Dickerson played in all 27 games and started in four for Western last season as a freshman out of Squalicum High School. He was  a dangerous threat from the 3-point line, shooting a team best 46 percent. His 43 3-pointers were second-best on the team behind John Allen – despite playing almost 400 fewer minutes.

After spending all his childhood in Bellingham, attending Squalicum High School and spending a year at Western, Dickerson said he transferred as part of his plan get out of the area.

“The reason I left was personal,” Dickerson said. “I’ve lived in Bellingham my whole life and after a year of college, I got the itch to leave town.”

While Whatcom Community College is still in Bellingham, he said he is attending the school to get his two-year degree so he can transfer to a smaller, out-of-state Christian college next year.

“The initial goal was to see if I could play [basketball] down in California,” Dickerson said. “It was too late to make that decision, so I ended up at Whatcom in hopes that a school in California will show some interest after I get my associate’s degree.”

Dickerson will play for the Whatcom basketball team this season.

Western men’s basketball coach Brad Jackson and his staff highly recruited Dickerson while he was at Squalicum to play for Western. The 6-foot, 165-pound guard led Squalicum to a Class 2A State Championship in 2009, averaging almost 19 points a game. He was named the state tournament most valuable player, and a first-team Northwest Conference all-star.

It was the second consecutive state championship for Dickerson and Squalicum. He lettered in three seasons with the basketball team, and each year the team placed in the top three at the state championship.

In his first four games with Western, Dickerson came off the bench and averaged more than 10 points a game. His production dropped off slightly through the start of play in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, however. Jackson gave Dickerson his first start of the season when the Vikings traveled to Simon Fraser University on Jan. 29, and Dickerson went on to score a season-high 19 points in an 86-82 victory.

Jackson said he supports Dickerson’s decision to leave as long as he believes it’s in his best interest.

“It surprised me a little bit,” Jackson said. “But at the same time, I totally understand, and he is young. I think he feels he is making a decision that is a good one and I support that.”

Dickerson’s father, Tim Dickerson, was one of Western’s all-time great basketball players. He graduated in 1989 as the school’s all-time career assists leader with 412, while second in points at 1,347.

Jackson coached Dickerson’s dad and said he was looking forward to the chance to have coached a father and son.

“I was looking forward to having him in our program, without question,” Jackson said. “At the same time, I want guys to be able to do what they want to do. I can certainly understand his desire to explore a different situation.”

Jackson thought highly of Dickerson not only as a player, but also as an influence on the team.

“He is such a wonderful person and a great kid,” Jackson said. “I think that is as significant of a hit as anything. People like him don’t come along very often.”

Jackson said he and Dickerson had discussed his transfer away from Western last spring, and said it was completely Dickerson’s own decision to do so.

Dickerson rejoins former high school teammate Patrick Voeut, who is also a sophomore at Whatcom.

The Vikings, meanwhile, restocked their lineup with a couple new players, such as last season’s Class 1A Washington State Player of the Year Kyle Impero, out of Nooksack Valley High School, while returning key players such as Richard Woodworth and Rico Wilkins from injuries.

“Last year was a great experience, and it was a blast playing for coach Jackson,” Dickerson said. “He had a lot of confidence in me, and that’s all a player can ask for.”