By james art 
2018: Boise State is in its 54th season as a Division I basketball program. But NBA players have been elusive for the Broncos.
Boise, Idaho – This Day in Sports … 27 January 2018:
James Webb III became just the fourth Boise State product to ever play in an NBA game when he debuted for the Brooklyn Nets in a 111-87 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Webb was scoreless with one assist in five minutes. The one-time All-Mountain West Forward for the Broncos declared early for the 2016 NBA Draft but was not selected. He traded for Geague’s Philadelphia 76ers before signing with Brooklyn.
Webb had actually signed with Brooklyn 12 days earlier, but hadn’t come off the bench in his first six games on the roster. Finally, he tweeted, “Hey guys, my name is James Webb III and I’m bored!” He played 10 games this season, scoring 16 points and pulling down 24 rebounds. That was the extent of his NBA career. Since then, Webb has played in Germany, Iowa (G League), Greece, Spain, Israel, Turkey and China, where he just signed with the Liaoning Flying Leopards 2 weeks ago.
Webb was one of the most exciting players of the Leon Rice era at Boise State, playing above the rim, beyond the arc and coast to coast on defense. He didn’t start until the sixth game of the 2014-15 season, but he emerged as the Mountain West Newcomer of the Year and second-team All-Mountain West. Webb also earned a spot on the MW All Defense team. He was first-team all-conference in his second season as a Bronco, averaging 15.8 points, 9.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 55.2 percent from the field.
The last former Boise State player to appear in an NBA game was Coby Karl with the Golden State Warriors in 2010. The first two to do so were Chris Child in 1995. and John Cocker in 1996. two more former Broncos played in the NBA Since Webb. Chandler Hutchison was a 2018 first round pick of the Chicago Bulls. and played in 103 games for three teams through 2022, and Reid Dennis signed a two-way contract with the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 5 and has played 10 minutes in five games, making a pair of free throws.
Dennis spent his first two seasons of hoops at Boise State before transferring to Toledo, where he was the Mac Player of the Year, and eventually to Baylor. Dennis will forever be remembered for sparking one of the most incredible and thrilling comebacks in Boise State basketball history five years ago, as the Broncos rallied from 18 points down with just over four minutes to beat Utah State 88-83 in sequels.
Dennis started the game but didn’t score until 3:36 remained in the second half. He then put up 19 points the rest of the way in regulation. With Boise State trailing 75-70, Dennis drained a three-pointer with four seconds left—then Justinian Jessup stole the Aggies’ inbound pass and laid it down to send it into OT. The Broncos took their first lead of the game early in the extra period and never looked back.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports. He also anchors four weekday sports segments on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk Kboi. His column Scott Slant works every Wednesday.))