Leon Bond Joins Iowa State Cyclones for Title Push

0:00On April 22nd Iowa State Cyclones, men's basketball is facing massive turnover, heading into the 2026-27 season. The big three Tamin Lipsi, Joshua Jefferson and Milan Momslovic are all gone either out of eligibility or in the transfer portal. Nate Heiss and Eric Mulder wrapped up their time too, while Kade Keldermann, Mason Williams, and Dominic Nelson hit the portal. That's a ton of scoring and leadership to replace. Stepping up to fill some shoes is Leon Bond III, a transfer from Northern Iowa. It's a full circle move for him, since head coach TJ Ozzelberger first recruited Bond out of high school to UNLV. Now Bond gets the play for that same coach in Ames. The connections run deep. Assistant Tim Buckley was on that UNLB staff too, and Bond's commitment host was Blake Buchanan. They were already teammates at Virginia back in 20. 23-24, under Tony Bennett, who knows Ozzelberger well. Bond averaged nearly 12 points, almost 5 rebounds, and solid minutes last season.

1:03He's made the NCAA tournament twice, but never won a first-round game, so that's his big goal now. With Bond and Buchanan linking up again, the cyclones are rebuilding smart, chasing that national title push next year.