By Chris Williams, CycloneFanatic.com PublisherFollow Chris on Twitter @ChrisMWilliams
Clayton Custer picked one heck of a day to take an unofficial visit to Iowa State.
Custer, a 2014 point guard out of Overland Park, (Kan.), took a trip to Ames on Monday. It just so happened that two former Cyclones, Craig Brackins and soon-to-be drafted Royce White were at the Sukup Practice Facility working out.
With a handful of current Cyclones hanging around, a pick-up game emerged.
“I was on Royce’s team actually,” said Custer, who stands at 6-foot, 160 pounds. “He’s a really nice guy and was fun to play with. He’s so unselfish. Craig was a great guy to. He was nice to all of us. It was really cool.”
As if playing ball with a potential lottery pick wasn’t enough, Custer received some big news on his unofficial visit as well.
“Coach (Fred) Hoiberg offered me,” said Custer. “The first day that they could contact me, I talked to Coach Hoiberg on the phone. The next day, I talked to Coach T.J. (Otzelberger) so it seemed like they were interested in me. I wasn’t expecting it but I wasn’t shocked either.”
Growing up in Kansas City, Custer has grown up a fan of the Big 12 Conference. His early offer list shows that too. Along with Iowa State, Custer claims offers from Kansas State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State from the Big 12. South Carolina (the new home of former Kansas State coach Frank Martin), Houston, Tulsa and San Francisco are also all on that growing list.
“It’s been a lot of Big 12 schools,” said Custer. “It’s what I’ve always grown up watching and where I’ve dreamed about playing. That’s where I see myself.”
Stanford out of the Pac-12 might eventually be a factor in Custer’s recruitment. He plans on taking an unofficial visit to Stanford this weekend.
“They have to wait a little bit (to offer) to make sure that you can make grades,” said Custer. “They have to make sure that you get a good enough of a score to be successful there. They are very interested in me. They want me to do well on the SAT and ACT.”
Custer is a heady young prospect whose stock will only get higher in the coming months. T.J. Otzelberger is serving as his primary recruiter for Iowa State, but Hoiberg’s fingerprints are all over this one as well.
“He (Hoiberg) said that he likes athletes who get out and run and guys who can shoot the ball to play in his system. He thinks that I fit that perfectly, said Custer. “He thinks I’m a point guard who knows when to push it and when to slow it down. I can come off pick and rolls and make decisions. There’s a lot of freedom in his offense and he thinks that’d be perfect for me.”
Custer plays AAU ball for the Mo-Kan elite. We’ll keep you updated on any developments here at CycloneFanatic.com.
