The newest addition to the IU men’s basketball team, Zeisloft is billed as a pure shooter for a team desperately in need of perimeter shooting.
Of the three returning players who played significant time on the perimeter, only junior guard Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell is an above average three-point shooter, hitting 40 percent of his shots behind the arc in the past season.
Sophomores Stanford Robinson and Troy Williams struggled with their jump shots, combining to make just nine threes all season. The pair shot 19 and 21 percent from behind the arc, respectively.
Zeisloft, a 6-foot-4 graduate student transfer from Illinois State, is a renowned sharpshooter. He shot 36 percent from behind the arc and 90 percent from the free-throw line during the 2013-14 season.
For Zeisloft, he’ll get to play for the team he grew up rooting for in his hometown of La Grange, Ill., a suburb of Chicago.
“I was in sixth grade maybe,” Zeisloft said of the first time he walked into Assembly Hall. “I was there for an Iowa game. The game was a great experience. It’s one of the best venues in all of sports.”
As a kid, Zeisloft thought he was going to be playing baseball at the collegiate level, not basketball. It wasn’t until his sophomore year of high school he realized basketball would be the best avenue for him to play college athletics.
“I was pretty young when I realized I could shoot pretty well,” Zeisloft said.
IU Coach Tom Crean and his coaching staff have made perimeter shooting a point of emphasis this season, bringing in shooters in recruiting and now Zeisloft as a graduate student transfer, who will be available to play this fall because he graduated from Illinois State.
“The addition of Nick allows us to spread and space the floor even more and play with more pace,” Crean said at the time Zeisloft joined IU.
Zeisloft will join freshmen James Blackmon Jr., Rob Johnson and Max Hoetzel, who are each known for reliable jumpers.
But there is another reason Crean brought in Zeisloft, something his team this past year struggled with visibly on the court: veteran leadership.
“I’m ready to be a leader and be a guy that brings experience and shows maturity out there on the court,” Zeisloft said.
What Zeisloft’s role on the team will be is unknown. He averaged just 6.9 points per game in his past season for Illinois State, which is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
But whether he sees significant playing time or he’s brought in as a situational shooter, Zeisloft knows why he was brought to Bloomington.
“I’m ready to put in plenty of threes for the Hoosiers,” Zeisloft said.
