In former Boise State forward Tyson Degenhart’s earliest memories playing basketball, he is around the age of two or three, shooting basketballs into a little basketball hoop at his grandmother’s house.

Born in Spokane, Washington, Degenhart first fell in love with basketball watching the Gonzaga Bulldogs. His family had season tickets, and from there, he became a fan of Adam Morrison, often wearing his jersey for months at a time. His mother, Tiffany, who was a math teacher, taught Morrison during his freshman year at Mead High School, giving Degenhart the opportunity to meet Morrison at a young age and build a relationship with him over time. 

Photo courtesy of the Degenhart family

“I went to as many games as I could and I just loved basketball from the beginning,” Degenhart said. “I was able to play a lot of sports as a kid, but basketball was always my number one.”

In high school, Degenhart became a two-time winner of the Greater Spokane League Player of the Year — an award given to athletes based on their achievements both athletically and academically. As a sophomore, he also led Mt. Spokane High School to their first WIAA 3A state championship game in school history, averaging around 19.3 points per game. 

According to Tiffany Degenhart, it was Robin Rice, wife of Boise State Men’s Basketball head coach Leon Rice, who first saw Degenhart compete in an AAU tournament when he was in the seventh grade and saw his potential.

In 2019, Degenhart’s junior year, he committed to Boise State after one official visit to campus. Despite being over 400 miles from home, Degenhart described the decision to commit to BSU as the “perfect fit”, noting the move allowed him to remain close to his family.

“Coach Rice, Coach Burns, Coach Duryea. All of them were so awesome in my recruiting process. Coach Barsh as well, I just felt at home here,” Degenhart said. “Boise felt a lot like Spokane and I just felt very comfortable here. With everything going on, it was just the perfect decision.” 

Seven games into his freshman season, the 6-foot-8 forward made his first start on Nov. 30 against Saint Louis, finishing the game with 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks. 

“Ten minutes before the game, I got a tweet saying ‘Welcome to the starting lineup Mr. Degenhart,’” Tiffany Degenhart said. “It was crazy and it just took off from there, and we never could have predicted that.”

The rest of the season he averaged 9.9 points on 28 minutes a game, earning Mountain West Freshman of the Year honors in 2022. 

In his sophomore and junior year, Degenhart’s playing minutes increased, leading the Broncos both years in points per game and helping the Broncos reach the NCAA Tournament.

In his senior year, Degenhart averaged 18.3 points and six rebounds per game. On March 7, 2025, he was honored on Senior Night, walking to midcourt with his family and hearing the cheers of Bronco Nation one last time at ExtraMile Arena. 

“Thank you for welcoming a kid from Spokane, Washington with open arms and supporting me throughout my four years,” Degenhart said of Bronco Nation, reflecting on his final night on the court. “It’s been a true blessing to wear the blue and orange. I’m just forever grateful for this opportunity.”

Just a week later, on March 14, he etched his name in Boise State men’s basketball history, becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer by finishing his career with 2,037 points. 

“It’s a culmination of a lot of years of hard work and coaching staff to put me in positions to be successful and [my] teammates trusting me to make the right plays,” Degenhart said.

Photo courtesy of the Degenhart family

On top of his success on the court, Degenhart also achieved a spot on the Academic All-America second team, earning a 3.92 GPA, becoming the only Mountain West player to be recognized in the 2024-2025 season.

“It’s student-athletes. He’s taking care of the student part of that athlete thing,” Degenhart’s father, Yukon, said of his son. “I’m proud of it, because Tiffany and I are both teachers, so we really admire the fact that he’s done so well in school. 

After falling short of another NCAA Tournament appearance in 2025, the Broncos competed in the inaugural College Basketball Crown Tournament — a postseason tournament created for 16 teams that didn’t make the NCAA tournament. The tournament revolves around name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities for student-athletes, with a prize pool tied to a team’s success. 

As the Broncos reached the semifinals, the team earned $50,000 in NIL money. 

“We would’ve loved to make the NCAA Tournament — get that first tournament win in program history, but sometimes that’s not the way the world works,” Degenhart said. “We were really excited to be a part of this inaugural tournament and it was just a great way to end my career, because this group has been very tight-knit throughout all the ups and downs of the season.”

Following going undrafted in the 2025 NBA Draft, Degenhart signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Toronto Raptors. According to a press release from Bronco Sports, an Exhibit 10 contract is a non-guaranteed one-year contract that can include a bonus if the player spends time with the team’s G-League team. 

“I’m so incredibly happy and thrilled for Tyson and his family,” head coach Leon Rice said in a release. “The opportunity to play at the next level is something all athletes covet, and there’s not a more deserving person or player than Tyson.”

According to the release, Degenhart is expected to play for the Raptors in the 2025 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas from July 10-20.