Boise State lands first transfer portal commitment from Summit League Tournament MVP, boosting backcourt depth

The college men’s basketball transfer portal doesn’t officially open until Tuesday, but Boise State has already secured its first incoming transfer in North Dakota State point guard Damari Wheeler-Thomas. 

The 6-foot Wheeler-Thomas, a graduate transfer with one season of eligibility remaining, averaged 14.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists last season for the Bison while shooting 38 percent from beyond the arc. 

Boise State announced the signing of Wheeler-Thomas on Monday.

An Illinois native, Wheeler-Thomas was a Class 4A second-team all-state selection during his senior year at Larkin High School. He was an unrated prep recruit who signed with North Dakota State over reported offers from Denver and Western Illinois. 

Wheeler-Thomas made 28 starts for the Bison as a freshman during the 2022-23 season and averaged 7.1 points, two rebounds and 1.6 assists. He increased his numbers to 10.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists as a sophomore before blossoming into North Dakota State’s leading scorer last season. 

North Dakota State won the Summit League’s regular-season and tournament titles to reach the NCAA Tournament. Wheeler-Thomas was named Most Valuable Player of the Summit Tournament, averaging 17.3 points per game in victories over Oral Roberts, Omaha and North Dakota.

The Bison received a No. 14 seed for the NCAA Tournament and fell to Michigan State in the opening round. Wheeler-Thomas had 16 points, three rebounds and two assists in the 92-67 loss to Michigan State. 

Wheeler-Thomas is in line to take over as Boise State’s starting point guard next season for Dylan Andrews, who is out of eligibility. The Broncos are losing all five starters off last year’s team, including star center Drew Fielder (14.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 41 percent shooting on three-pointers) and wing Andrew Meadow (12.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 39 percent shooting on threes). 

Earlier on Monday, the Broncos announced that reserve forwards Bhan Buom and Ethan Lathan will both return next season. 

The 6-foot-8 Buom made 22 appearances as a true freshman and averaged 1.6 points and 0.5 rebounds in limited minutes. Buom should be in the mix for a regular rotation role at forward next season. 

The 6-foot-10 Lathan redshirted during the 2024-25 season and appeared in five games as a redshirt freshman. The Broncos need Lathan to make an offseason jump to fill in for Fielder and Dominic Parolin, who is out of eligibility. 

Boise State is also bringing back junior-to-be guard Pearson Carmichael, who averaged 7.9 points and 3.1 rebounds in 19 minutes last season. The 6-foot-7 Carmichael is expected to start alongside Wheeler-Thomas in the Boise State backcourt. 

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