Iowa State Basketball Loses Out on a Freshman Wild Card

Throughout the offseason, the Iowa State Cyclones had a smooth sailing run.

Outside of Milan Momcilovic's decision to enter the NBA Draft and the transfer portal, Iowa State has done a great job at retaining talent and reloading its roster.

The Cyclones brought in five new transfers in the early going of the transfer portal opening, grabbing players who can be starters or bench pieces, coming from all different types of teams. They quickly built a great core for the future of the program.

Speaking of the future, Iowa State’s incoming recruiting class was expected to be an intriguing one. With lots of depth positives, the new Cyclones hoped to crack the rotation.

What Jackson Kiss leaving means for Iowa State

Unfortunately for Iowa State, things didn’t completely go as planned. They lost their top recruit, per 247 Sports, Jackson Kiss, to the UNLV Runnin' Rebels. It’s an odd move, but one that makes sense for Kiss overall.

It’s unfortunate for the Cyclones. With Kiss out the door so late, it looks like no one will be able to replace him for next year. That means that Iowa State could opt to roll with one open roster spot throughout next season.

The Cyclones are losing out on a solid player, and a young one with potential, but the real issue here revolves around the small chances of showcasing greatness.

In the current landscape of college basketball, freshmen dominate the sport. Players come in and control their team, run the offense, and can completely change a team and a program overall. And they don’t even have to be four or five star recruits.

Take former Stanford Cardinal Ebuka Okorie or former Illinois Fighting Illini Keaton Wagler, who both took their teams to the top even as recruits outside the top 100 per 247 Sports.

We may never know how good Kiss may have been for Iowa State, but there certainly was potential for him to rise the ranks and become a top piece for the Cyclones early on. And with that opportunity out the door, Iowa State has a thinner freshman class to rely on, hoping one can make the big leap.

Overall, it’s a good, safe move for Kiss. He gets to a historical program looking to get back to the top, and he will have plenty of opportunities to become one of their top players next season. But it’s not going to come with the highs that he could have gotten with the Cyclones.

You never know who may rise to the occasion and become a star player out of nowhere, and now, Iowa State has one less chance to make that happen.

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