Former UCLA guard Jake Kyman signing with Wyoming
LARAMIE -- Wyoming is officially reloading.
Jeff Linder snagged a pair of USC transfers over the last 48 hours. Saturday afternoon, he landed a shooter from the Trojans' biggest rival. UCLA's Jake Kyman announced on Twitter he is joining the Wyoming basketball program, reuniting with former AAU teammates Max Agbonkpolo and Ethan Anderson in Laramie.
All three players have two years of eligibility remaining.
Kyman, a 6-foot-7, 215-pound shooting guard from Aliso Viejo, Calif., averaged just eight minutes per game last season, scoring 2.4 points and adding a rebound. The junior shot an uncharacteristic 37% from the field and connected on 29% from beyond the arc.
During his three-year career in Westwood, Kyman hovered in the mid 30's in 3-point shooting. He hit 40.3% from deep during the 2019-20 campaign.
In a 66-53 rout of Stanford in late January, Kyman netted a season-high 15 points on 6-of-15 shooting. As a true freshman, he scored 21 points two times in wins over Washington and Arizona State. Kyman, who hit seven 3-pointers in that victory over the Huskies, also had a 20-point outing in a loss at Oregon.
A three-star recruit out of Santa Margarita Catholic High School (Agbonkpolo went to the same school), Kyman was recruited by BYU, Colorado, LSU and Pepperdine before eventually signing with the Bruins. He was named the Orange County Player of the Year by the local newspaper after averaging 21 points and eight rebounds a night during his senior season.
Kyman entered the NCAA Transfer Portal March 30 after appearing in 80 games at UCLA.
“I just want to thank everyone at UCLA who has helped make the last three years an amazing experience,” Kyman said in a statement released by UCLA. “I want to first thank my coaches, the staff, and my teammates for the unforgettable memories, the countless laughs, the knowledge, and the relationships that I have built and will keep with me forever. I have never been more proud to say I fulfilled my childhood dream of playing for those legendary four letters. I’ll always be a Bruin for life! With that being said, I will be entering the transfer portal and look forward to the next chapter.”
Kyman's minutes dropped significantly last season after averaging more than 12 a night as a freshman. He played in just 23 of the Bruins' 35 games, including just a single minute in UCLA's Sweet Sixteen loss to North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament.
“We would like to thank Jake for his contributions to our program, and we wish him all the best going forward,” UCLA head coach Mick Cronin said in a statement. “Jake has been a great teammate and a first-class young man in his time as a Bruin. We are going to miss Jake, but as I told him, he is always welcome in Westwood and will always be part of the Bruin family.”
Wyoming finished the 2021-22 season 25-9 overall and received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Linder's Cowboys lost to Indiana in the First Four game in Dayton.
After the season, UW's top 3-point shooter, Drake Jeffries, announced he would be seeking a pro career. John Grigsby, Deng Dut, Ben Bowen and Eoin Nelson entered the transfer portal soon after. Senior forward Hunter Thompson announced he would return for his fifth season in Laramie, and Hunter Maldonado is testing the NBA waters but has left the door open to return for a sixth season on the high plains.
UW has just one incoming freshman, Caden Powell, a 6-foot-9, 210-pound forward from Waco, Texas.
Here are the Cowboys current 13 scholarship players:
Graham Ike
* Hunter Maldonado
Jermemiah Oden
Max Agbonkpolo
Ethan Anderson
Jake Kyman
Noah Reynolds
Xavier DuSell
Caden Powell
Kenny Foster
Nate Barnhart
Brendan Wenzel
Hunter Thompson
* Maldonado is undecided whether or not he will return in 2022-23.