Former Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Dusty Stromer found himself a new home in the West Coast Conference, announcing his commitment to San Diego on Sunday after spending last year with the Grand Canyon 'Lopes.
Stromer becomes the fourth Zag to transfer to a WCC school in the past three years, joining Dom Harris (LMU), Jun Seok Yeo (Seattle), Pavle Stosic (Pepperdine), and Colby Brooks (San Diego).
Stromer was a top 50 recruit who committed to Gonzaga in the class of 2023. He was thrust into a starting role as a freshman due to an ACL injury suffered by Steele Venters , and ended up starting 15 of 35 games in 2023-24, averaging 4.8 points and 3.3 rebounds.
He returned for his sophomore year but came off the bench almost exclusively, starting just one of 34 games and posting similar numbers of 4.3 points and 2.1 rebounds. His playing time dried up down the stretch of the season in favor of Emmanuel Innocenti, and it wasn't a huge surprise when Stromer entered the transfer portal shortly after the team's season-ending loss to Houston in the Round of 32.
The 6'6 wing spent his junior season in Phoenix playing for Bryce Drew and Grand Canyon, where he put up a career-high 6.4 points per game, while playing 22.6 minutes across 32 games and five starts.
Stromer was given more freedom to shoot in GCU's offense, with his 5.8 field goal attempts per game a significant bump from his previous career-high of 4.0 while at Gonzaga. However, he struggled with efficiency, shooting a career-low 38.6% on two-pointers and 33.3% from three.
Now the native of Sherman Oaks, CA, lands at San Diego, the second big splash made by new head coach JR Blount, following SWAC Rookie of the Year Antonio Munoz , who averaged 12.5 points per game last year at Grambling.
Blount replaces Steve Lavin at San Diego, coming over after a stint as an assistant coach at Iowa State. His first season as head coach will be determined in a lot of ways by how Stromer performs as a senior, with the 6'6 wing capable of being among the better players in the WCC if he puts it all together.
The Zags ended up facing Harris, Yeo, Stosic, and Brooks while they were at other WCC schools, but it is unlikely they will square off against Stromer in the San Diego blue. Gonzaga is set to move into the new look Pac-12 starting July 1, 2026, and is very unlikely to face San Diego barring a scheduled non-conference matchup - or a run-in during the NCAA Tournament.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/gonzaga as Former Gonzaga guard commits to San Diego in third stop out of transfer portal .
