Iowa State's Cameron Lard finally ready to contribute

ANKENY — Cameron Lard has shown both sides.

There have been moments of brilliance for the Iowa State men's basketball redshirt freshman. A reverse alley-oop dunk and a lob to new ISU teammate Marial Shayok stood out most.

That's not to say things were perfect.

Missed chances for rebounds and a few errant looks from inside 3 feet were a couple lowlights. Such is life for a young player still adjusting to the rigors of college basketball.

'(My goal is) to get smarter on and off the court,' Lard said last week. 'Working on my jumper, I'd just say. And getting stronger.'

When Lard arrived mid-semester last season, there was thought the 6-foot-9 forward could come in and give some front-court depth. That was never the plan, though. The adjustment period needed to happen at a pace suitable for the 19-year-old.

Putting academic eligibility issues behind him and getting to Ames was Lard's first step. The second phase was to sit in on practices, watch and absorb as much as possible.

'Watching and sitting on the side when they were going five on five,' Lard said. 'I was just seeing what I needed to do on and off the ball. Just learning. I've learned mostly just playing off the ball is going to be a big part of my role playing here at Iowa State.'

Lard has been Iowa State's mystery man since he stepped on campus, and could play an important role this season. Sophomore Solomon Young and seniors Jeff Beverly and Hans Brase will be in the rotation, but Lard will have his place within the group.

Gaining weight has been a priority the last seven months. He showed up to Ames weighing 205 pounds and has grown to 225. The goal is 230.

'We've been able to get him in the gym now and he's another guy that is going to get a chance to get thrown out there,' said Iowa State Coach Steve Prohm. 'That's the only way he's going to be able to speed up the progress of his game is to get out there and play.

'This is a big summer for him, but he's been really good and really attentive in the weight room.'

The longer it took Lard to arrive on campus, the loftier the expectations became. He finished up classes at Pro Vision Academy in Houston, but the buzz around his name was ever present through the first half of last season.

Even though Lard, who has four years of eligibility beginning this fall, has been on campus for a semester and summer, there still is plenty of work to be done.

'My biggest thing is just be a factor,' Prohm said of expectations. 'I don't know the numbers, I don't know the minutes, but just improve every week, every month. If he can do that, with his size and his athleticism, then he'll have a chance to help us.'

Lard knows the recent history of team success too. Six straight NCAA tournaments and three Big 12 tournament championships in the last four years stick in his mind.

He knows the legacy left by those who came before him. Now Lard wants to write his own part in the story.

'The fact they've won the last three out of four Big 12 Conference (tournament) championships, that's tough. Look at the people that are in the conference,' Lard said. 'To keep that going on, I feel like that would be me accomplishing the things people wanted me to do here and that I wanted to do for myself.'

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