LARAMIE – When players of Khaden Bennett's caliber enter the portal, the phone starts ringing.
 
Most coaches call transfer targets to initiate the recruitment process.
 
Sundance Wicks? Wyoming's head coach prefers to reach out via FaceTime and look at potential Pokes in the eye.
 
"That was a unique experience," Bennett said of connecting with Wicks this spring. "Then when I got here for my visit, he welcomed me and my family with open arms."
 
So, what was Bennett looking for when he entered the portal?
 
"Just somewhere I could be connected with everybody – the staff, players," he said. "Somewhere that was going to be like a family environment. Then just a lot of energy. That's what Coach Wicks is all about."
 
During Bennett's junior season at South Grand Prairie High playing for his father, Brandon Bennett, he earned Texas District 8-6A offensive player of the year honors while leading the team to a 21-1 record.
 
Bennett played his senior season at a prep academy in Connecticut and spent his first two seasons in college at Quinnipiac. He averaged 10.3 points and 4.3 rebounds as a sophomore to help lead the Bobcats to 20 wins and a MAAC regular season title.
 
"Khaden was a highly efficient winner from Quinnipiac. Coach (Nick) Whitmore had known about him," Wicks said of identifying Bennett as a transfer target. "There's a lot of talented players in Texas and Texas players are usually pretty dang tough. We love recruiting coaches' kids, and his dad is a high school coach, Brandon Bennett. What we saw was a guy who knew how to play and had the toughness. …
 
"I really liked his stoic demeanor. He's not a too high or too low guy. He's just an even keel dude. To me, that's winning. Winning is never too high, never too low. He's a winner."
 
Beyond his toughness and calmness, Bennett has impressive athleticism. That was demonstrated on a soaring dunk by the 6-foot-4, 205-pound guard that made SportsCenter's Top 10 plays last season.
 
"I'm someone who can play on and off the ball, offense and defense, and bring a lot of winning culture, winning plays, diving on the floor for loose balls and stuff like that," Bennett said. "At this level everyone can score and I'm pretty good offensively."
 
Bennett scored a career-high 23 points against Sacred Heart and added 20 points against Mount St. Mary's last season. He finished with 39 3-pointers, shot 78% from the free throw line and had 43 steals.
 
The challenge of playing in the Mountain West and being part of Wicks' rebuilding of the Cowboys helped sell Bennett on UW.
 
"One of the big things was obviously coming to this conference where they get four or five (NCAA Tournament) bids every year," Bennett said. "There are a lot of pros in this league as well, and I want to surround myself with that, which was another big factor in me coming here."
 
Several of the new Pokes, including Bennett, went on a hike recently. He also participated in a Jae Foundation event last weekend in Pinedale, which included horse riding.
 
"I'm trying new things and being open to what Laramie has to offer," Bennett said.
 
The Cowboys started their third week of summer workouts on Monday. Last year's team didn't take the practice together until July.
 
Wicks has a strong first impression of Bennett and his ability to create chemistry on and off the court with his new teammates.
 
"I think Khaden can play well with anybody, that's his gift," Wicks said. "We stat everything in practice and he's always solid, he's always right there and right where he was at Quinnipiac. When guys start showing you who they are and it's the same, you've got to believe them."
 
(Editor's note: This is the first in a 12-part series introducing fans to UW's new men's basketball players. Next up: Damarion Dennis).
 
If you are interested in learning more about NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) or would like to support our student-athletes, please visit 1wyo.org. 1WYO was created out of Wyoming's culture of neighbor helping neighbor. The mission is to promote and strengthen local charitable organizations and develop Wyoming student athletes. 
 
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