Something while watching recent Iowa State basketball telecasts caught my attention. It was when talkers were discussing how quickly T.J. Otzelberger was proving that a mid-major coach, could transition into a high-major transfer portal expert.
The insinuation, at least my takeaway from what they said, was that often it can take a while before a first-time major-college head coach figures the ins and outs of what’s become a world of free agents seeking both more playing time and/or more participation money at a different school.
(I must insert here that I’m not talking about Jess Settles, whose expertise goes well beyond most other announcers when he’s doing ESPN+ games).
That Otzelberger learning-on-the-fly implication was pure BS. Just because this third-ranked team is 16-2 overall and 6-1 in the Big 12 after Tuesday’s 108-83 win against UCF at Hilton Coliseum, included multiple transfer stars -- doesn’t mean he’s just now getting the hang of it. He proved his recruiting chops long before even becoming a first-time head coach back in 2017 at South Dakota State.
Iowa State’s highly successful basketball coach was recruiting the portal long before it was called a portal. That, back when Jamie Pollard hired him, was Otz’ wheelhouse – finding and then ultimately enticing lesser-recruited players to give the Cyclones program a shot.
He did it while working for Iowa State head coaches Greg McDermott, Fred Hoiberg and Steve Prohm. As an assistant, he helped lure some of the finest men’s talent the Cyclones’ program has seen – both through high school recruiting and via transfers.
He successfully recruited such stars as Georges Niang, Abdel Nader, Matt Thomas, and Naz Mitrou-Long. Ditto Wesley Johnson, Craig Brackins, Diante Garrett, Scott Christopherson, Mike Taylor and Melvin Ejim.
And don’t forget Justin Hamilton, Chris Allen, Will Clyburn and Tyrus McGee And Tre King, Rob Jones, Hason Ward, Jaz Kunc and Gabe Kalscheur, too. Among others.
“T.J. just had it,” Niang, who plays significantly for the Cleveland Cavaliers, once told me. “I was from Boston, and he wants me to go all the way to Iowa? After I talked to him, it’s like “Where do I sign up, and when do you want me there?'"
“T.J.’s a fixer,” his father, Tom, told me during a profile interview I wrote during my previous journalistic lifetime. “He finds a way to get stuff done.”
So, to TV talkers who wonder how TJ will handle this new age of recruiting and all that goes with it – he’s been doing it forever. He’s been doing it quite well.
It’s not only the backbone of this team that hits the road this weekend for games at Arizona State on Saturday and at Arizona on Monday, that’s been his sweet spot since his first stint of a Cyclones assistant started in 2006.
Take Tuesday’s victory against UCF, for example. St. Mary’s transfer Joshua Jefferson had a career-best stat line of 30 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 3-of-4 shooting from three-point range. Charlotte transfer Dishon Jackson had 5 points and 4 rebounds. Curtis Jones, who was at Buffalo before Iowa State, had 19 points and 8 rebounds. UNLV transfer Keshon Gilbert had 21 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds.
Again, Otzelberger was mastering the transfer portal, while many of his peers were unwilling to give it much of a look. And let’s also not forget:
The dude can coach pretty darn well, too.
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TIMEOUT MEANDERINGS
UNDER 16: Is it just me, or is Iowa State’s Audi Crooks under siege each time she jockeys for post position near the basket?
UNDER 12: "I heard one of the pundits that I actually respect a lot say that they thought Iowa State was the best offensive team in the country," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "I probably agree that they got the best three guards on the same team in the country, and their bigs are so much more skilled than what they've had in the past."
UNDER 8: Watching Dan Hurley coach his UConn basketball team that won the past two NCAA Tournaments, can be like watching auto racing. If you’re patient enough, you just know there’s bound to be a wreck.
UNDER 4: Don’t go crazy with expectations, should the Cyclones sweep its Arizona road swing Saturday and Monday. There’s still another half-a-season to be played.
(Randy Peterson can be reached at randypete4846@gmail.com or at any Okoboji-area beverage/food establishment between the hours of open and close)