PROVO – “Big Idaho” goes south.
Former BYU basketball center Kolby Lee got involved with Dixie State, the junior from Meridian, Idaho, who was announced on social media on Monday.
The 6-foot-9,240-pound center played at BYU for four years, including a redshirt season in 2017-18, shortly after returning from a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Lee’s best season was 2019-20, when he averaged 7.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game in 30 games, including 28 starts, alongside Yoeli Childs – and even started in his place while Childs did one Nine-game suspension refrained from performing improperly after returning to school from the 2019 NBA draft.
But Lee’s playing time and production dropped significantly after this season. The big junior started only 15 of 25 games in 2020-21 with an average of 3.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 10 minutes per competition.
With the advent of newcomers Gideon George and Caleb Lohner and Richard Harwards justification after moving from the Utah Valley and the arrival of graduate transfer Matt Haarm from Purdue, the rotation just got too tight to accommodate “Big Idaho”.
Get ready ? # Committed # dixiestatemensbasketballpic.twitter.com / BOcuyjZR3l
– Big Kolb (@ Krlee32) April 26, 2021
“I just felt like I was burned a little,” Lee told Deseret News, adding that he plans to retire from a state school where he will be close to his wife, Kayla Belles-Lee who plays for the BYU women’s basketball team. “Last year I chose Yoeli who is a great player and we haven’t really missed a shot. We still played well against top 25 teams.
“This year there has been more trying not to make a mistake so that I can be out there, which you can’t really do when trying to play Division I basketball,” he added. “All you have to do is play ball. It felt like I was being pulled if I made a mistake.”
That led Lee to the Transfer Portal, where he looked at several local schools to finish his career in – from the nearby Utah Valley to the State of Utah to Weber State in the north of the state.
BYU’s Kolby Lee shoots a shot against New Orleans during the Cougars v New Orleans basketball game on Thursday, November 26, 2020 in Provo. (Photo: Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo)
At Dixie State, Lee joins a group that has completed its first season of transition to Division I basketball, ending with an 8-13 record, including a 4-10 mark in the Western Athletic Conference game.
The Trailblazers had wins against greats like North Dakota, Denver and Utah Valley, but struggled with consistency on the track, losing four of their last six competitions, including a win in the season finale against New Mexico state in St. George.
Lee joins a growing number of returning talent at Dixie State, including aspiring senior Cameron Gooden, who was the Trailblazers’ top scorer last year averaging 13.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game, and the former standout East High player Andre Mulibea with 5.9 points and 2.2 rebounds are among per game in his first season.
Joining the group is also newcomer Noa Gonsalves, the 6-foot-1 Lehi product that earned 18.3 points, 4.8 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game and the Pioneers to a 17-8 record and the 5A state champions led head coach Quincy Lewis.
One of Lee’s former BYU teammates, who was also on the transfer portal, made his final decision over the weekend, but it does not include a goal.
Jesse Wade, the former Davis high star who left high school with Gonzaga before joining BYU, announced his retirement from the sport in a long social media post on Sunday afternoon.
Thank you all. I have been so blessed with such amazing support. pic.twitter.com/M2YdOFcHWb
– Jesse Wade (@ jessewade10) April 25, 2021
Wade, the # 1 recruit in the state of ESPN and 247 Sports in 2015, averaged 26.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.7 steals per game on the way to Deseret News Mr Basketball service on a two-year ecclesiastical mission in France.
But following the return to BYU, injuries hampered the development of the 6-foot-1,175-pound guard on the next level. He prevailed in the 2018/19 season with a knee injury and only played nine games as a Redshirt Junior last year, where he scored a career high of 4 points against USC.
Wade played a total of seven minutes in the last eleven Cougars of the Year competitions, leading to his departure and eventual resignation after receiving his bachelor’s degree in strategic management from BYU’s Marriott School of Business.
“When I started playing basketball as a kid, I had big dreams, but I could never have imagined where this game would take me and what I could achieve along the way,” said Wade. “There are innumerable people in my life whom I can thank. I am forever indebted to so many people.
“Basketball introduced me to the world’s most loyal best friends and people. What more could anyone ask for?”
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