Iowa State Basketball Should Pursue Colorado Buffaloes Star in Transfer Portal

Which player from the Colorado Buffaloes could make sense for the Iowa State Cyclones in the transfer portal.

Mar 22, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger speaks during the postgame press conference after the game against the Kentucky Wildcats during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. | Jeff Le-Imagn Images

With the 2025-26 season coming to a close for the Iowa State Cyclones, the team will be starting to plan for the upcoming year with the hopes of making another extended run in the NCAA tournament. 

While it was a very successful season overall for the Cyclones, the team might have been able to go a little bit further had star forward Joshua Jefferson not gotten injured. The loss to the Tennessee Volunteers feels like a game that Iowa State could have won if they had their best player and the leading rebounder. 

The Volunteers punished the smaller lineups of the Cyclones on the glass and simply created too many opportunities for Iowa State to slow them down. Now, with some key players like Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, and Nate Heise leaving the program, replacing that production will be a challenge. 

So far, Iowa State does seem to have some good building blocks for the upcoming season already in place. In the backcourt, the combination of Jamarion Batemon and Killyan Toure has the potential to be an excellent duo for years to come. Furthermore, in the front court, they will have big men Blake Buchanan and Dominykas Pleta. While that is a solid group to start with, T.J. Otzelberger might look for some additional help in the portal. One player who could be an interesting one to target is sophomore forward Sebastian Rancik from the Colorado Buffaloes. 

Rancik Would Be Appealing Add

Dad played at Iowa State https://t.co/McAJWdKxV8

— Chris Williams (@ChrisMWilliams) March 30, 2026

Firstly, there is a little bit of a connection for Rancik and Iowa State with his dad playing on the team previously. That usually helps in terms of pursuing a player, and the big man is coming off a solid year with the Buffaloes. 

Last season, he averaged 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game. At 6’11”, he didn’t excel much as a rim protector, but he can space the floor really well at his size. Rancik played just under 30 minutes per game as a sophomore, seeing a nice increase in his usage from his first year with Colorado. 

Now, he will be seeking new opportunities in the portal, and the Cyclones could be a potential destination. With Rancik’s ability to shoot from beyond the arc with some size, he could be a potential replacement for Milan Momcilovic if he ends up staying in the NBA Draft. Furthermore, if the star shooter does come back, he could help provide Otzelberger with the ability to go with some bigger lineups that feature players who can shoot the ball effectively. Overall, it will be interesting to see if Iowa State ends up having him on their radar.