The number of stars next to a player’s name in recruiting rankings doesn’t mean much to T.J. Otzelberger or the Iowa State men’s basketball program.
For fans, they might serve as a preliminary way to gauge talent and expectations before a recruit or transfer arrives on campus. When it comes to the wilderness of the transfer portal, it might serve as an easy measurement to distinguish players, especially when they come from low-to-mid major conferences or programs that aren’t featured on national TV often. They’re nice talking points.
However, Otzelberger has proven that he can succeed with what some may deem as under-the-radar transfers. Instead of rankings and stars, you could look at former transfers Curtis Jones (Buffalo) and Keshon Gilbert (UNLV) playing parts on Iowa State’s 2024 Big 12 Tournament title run, becoming All-Big 12 standouts the following year, and now players with two-way deals in the NBA. Joshua Jefferson arrived from Saint Mary’s and blossomed into a two-time All-Big 12 player, the program’s first consensus All-American since Georges Niang in 2016, and a potential first-round NBA Draft pick in June.
There were other transfers during the Otzelberger era who might not have garnered the accolades and awards, but were contributors that Otzelberger and the Cyclones could rely on. Rob Jones (Denver) and Tre King (Eastern Kentucky) became full-time starters by the time they graduated. Nate Heise (Northern Iowa) was a versatile, high-energy guard off the bench.
Some came in search of expanded roles from other high-majors, like Blake Buchanan (Virginia), Gabe Kalscheur (Minnesota) and Izaiah Brockington (Penn State) and elevated their games when given the opportunity.
They have all fit a certain archetype that Otzelberger has been looking for in prospective recruits or transfers.
“We’re looking for a very specific guy, right?” Otzelberger said. “We want work habits, blue-collar, certain value system, resiliency. We want guys that have proven to handle adversity well, guys that haven’t had a track record of bouncing around a lot, that have been pretty stable where they’ve been. We believe in guys that if they have something they do really well and they want to expand their game, our program has been a proven place to grow their game, when we’ve had transfers like Keshon (Gilbert) and Curt (Jones), or Joshua (Jefferson), guys that have gone on to play at the next level.”
The latest crop of incoming transfers features five newcomers: guards Jaquan Johnson, Ryan Prather Jr. and Leon Bond III, as well as forwards Tre Singleton and Taj Manning.
According to 247 Sports’ 2026 transfer class rankings, that quintet is good enough for No. 35 in the country, but Otzelberger believes all five can be contributors for the Cyclones this year. The Cyclones went into recruiting the transfer portal with a plan and all five transfers committed to Iowa State in a 72-hour stretch back in April.
“All five guys, to me, will be guys that are part of our rotation,” Otzelberger said. “When you bring in transfers, you want to have an opportunity that they’re looking for, and we feel great that all those guys line up in that way.
“For us, there’s all these things that we’re looking for and when you really start narrowing down things that are important to us, then there’s really not as many guys out there as you might think, and it’s important to stay disciplined for the guys that fit our paradigm that we’re looking for.”
When you’re competing against other schools and under a time crunch, how does Otzelberger and his staff quickly identify quality fits, evaluate prospects and establish rapport with transfers? Unlike the high school recruiting scene, where you may have several years to evaluate and develop a bond with a recruit, it’s a much quicker, expedited process in the transfer portal.
Every edge helps. Two of the Cyclones’ five incoming transfers are from Wisconsin, Otzelberger’s home state, where he has succeeded in recruiting. There’s some familiarity already with certain prospects, but there’s still plenty of film dissection and thoroughly utilizing networks of other coaches to help vet candidates. There’s plenty of work behind the scenes once phone calls and Zoom meetings are done.
“There’s guys, obviously, being from Milwaukee that you know you’re familiar with, because a guy like Leon Bond, I watched him play in high school as well, and he went to play for a good friend of mine in (former Virginia coach) Tony Bennett, and then also (former Northern Iowa) coach (Ben) Jacobson,” Otzelberger said. “So you’re also aware, and you ask questions of those people and their experiences, being around guys. It’s getting all the intel you can. You can get it from the games, you can watch guys’ body language, how they respond to adversity, how they handle hard things. How do they embrace challenges?
“But, then it’s using your network, talking to people, evaluating, and in the current climate, a lot of guys have an agent or they have a representative, or somebody that you also are gathering information from as well.”
