Cameron Lard Eligible at Semester?

[LLCoolCY]

Maybe I missed it but I thought the plan for Lard would be for him join the team and then Red Shirt the second semester.

I was listening to the Cyclone Insiders with Randy Peterson and CW.
At the 11:25 mark Peterson noted Prohm said after the MVSt game "Lard is eligible and when he gets to campus he can play immediately".
Maybe i missed that was a posibility but having Lard during conference season could be big.
Though hard to expect anything from a freshman that hasn't evenpracticed with the team.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/cyclone-insider-podcast/id1040242753?mt=2&i=379219367

 

[amishclone]

Only works for Bruce Pearl

 

[The_Architect]

I'd rather him sit out and save a year of eligibility at this point.

 

[acgclone]

I would be very surprised if he plays in 2nd semester even if eligible. If he's able to get into the rotation on such short notice, that would bode very well for his talent level.

 

[Rabbuk]

I would be very surprised if he plays in 2nd semester even if eligible. If he's able to get into the rotation on such short notice, that would bode very well for his talent level.

Not like we have world beaters ahead of him or run an offense

 

[rholtgraves]

He would be eligible but he isn't going to play. He wouldn't be ready at all.

 

[Stewo]

If this is actually the case, I'd say let him play now. I mean, he's only missed 11 games. If he can step in and be any sort of upgrade, he needs to be on the court now.

 

[cstrunk]

99% chance he doesn't play, but at this point with our team mostly lacking more size, it would sure make conference play interesting if he was able to contribute significantly.

 

[jburke]

I'd rather him sit out and save a year of eligibility at this point.

Unless he is a huge upgrade, but I don't want to get on a hype-train yet.....

 

[acgclone]

Not like we have world beaters ahead of him or run an offense

No, but he hasn't played much organized basketball in the last couple of years. He has to learn our offense and defense.

I agree, our front court will provide him with plenty of opportunity.

 

[TheJackWePack5]

If eligible I say play him.

 

[LLCoolCY]

If this is actually the case, I'd say let him play now. I mean, he's only missed 11 games. If he can step in and be any sort of upgrade, he needs to be on the court now.

The plan was to have Lard and have him play all year before the academic issues were realized so I'd agree let him play if in shape and looks ready (and is eligible).
I would want to caution again that fans shouldn't expect anything out of Cameron the rest of the year though considering he hasn't even practiced. That said Solomon Young looks to be ready for minutes so there is a possibility Lard could be ready for a role even if a small one.

 

[brianhos]

99% chance he doesn't play, but at this point with our team mostly lacking more size, it would sure make conference play interesting if he was able to contribute significantly.

99% chance he never steps foot on campus.

 

[Cyclonepride]

99% chance he never steps foot on campus.

With all signs pointing to the opposite, I'm wondering where this comes from?

For the record, if he adds something to a spot that is sorely lacking, I'm all for playing him.

 

[mdk2isu]

99% chance he never steps foot on campus.

Pretty sure he has visited campus before so 100% chance you are wrong.

 

[State43]

I would say with tournament hopes still up in the air, if he is ready to play and far better than the other options, play him. If he isn't clearly a better option than our other guys, save him.

 

[Cyclonepride]

So......if he is ready, I think I'd slide Babb to the two/three, Bowie to the four, and rotate Young and Lard at the five (with Holden getting minutes where he can if he shows positive steps).

1- Morris/Jackson
2- Naz/Babb
3- Thomas/Babb
4- Burton/Bowie
5- Young/Lard/Holden

 

[CycloneErik]

If he's in shape at all, play him.
We're not asking a ton from that spot offensively. If he can rebound and play occasional defense, that's a good step up right now. If we can get him a couple easy dunks a game, even better.

 

[Gunnerclone]

Everyone is moving on pretty fast from Solomon Young it looks like! Lard is the new big man hope for 2016-17 now?

 

[jbindm]

I would say with tournament hopes still up in the air, if he is ready to play and far better than the other options, play him. If he isn't clearly a better option than our other guys, save him.

There will be a lot working against him, even with the lack of depth in front of him.
1. We don't know how good he is or if he has a Big 12 ready frame.
2. We don't know if he's in game shape.
3. We don't know how quickly he can pick up the nuances of the offense and defense AND get used to playing with new teammates. Young's been there since the start of the school year and it's still fair to wonder just how much of a grasp he has on the defensive rotations.
4. Prohm has shown that he's not going to play guys unless he trusts them, and there are no more cupcakes on the schedule to ease him in and let him get some reps.

If he's indeed eligible to play (I thought he wasn't, but whatever), it's not impossible for him to leapfrog Holden or Young, but it's a tall order for an 18 year old kid to jump in midstream and contribute meaningful minutes for a P5 program. We'll see. If he earns playing time, I'm all for it. But I'm not expecting much from him this year. It's most likely too steep of a learning curve.