Who is Boise State basketball’s transfer point guard? He’s already a vocal leader

Boise State men’s basketball kicks off its new season Wednesday at 7 p.m. at ExtraMile Arena against Oakland.

There are two senior starters fans have come to know and love, forwards Tyson Degenhart and O’Mar Stanley, but there also will be a new senior on the court.

And he’s not afraid to make himself heard.

“He’s super down to business. He’s going to do whatever it takes to win,” Degenhart said about this new teammate.

Coach Leon Rice said this point guard is “a coach on the floor.”

They were talking this week about senior transfer Alvaro Cardenas, who came to Boise State from San Jose State after spending his first three years with a Mountain West foe. The 6-foot-1 guard who was born in Grenada, Spain, and likely will slot right into the starting lineup.

But what can fans expect to see from Cardenas moving forward, and how did he end up at Boise State?

A vocal leader

Just one day after Boise State’s 2023-24 season ended at the hands of Colorado in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament, Broncos associate head coach Mike Burns was sitting in a restaurant in San Jose to have a face-to-face visit with Cardenas.

Such is the playing field, so to speak, in college athletics now, which essentially has free agency.

The Broncos had just waved goodbye to longtime guard and team leader Max Rice, the coach’s son, to graduation, and they were already making moves to find his replacement.

Cardenas, who was second in scoring for the Spartans (13.2 points per game), was looking for a new challenge for his final year of college eligibility. In his three years at San Jose State, there was just one winning season and an overall record of 38-60.

“I didn’t want my last year to be an ‘if’ year,” Cardenas said Monday. “Where I don’t know what’s going to happen, or if we’re going to be at the middle of the table, or are we going to be last.”

When Boise State came calling, he put his trust in the coaching staff — admitting the Broncos play a different style than he’s used to — and made the journey north to the Treasure Valley.

Rice said he doesn’t think much adjustment is necessary, but he has “no problem adjusting to really good players.” But one of the things he loves most about Cardenas, he said, is the leadership he brings.

Cardenas told the media Monday he’s been pushing Stanley and Degenhart. He told Stanley over the summer that he “wasn’t being as aggressive as I think he should have been,” and Degenhart said Cardenas isn’t afraid to “give you a little tap” if you aren’t performing to his standards.

“I was blown away a little bit by how quickly he was able to (become a leader),” Rice said. “He’s a natural quarterback point guard, and that’s what you want. These guys had respect for him the second he walked into this gym.”

What kind of player is Cardenas?

Cardenas left San Jose State as a team captain, something that obviously transferred to Boise State. But what type of player will he be?

In his final year with the Spartans, Cardenas led the team in assists (171) by almost doubling up the next-closest player (99), and he was fourth in field goal percentage (45.7%) among those who had played at least 400 minutes.

“I want to get other people involved,” Cardenas said. “Trying to make Omar’s and Tyson’s life a little bit easier and get the shooters some open shots.”

He said he’s also looking to show off his defense this year, something he didn’t get to do as much at San Jose State because of the reliance on him as a prime scoring option.

“I’m going to pick up full court,” he said. “I’m going to make the other guards’ life as hard as I can, and just kind of bring my motor and play as hard as I can.”