Get to Know a Gopher: Isaiah Ihnen

Who?

- Isaiah Ihnen yields from Boeblingen, Germany and was the final recruit to commit to Coach Richard Pitino’s 2019 class. The 6’ 9” forward played at the International Basketball Academy Munich last season stuffing the stat sheet with averages of 13.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.0 block while shooting 54.3% from the field. The Gophers were able to snag the projectable forward who is ranked by some services as a top 100 player late in the sighing period. According to 247, Ihnen currently ranks as the 105th player in his class.

Fun Fact

- Ihnen logged 12.5 minutes per game for the bronze medal-winning German U20 National Team at the 2019 FIBA U20 European championship.

What can we expect?

- Isaiah figures to garner as much playing time as his learning curve allows. The measurables are certainly favorable. Coach Pitino has been quoted as saying Ihnen is “Really talented... can shoot the ball. When you watch him, you can see that’s a talented-looking player right there — or a talented prospect. Put on a little bit of weight and I do think the sky is the limit for him.” Based on this quote, it would seem that Coach views the German as a somewhat raw prospect that is still growing into his body. I’m sure that defensive concepts and successfully integrating into an offense will dictate just how much playing time Ihnen earns during the 2019-2020 season. With the injury to fellow forward Eric Curry, more playing time has become available and Isaiah might be the benefactor. With so many new faces, it’s hard to tell just how much run the versatile forward will get but there is certainly a lot of excitement surrounding the lengthy and talented prospect.