Villanova Men's Basketball
Malcolm Thomas, Freshman Dunk Contest Champ | Meet the Wildcats

This is one in a series of stories introducing the Villanova Wildcats’ 2024-25 roster.
Although he hasn’t yet taken the court through the first 12 games of Villanova’s season, don’t rule out the possibility of Malcolm Thomas working his way into a game before his freshman year ends. The Wildcats don’t seem like they’re in any hurry to give Thomas — a 6-foot-8, 218 pound power forward out of Maryland’s DeMatha Catholic High School, a veritable factory of NBA talent — his collegiate debut, but they aren’t going out of their way to preserve eligibility with a redshirt season either. He’ll have three or four years of eligibility at season’s end depending on if he plays.
The son of Etan Thomas, a Big East standout at Syracuse and a nine year NBA veteran who was the 12th overall pick in 2000, Malcolm Thomas won the Wildcats’ annual dunk contest at September’s Hoops Mania kickoff event, the first win for a true freshman since Donte DiVincenzo in 2015.
With the exception of wins over Temple and Seton Hall, in which he didn’t dress due to some lingering knee soreness, Thomas has suited up for the Wildcats in every game this season. There just hasn’t been an opportunity to pencil him in yet, especially with Villanova favoring a small ball lineup. With the nonconference schedule completed, further opportunities for Thomas to get into the action might be few and far between, but the door certainly seems open.
Path to Villanova
Even without logging any minutes yet, it’s an impressive trajectory to begin Thomas’ career. Listed at 195 pounds during his senior year at DeMatha, he’s put on 23 pounds since then, taking the developmental leap forward that many players need in order to compete in Division 1, especially those playing in the low post like he will. Already landing in the mix for minutes (and winning dunk contests) as a true freshman says a lot about Thomas’ progress already.
Malcolm Thomas chose Villanova over Big East foes like Butler and Xavier: other schools included Cal, Tulsa, Vanderbilt and Virginia Tech. Although 247Sports listed him as the No. 2 player in the state of Maryland, Thomas landed outside the Top 100 for his class per both ESPN and 247Sports’ metrics, a three-star recruit after putting up 14.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game during his senior year.
He made 53 percent of shots from 2-point range, 22 percent of those from beyond the arc, and 67 percent of his free throws, a pretty typical (if not exceptional) profile for a big man. Thomas’ natural athleticism — take a look at these dunks — speaks well to his defensive ability and scoring potential in the paint… not to mention the impact that having a father who’s an NBA veteran and skilled orator has surely played in his development to this point.
Whenever he manages to make it on the court, Malcolm Thomas will surely be a player to watch.