Iowa State freshman Cameron Lard will be slowly integrated

AMES - Iowa State forward Cameron Lard's arrival is no longer in doubt.

The 6-foot-9, 220-pound freshman was in Hilton Coliseum on Saturday for the Cyclones' win against Texas, but his integration into full team activities won't happen overnight.

'People are talking about if he's going to play, he's not even going to practice right now,” Iowa State Coach Steve Prohm said. 'I want him to get some structure and that's the thing I talked to him about (Monday).

'He was up at 7:45 and had academic meetings, class and he'll get his physical some time this week. Then next week we'll start integrating him into the strength and conditioning program.”

Lard won't travel with the team to Oklahoma State or TCU this week, but will start observing practice when the team is in town this week. When he does start practicing, Prohm said it will likely be drill work - like closeouts or shell drills - and will wait to play him in five-on-five situations until later this month.

'It just doesn't seem realistic to me (that he will play this season),” Prohm said. 'It's not even something I'm thinking about. I just want to get him into some structure and get him a day-to-day routine going and get him comfortable before I think about anything else.”