Sitting across the table from Boise State head coach Leon Rice at Deli George on Broadway, fresh-faced 16-year-old Tyson Degenhart was asked a question he’d never really considered.
“Have you ever thought about playing pro?” Rice asked Degenhart, who at that point was thinking about his next game for Mt. Spokane High School and not dreaming of a professional basketball career.
“If the opportunity occurs, yeah, of course, I’ll play pro,” Degenhart responded.
If Rice’s opening question surprised Degenhart, the head coach’s following remark took him even more by surprise: “You’re going to play pro basketball.”
“It kind of opens up your eyes,” Degenhart, now a 22-year-old senior, told reporters last week. “It’s like, this guy actually believes in me. And from day one, he’s always shown that belief in me, and it’s never wavered throughout.”
Arriving at Boise State in 2021, Degenhart became a starter by the end of November of his freshman year. He’s basically been there since, missing a start against Vanguard in November 2023 only because of a nose injury.
Degenhart said he’s still not thinking about any pro career. Not with so much at stake as his college playing days wind down. His Broncos, seeded fifth in the MWC Tournament, open Thursday against San Diego State in Las Vegas. As of Wednesday, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has BSU as the first team out in his NCAA Tournament bracket watch.
Degenhart has been a stalwart for Rice’s teams as they’ve made three straight NCAA Tournaments. The two-time All-Mountain West pick is the team’s leading scorer (17.8) and rebounder (6.1), and was named to the 10-man midseason shortlist for the 2025 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year award.
With 1,913 career points, he’s 32 away from overtaking Tanoka Beard’s program record of 1,944 – a record Rice said last week won’t be broken again if Degenhart sets it.
Degenhart isn’t expected to be picked in this year’s NBA draft, which lasts only two rounds. But there’s still a path for him to carve out a professional career in the United States.
“Guys like (Degenhart) are special because they get underestimated a little bit because they’re so consistent,” Rice said. “And it’s not a flashy consistent; it’s an efficient basketball game they play. And so they don’t maybe get the credit for the numbers they put up and the consistency they do it with.”
Count senior teammates Alvaro Cardenas and O’Mar Stanley among two of Degenhart’s biggest fans.
Cardenas matched up against Degenhart multiple times while playing for the San Jose Spartans. He’ll never forget trying to double-team Degenhart, yet watching him force his way through for a basket – before screaming at the crowd.
“I hated him,” Cardenas joked last week.
“(Degenhart) is an amazing teammate, one of the best teammates I’ve had,” Cardenas continued. “He’s very humble, but at the same time, he’s very competitive. He’s got that killer instinct in him, and he’s really a role model for all the young players that come to this program and look up to him.”
Stanley shared similar sentiments, saying that Degenhart has been instrumental in “rebuilding” Boise State. If the Broncos survive the bubble and make the NCAA Tournament, or get the automatic bid by winning the Mountain West tourney, Degenhart will be the only Bronco in history to play in four NCAAs.
“He’s a true professional. He’s a true man,” Stanley said. “He does things that some adults don’t do, you know what I mean? It’s my pleasure that he’s one of my brothers.”
