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Iowa Basketball: Why Luka Garza should win National Player of the Year

By Brian Rauf

COLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND - JANUARY 30: Luka Garza #55 of the Iowa Hawkeyes dribbles past Darryl Morsell #11 of the Maryland Terrapins during the first half at Xfinity Center on January 30, 2020 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
COLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND - JANUARY 30: Luka Garza #55 of the Iowa Hawkeyes dribbles past Darryl Morsell #11 of the Maryland Terrapins during the first half at Xfinity Center on January 30, 2020 in College Park, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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Luka Garza
IOWA CITY, IOWA- FEBRUARY 8: Forward Luka Garza #55 and guard Nicolas Hobbs #24 of the Iowa Hawkeyes (Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images) /

Iowa basketball big man Luka Garza is up for college basketball’s National Player of the Year award. Here’s why he was the country’s best player in 2019-20.

Iowa basketball center Luka Garza was an overwhelming first-team All-American selection and the clear choice for Big Ten Player of the Year, and he has been right at the forefront of the National Player of the Year race all season long.

That race is down to him and Dayton’s Obi Toppin, and each has already won one of the six major NPOY awards, something that hasn’t happened since Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield and Michigan State’s Denzel Valentine did so in 2016.

Toppin picked up the latest award on Tuesday handed out by the Associated Press, earning 10 more votes than Garza, who finished second (Garza already ousted Toppin for the Sporting News award).

The case for the star Flyer is obvious, too. He was the unquestioned best player on a historically great Dayton team that was in line to earn a No. 1 seed before the season was abruptly canceled, showing the kind of dominant and flashy skill set that made him perhaps the most exciting player in the country. Toppin is also projected to be a top 10 pick in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft, while Garza’s stock ranges anywhere from a mid-second round selection to undrafted.

Still, despite Toppin’s impressive resume and accolades – all of which he deserves, and I’m on record saying he’ll be the best pro in this draft class – there is no question in my mind that Garza separated himself and deserves to be recognized as the best player in the country for the 2019-2020 season.

Here are four reasons why:

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