The current climate of college sports, with widespread transferring, also presents the opportunity for reuniting with former recruits down the road. Before Joshua Jefferson came to Iowa State after a two-year stint at Saint Mary’s, Otzelberger was very familiar with him from the time the coach spent at UNLV, recruiting him when he was still in high school. Bond and Manning were two players Otzelberger was acquainted with in the past. In these cases, it’s easy to pick up those connections from where they left off.
“What’s really cool is when you find guys that you believe in and that you are almost pulling for them when they go somewhere else, and there’s always that part of you that says, ‘Man, that would be a guy I’d love to be on the journey with someday down the road, if things work themselves out,'” Otzelberger said. “… I think it’s important when you’re not to get those guys to be at your school, how you handle that in the end, making sure that they know why. You’re communicating clearly and directly, not just falling off the face of the earth. Saying, ‘Hey, I believe in you, you’re going to be successful, you never know where our paths are going to take us. I’m always pulling for you, and I’m going to be watching your career from a distance.’ I think those things are important.”
Even then, securing five transfer portal commitments in a matter of days is impressive.
These five transfers will help the Cyclones reload their roster after making their third Sweet 16 appearance in five years. They graduated standouts Jefferson and Tamin Lipsey, as well as Heise, Dominick Nelson and Eric Mulder. Milan Momcilovic left early to undergo the NBA Draft process, while Cade Kelderman (South Dakota) and Mason Williams (Seattle) departed for the transfer portal.
“We have a model that works for us, we double down and stay consistent with that model,” Otzelberger said. “It’s important to us that we find the right guys, and when we do find those guys, that they understand what a great opportunity this is. Guys are coming into our program, and they’re creating opportunities for themselves at the next level. We had (Gilbert) and (Jones) last year sign two-way deals, NBA contracts. We have (Momcilovic), Jefferson, (Lipsey) this year in position to do that, potentially even better, and get drafted.
“Coming to our program, you’re going to develop, you’re going to win games, you’re going to have a great experience. We’re going to dive into the player development, invest in you, and then you’ll put yourself in a great position for your future. I just think it’s a great time to be a Cyclone. It’s helped us in recruiting, because guys understand that this is an opportunity not to take for granted, and all that you get to play in front of the best fans, the best home court environment at Hilton Coliseum.”
Iowa State’s five incoming transfers for 2026-27 season
Here are Otzelberger’s thoughts on each of the Cyclones’ incoming transfers.
Leon Bond III, Northern Iowa
Height: 6-5
Weight: 200
Years of eligibility remaining: One
“An extremely athletic guard that could play multiple positions. We see him as a guy that can make more plays than what he’s been asked to do up to this point. Somebody that can be an extremely disruptive defensive player and generate a lot of turnovers. Then, he’s got a great personality, great leadership skills that he brings to our team.”
Jaquan Johnson, Bradley
Height: 5-11
Weight: 195
Years of eligibility remaining: Two
“Jaquan Johnson, when you lose Tamin Lipsey, he’s somebody that can come in. You’re never going to replace Tamin 1-to-1. He’s a generational-type of player, but with Jaquan, you’re talking about a guy who was the Missouri Valley Conference defensive player of the year, one of the top steals guys in the country. Dynamic player that can also knock down shots, and has had two years of experience under his belt.”
Taj Manning, Kansas State
Height: 6-7
Weight: 230
Years of eligibility remaining: One
“Someone we recruited out of high school. He was someone we looked at in the same class with Tamin (Lipsey). A guy that plays with tremendous spirit, heart, passion, energy, tremendous rebounder, but someone I think, offensively, can expand his game. Step out, knock down the three and guard multiple positions.”
Ryan Prather Jr., Robert Morris
Height: 6-5
Weight: 205
Years of eligibility remaining: One
“The other perimeter player, Ryan Prather from Robert Morris, led the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio, so another guy that has tremendous values in terms of making plays for his teammates. He’s also a really good 3-point shooter, and then he’s got great positional size and strength. All three of those guys, we see the impact that they’ll be able to make on the perimeter.”
Tre Singleton, Northwestern
Height: 6-8
Weight: 215
Years of eligibility remaining: Three
“At the 4-position, Tre Singleton really looked at Joshua Jefferson and saw how he made plays, how we utilized him, and sees himself very much in the same light. He’s a guy that really has guard skills in a 4-man’s frame and body, and so really high on his ability to be another playmaker. When you start as a freshman in the Big Ten, that’s a tremendous experience to carry forward under your belt, which he has, and so we’re really high on him.”
Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at erapay@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: How Iowa State basketball approached the transfer portal for 2026-27
Reporting by Eugene Rapay, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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