MORGANTOWN — West Virginia continues to rebuild the men’s basketball roster under head coach Ross Hodge and the latest comes from a place of familiarity with Allen (Texas) 2025 forward Deandre Thomas.
Thomas, 6-foot-7, 210-pounds, had previously signed with North Texas in November, but requested his release after Hodge took the job with the Mountaineers. Once he got the opportunity to follow Hodge to Morgantown, he didn’t hesitate in making that choice.
“The fact that they believed in me enough that I can also play at the Big 12 level heavily went into my decision,” he said.
Thomas averaged 10.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game as a junior and then followed that up by averaging 10.9 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists as a senior on a high-level Allen basketball team where he was a leader on and off the floor.
The 2025 prospect is the first high school option to pick the Mountaineers since Hodge has taken over the program and Thomas checks plenty of boxes that he wants on the floor.
It’s telling of the trust that the pair have in each other as Hodge clearly sees the potential of Thomas at the next level and the athlete believes in the plan that the coaching staff has laid out for him.
“That has held a lot of weight,” he said.
Thomas is a versatile forward that can be used in a variety of ways on both ends of the floor and has a nice offensive skill set to go with the ability to match up against a variety of spots on defense.
“My ability to guard multiple positions and I have immense offensive value at multiple positions on the court. I think I can help us win next year,” Thomas said.
West Virginia now has added three pieces to the roster with Thomas along with North Texas forward Brenen Lorient as well as UNC Wilmington center Harlan Obioha.
That process is still ongoing and expect the Mountaineers to continue to add pieces as Hodge looks to piece together what the 2025-26 roster will look like in year one under the new head coach.
And Thomas is excited for what that next chapter looks like.
“I am looking forward to what we can accomplish this upcoming year. I think the fans will be proud and I can’t wait to get out there and meet a great community,” Thomas said.
— Story by Keenan Cummings
