BROOKLYN — Iowa basketball’s Bennett Stirtz is going to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Memphis Grizzlies selected Stirtz with the 16th pick in the 2026 NBA Draft on June 23 but are trading him to Oklahoma City, according to multiple reports.
Stirtz is Iowa’s first NBA Draft pick since 2023. The Murray twins were the last two Hawkeyes to do so. Keegan was the fourth overall pick in 2022, and Kris was the 23rd overall pick in 2023.
Stirtz is one of the more improbable stories among the first-round picks in this year’s draft. He began his career at Division II level before making a meteoric rise to the Big Ten. After two seasons at Northwest Missouri State, Stirtz transferred to Drake, where he earned Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year recognition. Then he spent his final college season at Iowa, where he was an All-Big Ten selection.
Stirtz scored more than 2,300 points in his accomplished college career, all of which came under head coach Ben McCollum.
In his lone season at Iowa, Stirtz averaged 19.8 points, 4.4 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game. He exploded for at least 32 points on three occasions last season, including a career-high 36 against Northwestern.
Stirtz ranks fourth on the single-season scoring list in Iowa program history (734), eighth in field goals made (251) and tied for fifth in 3-point field goals made (92).
What makes Stirtz’s scoring even more impressive is his efficiency. Despite being extremely high usage, Stirtz finished his senior season shooting 47.7% from the field, 35.8% from deep and 84.8% from the free throw line. Stirtz shot 12-of-15 from the field against Oregon, 8-of-10 against UCLA and 8-of-13 against Washington.
Stirtz was a part of the Hawkeyes’ thrilling March Madness run. McCollum took over a program that hadn’t been to the NCAA Tournament since 2023 and hadn’t won a game in the Big Dance since 2021. In his first season at the helm, the Hawkeyes advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1987.
Iowa would not have been in that position if it weren’t for everything Stirtz provided over the course of the season. Part of Stirtz’s Hawkeye legacy will be that he helped lay the foundation for the beginning of the McCollum era.
After a remarkable college career, which spanned three programs in four seasons, Stirtz now makes the leap to the professional ranks.
Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at TTachman@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on Hawk Central: Iowa basketball’s Bennett Stirtz picked 16th in NBA Draft, then traded
Reporting by Tyler Tachman, Des Moines Register / Hawk Central
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By Tyler Tachman, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
