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Cam Martin did his homework. And Boise State ended up being a no-brainer.
The former D2 All-American and 6-foot-9 Kansas transfer announced Tuesday he’ll play his final college season at Boise State. And he explained the decision in an exclusive interview with Bronco Nation News prior to making the news public on his Instagram account.
The two main reasons he picked Boise State? How the Broncos plan to use him – and how good they could be next season.
“The biggest thing for me was finding the right fit offensively and being used in a way that fits my skill set,” Martin told BNN. “You can look at the post players at Boise State and they’ve had a lot of players that have been stretch fives and capable of shooting the basketball. You can’t say the came about Kansas.
“After watching some film of how I’ve played in the past and how Boise State has played in the past and how they want to use me, it looked like a no-brainer.”
His brother Alex Martin will also join the team as a freshman walk-on next season. The 6-foot-6 wing was committed to a junior college before deciding he wanted to be teammates with his brother this upcoming season.
In fact Martin, who said he heard from almost 100 schools in the recruiting process, made it clear the two were a packaged deal from the start. If you wanted him, you had to be willing to take his brother as a walk-on.
“It couldn’t have worked out more perfect for us to play together,” Cam Martin said. “As soon as I went into the portal that was the biggest thing, we were going somewhere together regardless.”
Both brothers and their parents visited Boise State last weekend. They had already visited Colorado State and had strong interest from Clemson, Wichita State, SMU and Texas Tech but saw enough in Boise to shut things down and commit to the Broncos.
“We just loved the city, loved the campus, everything about it,” Martin said. “I had never been to Idaho so to get to experience that and meet the coaches in person was super big for both of us and ultimately we just decided it was the best fit basketball wise and school wise.”
Martin averaged 23.3 points per game in three years at Missouri Southern and shot 45 percent from 3-point range during the 20-21 season (49 of 110). He’s not the traditional post-up center, but can do that if needed. His outside shooting ability should be a perfect fit in Boise State’s offense.
He transferred to Kansas prior to the 2021-22 season and redshirted his first season there in hopes of earning more playing time this past season, which he would have got until he injured his shoulder in the preseason.
The Jayhawks won the national championship during his redshirt year, and he played just 10 total minutes in four games last year due to the shoulder. But he gets a medical redshirt for last season which gives him one season left – and he’ll now use it in Boise.
“There’s a huge back story and just looking on the outside in you’d have no idea especially,” Martin explained. “When I came to Kansas I was in a situation where they had a bunch of veteran guys…and if I waited my turn (redshirted), I could have a big year the next year, so Id di that, and it worked out like I thought it would and we had our first scrimmage after the national championship year and I started. But the very next day I separated my shoulder.
“It was unfortunate, horrible timing, but it’s in the past and I’m excited to move on and really get back to playing basketball. I’m finally 100 percent healthy now and ready to go.”
Martin, who will enter his seventh college season, knows former Bronco guard Marcus Dickinson well from their days playing together in Oklahoma back in high school. So he reached out to him as soon as Boise State’s coaches contacted him a few weeks ago, and the positive recommendation from Dickinson helped get the ball rolling with the Broncos.
“He had nothing but good things to say and said he thought it would be a perfect place for me to go,” Martin said of Dickinson. “That was somebody that could vouch for the coaches.”
The final piece of Martin’s decision was Martin’s desire to win in his final college season. He’s already won a national championship with Kansas, but was on the bench as a redshirt. He wants to contribute to a winner himself – and he sees that happening in Boise.
“I’ve watched a ton of games – I probably watched 10 full games of Boise State last year,” Martin said. “And just seeing they were one piece away from being something special, I think I can come in and be that one piece and push us over the top and get that first NCAA Tournament win and make a run.
“That 0-9 is going to change next year.”
Martin is leaving Lawrence this week and will head home to spend time with his family before making his way to Boise in early June. He joins point guard transfer Roddie Anderson III from UC San Diego as additions to the Broncos, who still have another scholarship to use.
Throw in the return of Max Rice, Tyson Degenhart and Chibuzo Agbo from a 24-win team which made the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year and add incoming freshmen Andrew Meadow and Chris Lockett – and the Broncos are looking dangerous again.
“It’s going to be a fun year,” Martin said. “We’re going to win a lot of basketball games.”
