ISU reaffirms commitment to recruit 2022 Minnesota 4-star PG
Although he didn’t have a prior relationship with Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger prior to the head coach’s return to Ames, a Minnesota high school point guard prospect said he has a connection to draw back on.
Caledonia junior Eli King, who was offered by Iowa State’s previous coaching staff and recruited by Steve Prohm and James Kane, said he’s already been in contact with Otzelberger on multiple occasions. Otzelberger coached Eli’s older brother Owen during his final season at South Dakota State.
“He really enjoyed the experienced and really liked playing under Coach Otz,” said Eli King, a four-star prospect who is one of the top 100 players in the 2022 class according to Rivals. “He had a lot of fun doing it, especially the style of play. He liked him as a person. That’s what you want as a head coach. He just had a lot of good things to say.”
That connection has helped Otzelberger build a solid early connection with the 6-foot-3, 185-pound lead guard.
“I’ve talked to Coach Otz around three times now and we’ve had some good conversations,” King said. “It’s been good talking to him. We haven’t gone into too much depth; he’s talking about turning the program and getting it back to where it was before at a high level.
“He said the guys he’s going to be recruiting are going to play hard and bring a good attitude all the time. He wants to make sure the culture is really good. He wants to play fast and defend. He likes me with the ball in my hands the most. He wants to play fast and wants to get me in space. He also likes my length and athleticism.”
A four-star prospect, King is considered the 84th overall prospect nationally and the #23 point guard in the 2021 class.
As a junior, King averaged 16.2 points on 63-percent shooting, 6.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 3.3 steals per game.
However, his 2020-21 season ended prematurely due to a torn meniscus suffered during the football season. King had surgery on January 12 and will miss a significant portion of his AAU season with D1 Minnesota. The point guard said he hopes to return to action by July.
Also a standout football prospect for Caledonia who had offers from Iowa State and several other Power-5 programs, King said he’s focusing on basketball at the next level. Iowa, Marquette, Minnesota, Northern Iowa and Stanford have extended hoops offers.
“I’ve always enjoyed basketball more since I was young,” he said. “I have more fun playing it. Every single day, I enjoy playing basketball.”
Although he’s narrowed his focus to basketball, King said he’s not close to making a decision on his future destination.
“That’s definitely one of the first places I’ll get to when things open back up,” he said. “A big thing will be getting to all of the campuses. I’m continuing to get to know all the staffs and programs better. I’m still a ways out. I have a lot of schools that I like and I’m trying to get to know them and find the right fit.”
