6 days till Iowa Hoops: Jaidyn Coon
· Yahoo Sports
With Iowa’s exhibition in the books, all that awaits is the start of the season next Tuesday! Next up is one of two true freshmen: Jaidyn Coon!
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#6 – Jaidyn Coon, G/F, 6’6” 220 lbs
1st year; Storm Lake, IA; Storm Lake
2025-26: Iowa Mr. Basketball; 22 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.7 SPG, 53.2% FG, 29.8% 3P, 64.1% FT
The incoming freshman was a generational hooper out of Storm Lake. In his final two seasons, he led the Tornadoes to back-to-back state tournament appearances which were their first since 1980. Before this past season’s lone victory in the tourney, Storm Lake had not won a game since 1980 as well.
It is easy to see why he was Mr. Basketball in the state. His high school highlights look like a man going against boys:
L O L
Simply put: the kid likes to dunk. So much of the reel is him just sizing up his opponent as he figures out how to dunk on the poor guy.
The thing about Coon is at the time of the highlight, he was happily committed to Creighton. But a lot happened in the early part of 2026. Most notably, Greg McDermott retired which cracked the door open for Coon’s recruitment. Iowa also went on a tournament run to validate the proof of concept Ben McCollum was building in Iowa City. To bring it home, a native son of Storm Lake himself, McCollum was able to flip the in-state prospect (ranked just outside 100) to the Hawks.
Given Coon is the first guy who we’re looking at after Iowa’s exhibition, his role has some hints to it. He was the only freshman off the bench and was the 11th guy who saw time (behind Peyton McCollum and Joey Matteoni). He came in like a man on fire, shooting a 3, committing a pair of fouls, and missing an alley-top attempt. He settled in for a dunk before checking out in about 4 minutes of game time.
Energy will be the name of the game for him. Can he come in and be a pest like Tavion Banks was last year guarding opponents in the backcourt? Finish dunks (he had 3 last night after his first miss) and provide energy on the boards. He missed 3 threes so maybe not his game just yet.
Iowa’s depth hampers his prospects of playing significant time. He’s competing with Isaia Howard and Tate Sage for those minutes on the wing. But if he has his nose to the grind stone and continues to elevate in McCollum’s circle of trust, he will make an impact with his energy and athleticism.