Luka Garza NBA Combine 2021: Measurements, Analysis and Impressions

Iowa star Luka Garza has officially measured in at 6'11¼" with shoes on at the 2021 NBA Draft Combine. 

Per NBA.com, Garza weighed in at 242.8 pounds with a standing reach of 8'11½". His hands measured in at 9" long and 9¼" wide. 

Garza's weight on Tuesday was significantly lower than what he played at for the Hawkeyes last season:

B/R's Jonathan Wasserman noted leading up to the combine that scouts were keeping an eye on Garza's weight loss because they did "question his defensive mobility and offensive quickness" at the next level. 

Garza has one of the most impressive resumes of any player in this year's class. The 22-year-old led the Hawkeyes to a 22-9 record and was the consensus National Player of the Year in 2020-21. 

Despite the many accolades Garza racked up at the college level, his NBA prospects are uncertain at this stage of the process. 

Sports Illustrated's Jeremy Woo wrote in March that the two-time All-American isn't highly regarded in draft circles because of his lack of quickness, particularly on the defensive end against more athletic big men. 

Woo specifically cited Iowa's 82-71 loss to Illinois in the Big Ten tournament when Illini center Kofi Cockburn scored 26 points on 11-of-17 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds primarily matched up against Garza. 

Here's what one executive for a Western Conference team told Woo about Garza as a draft prospect:

“Even looking at it favorably, I don’t think he can go in the first round. But I do think he has to get drafted. There’s too much positivity around his motor, production and who he is as a human being. In the second round, you can’t say you’re not going to think about giving him a chance to find a role. But how many people [in the NBA] will you find who think he’s a first-rounder? Not many.”

Wasserman has Garza ranked as the No. 50 prospect in the 2021 class right now, though he did point out "there isn't a big difference between the late 40s and Nos. 50-70 range."

If Garza can put separation between himself and some of the other players in that range during the combine, it would certainly help his chances of getting drafted in the second round. 

Based on the work that Garza has clearly put in at the gym to get his weight down by 20 pounds since the end of the college season in March, he is at least showing the motivation to get better. 

Garza's college production over the past four seasons was significant. The Washington, D.C., native averaged 24.1 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game in 31 starts as a senior. He also shot 44.0 percent from three-point range on 3.2 attempts per contest.