The Bonnies Baseline feature series focuses on Bona players in each home game program during the season. Game programs are free for fans to pick up at Reilly Center entrances. To read previous installments in the series click here.

A look at the numbers for Cayden Charles this season might give the impression of a player who was always destined to shine at the Division I level – a recruit brought in to be a top scoring option for St. Bonaventure.

True enough, Charles posts nearly 13 points per game, has reached double figures in 14 of 18 games, including every Atlantic 10 contest, and 20 or more points twice.

But numbers don't always tell the entire story.

Coming out of Allatoona High School in suburban Atlanta, Charles didn't get many D-I looks and even fewer offers. Instead, he landed at Division II North Georgia.

And, at first anyway, he found himself on North Georgia's bench.

For the first nine games of his collegiate career, he didn't see the court.

Rather than be deterred, Charles went to work.

He focused on the weaknesses in his game, how to improve, and where he could make an impact for his team.

"I learned how to compete at a high level. Coming from high school, going D-II is not something you dream of, but once I got there, I realized what the competition was like and learned how to expand my game," Charles said. "I learned that it's not just about scoring, I had to impact the game in other ways."

Charles became an all-around player for the Nighthawks, a lockdown defender and a beast on the boards. The scoring ability came secondary in his development as a college player.

He was key to powerhouse North Georgia squads that made deep runs in the NCAA Division II national tournament. In 2024, he earned Most Valuable Player honors in the D-II Southeast Regional and led the squad to the Elite Eight while posting 14.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per contest.

By the time his junior season went in the books, he'd logged 972 points along with 488 rebounds and 132 assists.

"I was really challenged to work harder, to understand the game better," he said. "My freshman year, I just really focused on defense and rebounds."

At the conclusion of last season, following a 24-point, 12-rebound effort in North Georgia's final postseason contest, Charles made the choice to take one last opportunity to chase the Division I dream.

"It would have been safe to stay at North Georgia, close to home, family there," he said. "It was time to leave my comfort zone."

That meant a journey to the transfer portal, and a quick realization that part of today's collegiate athletics landscape isn't quite as glamorous as some might think.

"I hated the transfer portal. It's a lot of chaos. It's not fun," he said. "It's like being unemployed. You don't know where you're going to go or what your role is going to be."

After about six weeks of searching, taking calls from potential landing spots and considering his options, Charles nearly disregarded the opportunity to land at St. Bonaventure.

"I was about to be done with it when Woj called me. I actually blew him off when he called me. I didn't realize who he was," he says with a laugh. "Once I figured out who it was, I was excited."

His spot at St. Bonaventure secured, his place in the starting lineup was anything but, however.

When the Bonnies officially signed Charles in June, he became the final player to join the 2025-26 roster.

For some followers of the program, his signing was a bit of an afterthought behind more buzzworthy signings.

Charles quickly worked his way into the equation for the Bonnies by turning the heads of the coaching staff during preseason practices and workouts. By the time the season-opener rolled around, he had earned a place in the starting lineup.

"Cayden is a team-first player with a relentless motor," Bonnies head coach Mark Schmidt said. "He's a physical, attacking wing who can do a little bit of everything well. He's a terrific rebounder and a veteran player with an ability to get downhill on offense."

"This is a great space," Charles said of his new home in Western New York. I was already used to the small college campus environment. Coach Schmidt, he's a hall of fame coach. He teaches the game and every day I learn more about the game. You really learn how to be the student of the game."

Charles wasted little time making an impact. He dropped 15 points in his Bonnies debut to help power a win over Bradley, starting a stretch of five straight games of double-figure scoring to begin his D-I tenure.

In a November win over Siena, he surpassed the 1,000-point scoring plateau for his collegiate career – a far cry from a player who couldn't crack the lineup during the first two months in the Division II ranks.

Though the stage is now bigger, his playing style remains the same as he continues to do the little things to help his new team. He has registered three double-doubles and stands behind only big man Frank Mitchell in rebounding among Bona players.

While the numbers he's producing now might not tell the story of the struggle and work it took to get to this point, they surely underscore how that work has paid off over the last four years.

"To hit that milestone (of scoring 1,000 points) just shows the progress I've made," he said. "There's always an added chip on my shoulder, but I have to be disciplined and stick to what got me here."