a little over 50% of his spot-up triples with Iowa, which is big considering he could play some two-guard in the NBA. 

Stritz is also a low-turnover on-ball option, can make every pass you need out of your primary initiator, and should only look better playing at an increased pace, with NBA spacing. Stirtz did have a massive role in the Hawkeyes offense, as he was counted on to do absolutely everything for Iowa. He might not have the exact same freedoms in the NBA, but he’ll have better scorers and shooters around him. He’ll also have a green light to be a little more aggressive and creative early in the shot clock. 

It’s not surprising that Stirtz’s shooting and playmaking ability draw most of the attention when diving into his game. However, Stirtz’s lack of speed, leaping ability, and first-step explosion seem to lead to some underselling of what he can do inside the three-point line. This is a player that can really score, and he’s more than just a shooter. 

Stirtz might not have the speed or wiggle of some of the NBA’s best downhill-attacking guards, but he has great footwork, understands changing speeds, and really has counters for everything. He wills himself to his spots, even if it doesn’t always look pretty. Stirtz also has incredible touch around the basket, which is backed up by his 74.4% shooting at the rim with the Hawkeyes. On top of that, he shot 50.8% on mid-range twos. Both of those percentages put him in the 92nd percentile in college basketball. 

It just feels a little like Stirtz’s lack of athletic pop could mean that he’s being mislabeled a bit as a prospect. The shooting might be the most likely trait to translate to the next level, but there’s a chance he’s a heck of a lot better as an overall scorer than people think he’ll be, which could mean that he belongs in the same tier as some of the other elite on-ball options in this draft, like Darius Acuff Jr., Kingston Flemings, Keaton Wagler, Mikel Brown Jr., and Labaron Philon Jr. 

Stirtz just seems to have a lot in common with players like Austin Reaves and Jalen Brunson, who are far more effective in the paint — and a little outside of it — than you’d think given their physical profiles. But during the draft process, elite touch and feel can occasionally be underrated as skills. 

If you’re going to worry about Stirtz somewhere, it should be on the defensive end. He does have decent size for a lead guard, and his basketball IQ helps him to at least be active in passing lanes and do what he can to get his hands on the basketball. However, the lack of footspeed does hurt him on this end of the floor. And overall, there’s a good chance he’ll be hunted when he’s on the floor. Ideally, Stirtz will be able to defend twos more often than ones, but things don’t always go to plan. He’s badly going to need to work on getting stronger and opening up his hips, and even doing that to the highest possible degree might not help much. 

Even with Stirtz being a negative on the defensive end, he’s still a player that’s worth a bet — and a sizable one — by an NBA front office. He’s a great consolation prize for a team that misses out on some of the other top guards, and there’s a real chance he makes some of the teams that pass on him pay. Stirtz has done nothing but exceed expectations throughout his college career. He successfully made the jump from Division II to mid-major Division I when he left Northwest Missouri State for Drake. Then, after a highly successful season with the Bulldogs, people wondered if he would look like a star in the Big Ten. Well, as always, Stirtz aced the test in front of him. Who’s to say he won’t do the same in the NBA, with his supreme on-ball ability scaling up and blowing people away at the highest level imaginable?