NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of Washington of last decade

4. Malachi Flynn – Washington State / San Diego State

A 6’1 guard from Tacoma, Flynn had a unique and fantastic collegiate career. He played his first two seasons at Washington State, becoming one of the most important pieces for the Cougars squad. However, Flynn transferred away from the Pac-12, sitting out a year before heading to San Diego State. It’s hard to put into words just how important and successful he was for the Aztecs, but we’ll do our best.

Flynn’s career at Washington State was actually impressive. He averaged 15.8 points and 4.3 assists per game as a sophomore, becoming the second-leading scorer for the Cougars. A highly-sought after transfer, Flynn made his way to San Diego State and had exactly the impact that was expected. Flynn averaged 17.6 points, 5.1 assists, and 4.5 rebounds a game and helped lead the Aztecs to a 26-0 start to the season. Flynn was a force both on offense and defense and was the backbone for that impressive San Diego State squad.

That redshirt junior year with San Diego State saw Flynn named a Second Team All-American as well as winning Mountain West Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. He led the conference in assists and steals, was one of the top scorers, and clearly played an enormous role on San Diego State’s top-ranked defense. After that impressive season, Flynn headed off to the next level, becoming a late first-round draft pick of the Toronto Raptors.