There’s nothing ordinary about Tre King’s college basketball career. Even in the midst of the Wild West era of the transfer portal, King’s story stands out. After three years playing for the Eastern Kentucky Colonels, King left to play for Georgetown. If you don’t know, Georgetown is currently the biggest mess in the Big East. King left before even suiting up for the Hoyas, but he had to sit for a long time because of it.

He made his debut against Western Michigan and steadily grew into a dependable forward for Otz, and now he looks to be the ‘old guy’ in a front court room full of potential.

Season at a Glance

Coach Otzelberger has built Iowa State’s reputation on defense, rebounding, and some grown ass men doing work. Tre King fits that reputation to a tee. A flex forward that plays bigger than he is, has proven to bully smaller defenders and uses his athleticism to work around the trees.

King’s been around the block as I’ve mentioned, he’s entering his 5th year of college basketball and will be 24 by the time he plays his last basketball game for Iowa State. The Big 12 is an old man’s league. The best teams are built around grad transfers and 4-5 year guys who set the tone physically.

After three years in the OVC, it took a little bit of time for King to find his rhythm in the Big 12. Three of the last four games of the season, King played his best basketball. He averaged about 10 points, 5 rebounds in the last four games played. He also saw an increase in minutes after Grill was dismissed from the team. Not to mention, he started in each of those last four games, something to keep in mind about the starting lineup next season.

King struggled from the 3-point line, but that’s really just icing on his game. He’s a new age Dustin Hogue, or that’s what his final form could look like.

The Numbers

King didn’t attempt two 3-pointers in a single game. He shot a very respectable 53% from inside the arc though. Along with buckets around the rim, King showed his ability to hit some midrange, and find his own shot with his back to the basket.

King also had the second-best PER on the team after Osun, and while posts typically fare better in that stat, it also shows that King is consistently taking shots he should be. That goes a long way for a team that has trouble scoring the ball.

Even with 23 games under his belt, we still have a relatively small sample size of what Tre King can do in an Iowa State uniform. I expect bigger production out of King, or at least more minutes, and for him to really come into his own after a full off season and playing the complete non-conference slate.

2023-2024 Season Outlook

The number one thing I’m looking forward to, won’t be televised. I can’t wait for Tre King and Big Rob Energy to beat the hell out of Omaha and Milan in the off-season. The best players in Cyclone history, have ALWAYS had an upper classman to show them the ropes.

Monte Morris isn’t who he is without DeAndre Kane, Niang without Ejim, the list goes on. King is a veteran presence who will be able to show the younger guys how physical the Big 12 is. The second part of being an upperclassman that the young guy's respect, is working your ass off.

There’s a lot of depth to this Cyclone team as of now, but Tre King can play a lot of roles, and fit in a lot of lineups. Tre King won’t be the bucket getter on this team, but I expect him to average more than 6 points a game, and I’d love to see him average around 6 rebounds. If King can get his 3-point% closer to 30%, now we’re looking at a dark horse for an All Big 12 team.

Tre King embodies the current state of Otzelbasketbergerball, and has a unique opportunity to welcome in this highly anticipated frontcourt. If King shows out on the glass, and hits the shots he needs to, he could be a starter in every game next year.