For the next month before the 2026 NBA Draft, we’ll take an in-depth look at different prospects here at Liberty Ballers and try to figure out which players would be the best fit for the Sixers at No. 22. Next up in this series is Iowa’s Bennett Stirtz.
If you watched any college basketball the last couple years, you probably know the name Bennett Stirtz. Iowa coach Ben McCollum is one of the rising names in college coaching and Stirtz played for McCollum at each of his previous two jobs before Iowa. It started at a Division II school, Northwest Missouri State. Stirtz was then the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year in his lone season at Drake in 2024-25 and a First-Team All-Big 10 selection with the Hawkeyes. So with just one season of high-major Division I basketball under his belt, what makes Stirtz a first-round pick?
Profile
2025-26 Stats: 37 games, 37.7 minutes, 19.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.4 steals, 0.2 blocks, 47.7% FG, 35.8% 3P, 84.8% FT
Team: Iowa Hawkeyes
Year: Senior
Position: PG
Height & Weight: 6’4” | 190 lbs
Born: October 3, 2003 (23 years old at start of 2026-27 season)
Hometown: Liberty, Missouri
Strengths
The most obvious strength that stood out for Stirtz in a positive way in college was his outside shot. He doesn’t need much time to let it fly from beyond the arc, he’s got deep range and his form looks pretty smooth. For a player projected to go in the back half of the first round, you would expect Stirtz to at least begin his NBA career off the bench and his shooting ability gives him a nice floor as a rookie that can play anywhere from 10-to-20 minutes per night and knock down some shots.
However, Stirtz is more than just a spot-up shooter. He’s pretty effective in the pick-and-roll offensively both as a scorer getting to the basket and as a playmaker finding his teammates in the paint. It’s this combination of skills from the outside in that could make him a pretty effective offensive player at the next level. If he were to receive a lot of ball screens far away from the basket, defenses would have to respect the fact that he’s a more than capable outside shooter and honor his ability to make deep threes. But paying too much respect to his shot could allow Stirtz some room to maneuver past defenders on the perimeter and get inside where he’d be both an effective finisher and passer. He also shot free throws very well in the Big 10 last season. In general, he’s a very good decision maker which again makes him a threat in the pick-and-roll game.
Weaknesses
Despite his high basketball IQ and shooting ability, Stirtz is not an elite athlete. Inherently, this could lower his offensive ceiling in the NBA as he may not be able to get to the right spots in halfcourt sets if he’s being guarded by someone that’s quicker and more athletic. McCollum’s teams were known for their slow pace too and so don’t expect Stirtz to thrive in transition either. Plus, at just 190 pounds, scoring in the paint could certainly be more complicated for the soon-to-be 23-year-old guard. His ability to create off the dribble against better athletes might make or break his NBA career.
Naturally, when you’re not a great athlete, there are going to be concerns about your defensive upside. It’s one thing to be able to get by offensively with a good feel for the game and smart timing instincts. But those things are harder to rely on when you’re guarding someone that’s probably just faster than you or would more easily be able to take you to the basket and finish above you and get more vertical. This is also where Stirtz’s age might hurt him in the draft as there are going to be concerns about if there’s anything left as far as physical development for someone that turns 23 before the season starts.
Positional Fit
It’s hard to argue for Stirtz anywhere other than point guard in the NBA. If he was a better athlete or an inch or two taller, perhaps there would an argument for him as an effective combo guard. But his skillset is best utilized as a point guard who is playing mostly on the ball offensively. Granted, his shooting is good enough to potentially use him in some smaller lineups as a shooting guard. But in those lineups, don’t expect Stirtz to do much offensively other than catch and shoot. The best fit for Stirtz is a team that needs both shooting and playmaking offensively, and has a couple of good athletic wing defenders to play with Stirtz on the other end of the floor.
Draft Projection
SB Nation Mock Draft: No. 19, Toronto Raptors
In this mock, Stirtz lands in the Atlantic Division, but plays north of the border with the Toronto Raptors who select him at 19th overall. It looks like his projection is right around Philly’s 22nd overall pick in the first round. If you’re not interested in re-signing Quentin Grimes, then suddenly Stirtz becomes an intriguing option for the Sixers. Wouldn’t that be something after one of the reasons for trading Jared McCain was that Philly had too many guards?
As a backup to Tyrese Maxey, Stirtz could make some sense for the Sixers. He could spell Maxey ,who always plays a ton of minutes, and give Philly some much-needed scoring punch off the bench. But if you’re looking for someone like Maxey who was drafted outside of the lottery, started on the bench, and became an impact starter later in his rookie contract, Stirtz might not be your guy. There’s simply no world in which lineups of Maxey, VJ Edgecombe and Stirtz would ever make sense.
Consider Stirtz more of a floor option than a ceiling option for the Sixers in this month’s first round. He could come in and be a useful seventh or eighth man in a playoff rotation come next spring and there’s no denying Philly needs those kinds of players. But if you’re looking for someone that has a mix of a high enough floor to play early and upside to grow into a much bigger role with the team, you should probably look elsewhere.
