By Tom Ballato

Michael Thomas spent this past year at Kilgore College, a community college in Kilgore, Texas.

The 6-foot-4 two-way guard from Lake Charles, LA, appeared in 29 games as freshman averaging 14.9 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. He also contributed with 40 steals and 50 assists on the season. When asked to describe his game, Thomas responded, “I’m an athletic guard that can get you a bucket and lock you up on the other end of the floor. I’m a two-way guard.”

Thomas attended Texas Prep after high school and had only two offers from colleges. He didn’t initially want to go the junior college route but decided it was best for him. “It helped me mature. At the beginning of the season, I was acting like a kid, but my coaches started getting on me. They helped me mature, and it helped my game out a lot more, too,” Thomas said about him attending junior college this past season.

His maturity helped him excel on the court last season for Kilgore. He scored a team-high 32 points in a victory over Jacksonville College last December and improved statistically during conference play.

After a strong freshman year, where he was named Region 14 First Team All-Region, he has received offers from Cal State Bakersfield, Coastal Carolina, Grambling State University, Houston, Southern University, and Troy.

He has recently gained a lot of interest on the recruiting trail. St. John’s, Seton Hall, Creighton, Georgetown, Georgia, Ole Miss, Louisville, and Mississippi State have reached out to his coach and expressed interest. Thomas had recent Zoom calls with Ole Miss and Louisville.

“This recruiting process has been different, but it has been better than it was before. Coaches have had the opportunity to look at my film and see what I can do,” Thomas claimed about his recruitment during the pandemic. His athletism and ability to score has impressed coaches. Thomas also shot 40% from behind the arch (52-130).

He intents to return to Kilgore College for his sophomore season and will be apart of a 2021 class.