Iowa State men’s basketball has filled the first assistant coaching vacancy on its staff.

The Cyclones announced on Monday, April 6, that head coach T.J. Otzelberger has named Tim Buckley as a new assistant coach. He will begin his duties with Iowa State immediately.

Buckley most recently served as an assistant for two seasons at Cincinnati, but he comes to Ames with more than three decades of coaching experience. He was also previously part of Otzelberger’s staff for both years of his tenure at UNLV from 2019-21.

“A renowned coach in player development, I’m excited to have Tim join our staff at Iowa State,” Otzelberger said in a statement. “Tim brings a wealth of knowledge, both as a head coach and assistant coach. He has recruited and developed some of the top talents in the NBA. I’m thrilled that our student-athletes will get the opportunity to work with Tim.”

The 62-year-old Buckley has garnered a reputation for his player development and recruiting. Before arriving in Ames, he got Division I head coaching experience at Ball State (2000-06), and he’s also been an esteemed assistant coach at Wisconsin (1993-94), Ball State (1994-99), Marquette (1999-00, 2007-08), Iowa (2006-07), Indiana (2008-17), UNLV (2019-22), South Carolina (2022-24) and Cincinnati (2024-26).

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Before joining Otzelberger’s staff at UNLV, he was also a scout for the Minnesota Timberwolves from 2017-19.

Buckley has worked with 12 NBA Draft picks, nine of whom were drafted in the first round. Of those nine first-round picks, six of them were lottery picks. Some of the top talent Buckley has recruited and developed include Dwyane Wade, Victor Oladipo, Cody Zeller and Noah Vonleh. He also helped coach All-American Yogi Ferrell at Indiana.

“I’m thankful for the opportunity to be reunited with T.J. Otzelberger,” Buckley said in a statement. “What he has done over the last five years is amazing. Iowa State is a nationally recognized program and I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Buckley played at Waubonsee Community College from 1982-84, before finishing his playing career at Division II Bemidji State from 1984-86. After that, he went right into coaching at his alma mater for two seasons, before moving over to Division III Rockford, where he spent one year as an assistant. He was promoted to Rockford’s head coach, a job he held from 1989-93, before breaking through to the Division I ranks.

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Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball head coach T.J. Otzelberger knew that his program was in for a busy offseason.

Before any moves were made with the roster, whether it be players entering the transfer portal or declaring for the NBA draft, Otzelberger knew that he would have five seniors who would have to be replaced on the roster.

In addition to player needs, the head coach needs to replenish his coaching staff. Two of his assistants, JR Blount and Kyle Green, were hired as head coaches. Blount is heading to the San Diego Toreros, and Green was brought back for a fourth stint with the Northern Iowa Panthers.

Both were integral parts of the team’s success, with Blount being a leader on the recruiting front and Green being an architect behind the team’s defense. Who could Otzelberger turn to as a replacement?

Tim Buckley is great option for Iowa State coaching staff

One person who would make a lot of sense as a candidate is Tim Buckley. Most recently, he was on staff with the Cincinnati Bearcats, but with their head coaching change of Wes Miller to Jerrod Calhoun, Buckley is back on the market.

He is someone with whom Otzelberger has familiarity, which could play a big role in the evaluation process when candidates are interviewing. The two worked together with the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels from 2019-21, the position which Otzelberger held before Iowa State.

Buckley could help replace some of what Green’s departure is being lost with the defensive game plan.

“Buckley seems to have a defensive background, and he was described as being “old school” to Cyclone Alert by one source close to the Bearcat program,” wrote Alec Busse of Cyclone Report, part of the 247Sports Network (subscription required).

Familiarty, defense are biggest assets Buckley provides

He also has some experience working in the Midwest. Buckley spent one campaign in 2007-08 with the Marquette Golden Eagles and worked with the Wisconsin Badgers in the mid-1990s.

Since Otzelberger took over as head coach, the Cyclones have found a ton of success recruiting in Wisconsin. Buckley can help keep the pipeline active.

He would also bring an established relationship with Otzelberger and plenty of experience. Buckley has been on different sidelines as a coach for nearly 40 years and has been a head coach previously with Rockford and the Ball State Cardinals.

A bonus: Buckley knows the Big 12 landscape after working with Cincinnati the last two seasons. That is an underrated part of his resume, as he can help give some insight into how opponents game plan against Otzelberger and his team while bringing some new ideas to the table in how Iowa State can stop them.