Boise State men’s basketball strikes out on two transfer portal targets; Where do Broncos go from here?

Broncos sitting on three transfer portal additions for 2026-27

Cal Poly Mustangs guard Cayden Ward. | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Boise State men’s basketball team lost out on two more transfer portal targets on Wednesday. 

Former Auburn wing Abdul Bashir announced his commitment to San Francisco on Wednesday while guard Cayden Ward opted to return to Cal Poly for his junior season. 

The 6-foot-7 Bashir, who reportedly met with Boise State last week, appeared in just six games for Auburn last year due to injury. He preserved his redshirt and has two seasons of eligibility remaining. 

Prior to Auburn, Bashir was a junior college All-American during the 2024-25 season after averaging 27.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists while shooting 37 percent from beyond the arc. Bashir was rated the nation’s No. 1 junior college prospect and a four-star recruit by 247Sports. 

Bashir would’ve been a plug-and-play starter on the wing for the Broncos, who lost all five starters off last year’s team that finished 20-12 overall and missed the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season. 

The 6-foot-6 Ward erupted as a sophomore for Cal Poly, putting up 14.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.6 assists. 

Ward’s numerous list of suitors included California, Oregon State, Stanford, Texas Tech and UCLA. The scoring guard chose to remove his name from the portal and return to Cal Poly.

After losing out on Bashir and Ward, Boise State’s top transfer portal target is now Northern Illinois guard Makhai Valentine. 

The 6-foot-3 Valentine made 29 starts for the Huskies as a sophomore and averaged 13.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, one assist and one steal. He shot nearly seven three-pointers per game at a 36 percent clip. 

According to Transfer Tapes, Valentine has set up a Zoom meeting with Boise State and will take official visits to George Mason and Monmouth. 

The Broncos have also reportedly been in contact with San Diego State guard Taj DeGourville. 

As of Thursday, Boise State has secured three transfer portal commits: Center Jikany Deang (North Dakota State College Of Science), forward Jerquarius Stanback (Alabama State) and point guard Damari Wheeler-Thomas (North Dakota State). 

Wheeler-Thomas is likely to start at point guard after averaging 14.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals last year for the Bison. 

Stanback earned SWAC Defensive Player of the Year honors as a freshman and put up 8.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and two blocks. The 6-foot-9 Stanback should also slide into a starting role. 

Deang is an intriguing junior college prospect who tallied 17.6 points and 8.5 rebounds as a sophomore last year.