The University of Utah’s latest addition from the transfer portal may end up being its most critical of the offseason.
After taking an official visit to the school over the weekend, former Wright State point guard TJ Burch committed to Alex Jensen’s basketball program.
Burch made the announcement on social media Sunday morning.
Who is TJ Burch?
Burch is a 6-foot-1 guard from the Dallas area who played his first college season at Ball State before transferring to Wright State for his sophomore year.
He’ll have two years of eligibility remaining.
Burch excelled during his one season with the Raiders — he was named the Horizon League’s newcomer of the year and the defensive player of the year — along with earning all-league first-team honors — following a season where Burch averaged 12.4 points, 3.6 assists and 2.4 rebounds per game.
Burch also tied for sixth nationally in steals per game, averaging 2.6 per contest — all while starting 23 of the 34 games he played last season.
He was inserted into the starting lineup in late December and stayed in that role through the end of the season, which culminated in Wright State making the NCAA Tournament as Horizon League tournament champions.
In the Raiders’ 82-73 loss to Virginia in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Wright had likely his best game of his career thus far, finishing with 15 points, six assists, five steals and two rebounds while shooting 6 of 15 from the field and making two 3-pointers.
Burch shot 45.7% from the field this past season, as well as 34.7% from 3-point range and 73.3% at the free-throw line.
How does TJ Burch fit into Utah’s plans for the 2026-27 season?
With last year’s starting point guard, Terrence Brown, in the transfer portal and exploring options as high-level schools like Kansas and North Carolina, the point guard position is the biggest area of need for next year’s roster.
Brown’s backup, Obomate Abbey, was a freshman last year and had some flashes, but is still catching up to the college game.
Burch should be locked in as the team’s starting point guard at this point, and he’s coming off a career year that could propel him forward if he can prove to be as consistent at the power conference level.
Burch, who shared photos of his visit to Utah’s campus Saturday on social media, is the fourth transfer commitment for Utah this offseason. He joins former Utah Valley wing Jackson Holcombe, former Ohio State combo guard Taison Chatman and former Weber State big Malek Gomma.
Utah could still be in the market for another two to three players for the 2026-27 season. Adding another guard who can help handle point guard duties would help bolster the situation.