Iowa State Basketball: Breaking down the 2017 recruiting class and transfers
By Doug Winkey
Breaking down the recruiting class for Iowa State basketball. The new faces will play a huge role if ISU is to reach its seventh straight NCAA Tournament.
Iowa State basketball enters a period of uncertainty after the loss of six seniors. Those six took roughly 82% of the team’s points and 71% of its rebounds with them. That production isn’t easy to replace, so the recruiting class will potentially shoulder a huge load in 2017-2018. They will certainly factor into whether or not the Cyclones reach a seventh straight NCAA Tournament next spring.
Last year’s class was solid, although unspectacular. Five newcomers combined to average around 23 points per night and 13 rebounds. Solomon Young was the most productive over the season with his 4.4 point and 3.3 rebound average. He is one of three still around this coming season. All three are likely starters going into fall. Five new scholarships and one walk-on comprise the Cyclones’ new faces responsible for providing production. The incoming class did take a hit when Darius McNeill headed to Cal, but Steve Prohm’s newest players have the potential to do great things.
Only time will tell if any can have the impact that Young or Donovan Jackson did last season, but the opportunities will be plentiful this coming season. After all, someone has to fill the hundreds of vacant minutes. What does the recruiting class have in store for the Ames faithful?
Graduate Transfers
Iowa State snagged two graduate transfers again this spring. Hans Brase of Princeton and Jeff Beverly from Texas-San Antonio will suit up for the Big 12 program. Beverly could be a starter, while Brase looks like a bench guy after suffering a knee injury last season.
Let us start with the 6’6″, 245 pound Beverly. The former UTSA Roadrunner averaged a team-high 15.8 points per game and 5.9 rebounds as a senior. Beverly could do almost everything for his squad except for shooting threes; his percentage was an abysmal 23%. I look at his role for ISU as the starting small or power forward where Prohm will use him as a slasher who gets to the free throw line. Beverly shot more charity shots than anyone on ISU’s roster last year and hit at a rate of 75%. His ceiling is as a poor man’s Deonte Burton without the long-range shooting.
The other graduate transfer, Brase, has a tougher road to big minutes after suffering a season-ending knee injury in November. He’d been averaged in 6.4 points, 2.8 boards, and 1.4 assists until that point. He’ll be a big asset as a 6’9″, 235 pound stretch forward if his health holds up. He is a career 9.3 point, 5.7 rebound, and 1.7 assist per game man with a 35% mark from deep. Even if he never makes the main rotation, Brase is a high-character player from a great school. At worst, he can be a leader from the bench and in the locker room.
Freshmen
ISU’s freshmen are what should have Cyclone fans salivating this season. Three of them carry high marks from recruiting services along with a walk-on. We will begin with a guy who should have played last year, but held off to get his academics in order.
Cam Lard is that redshirt freshman from 2016-2017. The 6’9″, 220 pound forward from Louisiana sat out last year due to academic concerns; he transferred from a school in New Orleans to one in Houston to shore up his academic issues. He will have a decent chance to start potentially at center next to Solomon Young. Scouting reports from his prep time have him resembling former Cyclone Jameel McKay. He has the ability to protect the rim while also being able to step out and shoot the midrange jumper. Lard has maybe the most intrigue surrounding him based purely on Iowa State’s need for more front court reinforcements.
Next up is 6’5″, 195 pound Terrence Lewis from Milwaukee. There is tons to like about his potential game. He has the frame to play immediately and defend at a high level. Lewis probably needs to work on his outside game (as many youngsters do), but he’ll be part of the team’s pick-and-roll offense with an emphasis on driving to the hoop. He has a huge potential role in store for him this season. He might not start, but he will play a lot of minutes as a first-year guy.
The final piece of the freshman puzzle is also the most hyped. 6’1″, 165 pound Lindell Wigginton from Canada by way of Oak Hill Academy is an easy projection for the starting lineup next to Donovan Jackson. That would give ISU a two point guard look to frustrate teams with ball movement and perimeter defense. Wigginton has been electric for Canada’s FIBA World Cup team, averaging 12.8 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists in victories over Mali, Japan and Angola.
The team also brings Minnesota native Jack Hutchison aboard, but he is a walk-on that will only see the court in garbage time. His great advantage is he is linked to high-priority 2018 target Race Thompson.
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After losing tons of talent from a season ago, it will be interesting to see how Iowa State stacks up in 2017-18. The Big 12 is a very difficult conference and they will need to be at their best if they want to make it back to the NCAA Tournament. These graduate transfers and new recruits will need to step in right away and make a difference.