He wants to be an elementary school teacher, but ISU men’s basketball forward Clayton Vette is the one doing the learning right now. The freshman from Waverly is adjusting to life in Ames as one of the Cyclone’s top recruits this summer.

“It’s a huge difference,” said Vette of the changes of moving from Waverly to Ames. “I expected it to be pretty busy and stuff, but it was pretty overwhelming the first week I was here – but I’m getting used to it now.”

Although the changes were tough for Vette at first, the freshman is fitting in well with his new teammates.

In addition to time in the classroom preparing for his major, he’s spent most of his time in the weight room working out with his new teammates, on the court playing in pick-up games, or playing in exhibition games as a member of the Peak Performance team of the YMCA Capital City Men’s Basketball League. He’s even impressed a few with his size.

Before arriving on campus, he was named “Iowa Mr. Basketball” by the Iowa Newspaper Association. Originally signing a letter of intent to play for Indiana State University, Vette opted out after head coach Royce Waltman’s contract was not renewed. He then joined the Cyclones as the first Mr. Basketball recruit to come to Iowa State since Fred Hoiberg arrived on campus in 1991.

“I’ve known [Coach Greg] McDermott for a long time,” he said. “He’s a nice guy, a good coach, and everything. He works good with big guys so I just figured it was the best fit for me.”

He was also a perfect fit for the Cyclones, who hoped to get bigger during the off-season. Vette joins an ISU team that – with the exception of 6-foot-11-inch center Jiri Hubalek – was often overmatched in size.

“He’s got a very well-developed body coming out of high school,” said Cyclone Assistant Coach Ron Smith. “He’s big, strong, and played in a system that is similar to what we play.”

Besides Vette’s 6-foot-9-inch, 245-pound frame, Smith said he was impressed with his high school history, where the forward led his Waverly-Shell Rock team to a 24-3 record and a 2006 state championship.

“I think you always go for guys that have been part of winning programs,” Smith said. “Knowing how to win and having that winning attitude is a great thing to have experience in. Clayton’s won and he’s won at the highest level here in high school. I’m sure it’s going translate into some confidence coming into his first season.”

Vette isn’t quite sure where he fits on the team right now, but he said he isn’t worried about earning any more individual awards. He’s excited about the team the Cyclones will be coming back next season.

“I think we can win right now,” Vette said. “I’m pretty confident in everybody that we have. We have some good guys returning.”

As for being the first Iowa Mr. Basketball to come to Iowa State since Hoiberg, he said he tries to avoid dealing with the expectations that entails.

“I don’t really think about it, but I know it’s there and I know they’re [the fans] expecting a lot out of me,” he said. “Hopefully I can live up to it.”