Josh Dix's Hard Work Paying Off

Iowa Basketball Freshman A Year Removed from Significant Injury

Iowa's Josh Dix (4) shoots over Michigan's Kobe Bufkin on Jan. 12, 2023 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. (Rob Howe/HawkeyeNation.com)

IOWA CITY, Iowa - In the days after suffering a significant leg injury, Josh Dix wondered what direction his basketball career was headed.

The all-stater from Abraham Lincoln in Council Bluffs, who had already signed a binding letter of intent with Iowa, broke both the tibia and fibula in his right leg in the closing minutes of a game against LeMars on Jan. 20, 2022.

“When it happened, I didn’t know what the future would hold, or what would happen this year,” Dix said. “If I would have to redshirt, or if I’d be back in time or how much of a help I’d even be.” But Thursday, eight days shy of the anniversary of his injury, Dix answered those questions by playing a major role in the Hawkeyes’ 93-84 overtime victory over Michigan at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“I just stayed the course, and had a lot of people around me to help me get back to this point,” Dix said.

Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery likes to recruit versatile players. He envisioned Dix as a shooting guard when he signed him, but also knew he could play point guard like he did in high school if needed.

And Thursday, that’s where he played his freshman for a career-high 31-plus minutes against the Wolverines. That included down the stretch, with the game in the balance. Dix scored a career-best 10 points. He also had a career-best five assists and just one turnover. One of those assists was to Payton Sandfort, who tok his pass and erased a four-point deficit with a 3-pointer and an and-one with 20 seconds remaining in regulation.

“He was just so special,” McCaffery said of Dix, who had averaged 9.5 minutes and totaled eight points and three assists in the first five Big Ten games this season.

“Coach always says to just stay ready,” the 6-foot-5 Dix said. “You've got to keep putting the work in, and keep getting better, because it makes the whole team better when everyone gets better. Just be unselfish and do your work. And when your number is called, just be ready.”

Dix had surgery on his right leg the day after the injury, and spoke to McCaffery on the phone. The coach’s message?

“We know you can get through this,” McCaffery told him. “Whenever you can, get back to work.”

Dix, who picked the Hawkeyes over offers from Purdue, Wisconsin, Minnesota and others, spent two months in a walking boot. He did take it off to do ankle movements with a resistance band. He went to a physical therapist once a week and did a series of exercises four times a day at home. He also sat in a chair and worked on his ballhandling.

When he headed to Iowa City for the start of summer workouts, Josh hadn’t been cleared for contact. His teammates wore black practice jerseys. He wore a gold one. He spent June and July at a basket by himself, playing one-on-none. McCaffery told him to be patient, because the season didn’t start until November.

That was easier said than done, since Dix had never been injured before in his basketball career. He was cleared to do five-on-five drills on September 1. And when the Hawkeyes opened the season Nov. 7 against Bethune-Cookman, Dix played 13 minutes and scored four points.

That was a positive step in his long road back. In addition to getting in Big Ten shape, Dix still had to regain confidence in his right leg and re-learn to do things on a basketball floor that used to come naturally. Thursday’s performance shows how much progress he’s made in less than a year.

“I've just tried to stay confident no matter what’s going on,” Dix said. “My teammates gave me confidence to have the ball and so did the coaching staff.”

McCaffery said that Dix’s performance against Michigan was his game in a nutshell.

“Every time I’ve seen him play, that’s just the way he is,” McCaffery observed. “Nothing rattles him. He’s constantly thinking. He doesn’t let bad plays linger.”

Dix said he’s starting to get some reps at point guard in practice because the coaching staff has moved freshman Dasonte Bowen to the wing on occasion to get him more looks at scoring opportunities.

“So I’ve been playing point in practice a little bit,” Dix said. “It was fine, because I played that a lot in high school.”

McCaffery has never shied away from keeping the same lineup on the floor down the stretch if they’re playing well, and it’s usually a mixture of starters and bench players. That was the case Thursday against Michigan. And Dix passed the test with flying colors.