Even though Stanford doesn’t have a men’s lacrosse team, they sure seem to find guys who enjoy playing it. Former Cardinal point guard Michael O’Connell played in high school and was recruited by Maryland while former Cardinal linebacker Ricky Miezan grad transferred to Virginia to play lacrosse. Now, another guy can be added to the list in Cole Kastner, a star lacrosse player for Virginia who has committed to Stanford for men’s basketball as a grad transfer. Kastner will not count against Stanford's scholarship limit as he will be a preferred walk-on.
Kastner played high school basketball down the street from Stanford at the Menlo School in Atherton. He was recruited to play basketball by some smaller schools including some from the Ivy League. He ultimately chose lacrosse, but he clearly still has a passion for basketball.
At 6’7”, 215 pounds, Kastner has good size for a basketball player. He should project to play out on the wing. At Virginia, he was a defenseman, so he should be used to playing physical and staying in front of guys all while having good strength and quickness. That should translate well to the defensive side of things on basketball.
I think the biggest question mark with Kastner is how effective he can be offensively. Playing lacrosse certainly would have kept his hand eye coordination sharp, but he still hasn’t been getting up the amount of shots that your average college basketball player would be taking.
Regardless, he does seem to have some good physical tools to work with and he should at a minimum be a good defensive player for the Cardinal. I’m not expecting much from him offensively, but perhaps he’ll be a pleasant surprise on that end. It’ll be interesting to learn more about him and how he feels about making the transition back to hoops.
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