Dusty Stromer, the first of three Gonzaga basketball players to enter the transfer portal last week, became the first to announce a new home when the 6’6 wing committed to Grand Canyon via Instagram on Wednesday.
“Let’s workkkkk” Stromer wrote on Instagram, with a photoshopped photo in a ‘Lopes jersey.
Stromer entered the portal back when it opened on March 24, coming off a tough end of the season where his playing time plummeted as he fell out of coach Mark Few’s eight man rotation.
After starting 15 games as a freshman and averaging 23.5 minutes per night, Stromer began his sophomore year in a similar role, coming in early off the bench and averaging 22.4 minutes in the first 22 games.
However, in the final 12 games of the season Stromer was displaced by transfer wing Emmanuel Innocenti in the rotation, playing just 8.6 minutes per night.
The rising junior only scored two points in five total games the month of March, and with Innocenti and redshirt wing Jalen Warley expected to fill big roles next year, it wasn’t a surprise to see him hit the portal.
Now the former top 50 recruit in the 2023 class lands at Grand Canyon under coach Bryce Drew. The Lopes – who are headed to the Mountain West this year – have made the NCAA Tournament each of the past two seasons, including a win over No. 5 Saint Mary’s in 2024 in Spokane.
Drew has a solid reputation of successfully incorporating transfers into his system and turning them into high level scorers – including 2023-24 WAC Player of the Year and NBA draft prospect Tyon Grant-Foster – and Stromer should get a chance to step into a bigger opportunity for a team in a competitive conference, who will likely make the NCAA Tournament, and be much closer to his hometown of Sherman Oaks, CA
