Iowa State basketball transfers help take offensive pressure off Tamin Lipsey's shoulders

There were times throughout the 2022-23 Iowa State men's basketball season when it seemed like Tamin Lipsey had the weight of the world on his shoulders.

The super-hyped freshman was playing at his hometown college as a starter in the Big 12, the best basketball conference in the nation. Still, for the most part, he rose above that pressure, leading the team in assists and steals while earning a spot on the All-Big 12 Freshman Team. He's the team's top returning scorer heading into the 2023-24 campaign, with 241 points a season ago.

Still, despite all the accolades and a bright future, there was one area where Lipsey just couldn't get right during his first season at the college level: long-range shooting. He posted a rough 5-for-25 from beyond the arc for the season, just 20%. The team as a whole shot just 33% from downtown.

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Cyclones coach T.J. Otzelberger knew that was an area he'd need to address when rebuilding his roster this offseason. To do that, he took to the transfer portal and nabbed three dynamic shooters: Curtis Jones from Buffalo, Jackson Paveletzke from Wofford and Keshon Gilbert from UNLV. All of those players have shot 35% or better from long-range in their careers.

"For Tamin, having more guys out there that can put it on the floor and create an advantage puts him in more of a spot where he can hunt a catch-and-shoot 3-point opportunity," Otzelberger said Wednesday at his team's final media availability before heading to their foreign trip in the Bahamas.

Paveletzke is probably the most natural shooter of the three newcomers. He hit 39.3% of his deep shots during his freshman season with the Terriers. Gilbert shot 38.4% from beyond the arc a season ago, and Jones led the Bulls with better than 35% shooting from downtown as a sophomore last season.

When Jones was thinking about committing to ISU, he knew he was pledging his talents to a program that's been a defense-first group since Otzelberger took over and led the Cyclones to the NCAA Tournament in 2022 and 2023. So after he committed, it was a bit of a shock for him to see the shooting ability of the other transfers the team added.

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"I did not know it would be like that (being around so many shooters at once)," Jones said. "But I'm glad it is because shooting is always going to help the team, so I'm happy about it."

Still, even with the new shooting talent assembled over the last five months, defense is still a core principle for the team. Jackson said Tuesday that the veteran players have taken the three transfers and four freshmen under their wing to instill that defensive mindset that Otzelberger preaches so frequently.

There's been a bit of a learning curve for all three transfers coming from mid-major conferences like the Mountain West, the MAC and the Southern Conference to now competing against Big 12 athletes day in and day out. Paveletzke and Jones both knew it would be. But since joining the team in Ames, they, along with Otzelberger, have been pleased with how things have gone so far.

"Defense is a big thing and that goes back to our daily habits; we do defensive drills every day," Paveletzke said. "But the offense has been coming along well, we got a lot of guys putting in work outside of practice, getting shots up and all that, so once you see all the guys play together, it's been clicking really well."

Said Jones: "It was an adjustment at first, but over time just getting used to it and being confident in myself, that's a big part of the transition. So just working on my game every day and just staying confident I think it will help me a lot."

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With those brand-new faces seemingly able to add a new dynamic to the on-court product, it should alleviate some of that weight Lipsey carried into this offseason. Knowing there are shooters around him at every turn should yield a more comfortable Lipsey when he pulls up from deep.

But, Otzelberger said, Lipsey's improvements won't just be from the confidence in the shot-takers around him. He's been putting in work of his own.

"Tamin has shot the ball extremely well (in practice)," Otzelberger said. "That's something that will certainly stand out."

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State's transfers help take offensive pressure off Tamin Lipsey