Mar 20, 2021; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; St. Bonaventure Bonnies guard Jaren Holmes (5) moves to the basket against Louisiana State Tigers forward Darius Days (4) and forward Josh LeBlanc Sr. (11) during the second half in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports
Earlier this week, Iowa State hosted St. Bonaventure transfer guard Jaren Holmes on a visit to Ames.
The 6-foot-4 graduate transfer from Romulus, Mich. has received significant interest in the portal with Memphis, Mississippi State, USC, Vanderbilt, Minnesota, Ohio State, Clemson, Boise State, Maryland, Seton Hall, Pittsburgh, Alabama, Clemson, Arkansas, Georgetown, Georgia Tech and Florida reportedly among the other schools who have reached out, according to Stadium’s Jeff Goodman.
Holmes is a big guard who excels on both ends of the floor and has the potential to fill it up offensively. He averaged 13.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game while starting 77 of 78 games for the Bonnies over the last three seasons.
He’s been a high-level shooter during his career, knocking down 40 percent of his 3-pointers as a sophomore in 2019-20 and 38 percent in 2020-21, before seeing a significant dip to 27 percent in 2021-22.
His 13.8 points and 5.3 rebound averages in 2020-21 earned him second-team All-Atlantic-10 honors.
At Iowa State, Holmes likely projects as an off-ball guard in a role similar to Gabe Kalscheur’s with the program. Both players are similar in size with a comparable ability to score in bunches against the right match-up.
For Holmes, that fact is proven when you look at his game log, which includes scoring outbursts like a 38-point performance against St. Joe’s in 2020-21. He scored 20-plus points in seven games during his career at St. Bonaventure and poured in a team-high 23 points in the program’s win over Oklahoma in the 2022 NIT.
He also led St. Bonaventure with 18 points in the program’s NCAA Tournament contest against LSU in 2020-21.
Holmes prepped at Romulus High School, which has strong connections to Iowa State over the years. Former Cyclone Will Clyburn played at Romulus for current Alabama head Nate Oats. Former Iowa State assistant coach Charlie Henry, who worked for Fred Hoiberg and is now reunited with Oats in Tuscaloosa, also coached at Romulus.
Newly promoted Iowa State assistant coach Nate Schmidt, who spent last season as the program’s director of player development, also coached at Romulus under Oats.
Iowa State continues to search for high-scoring guards in the aftermath of Tyrese Hunter’s entry into the transfer portal early last week.
Holmes certainly fits the criteria and would be a significant pick-up for T.J. Otzelberger and his staff if they’re able to seal the deal in the days ahead.
