It’s very early. But if votes were cast today for MEAC Player of Year, Jamarii Thomas might be the top candidate.

The Norfolk State University junior, by way of the NCAA transfer portal, has made an emphatic impact in his short career wearing the green and gold.

Heading into conference play, the 6-foot guard is all over the top rung of the MEAC statistics.

Scoring: 18.0 point per game, first as of Dec. 28

Steals: 2.4 per, first.

Free throws attempted: 113, first, 83%.

Assists: 4.1 average, second.

Assists-turnover ratio: Plus 2.0, third.

Also, 3.7-rebounding per game is strong for a guard.

It helps that Thomas’ heroics have led to Spartans victories. NSU, at 9-6 with a memorable road win at VCU, is the lone MEAC team with an above .500 record. Thomas scored 17 in the Dec. 1 upset at VCU.

From Burlington, N.C., Thomas played his first two college seasons at UNC-Wilmington. As a sophomore a year ago, he averaged 7.1 points, starting 23 of 34 games for the CAA affiliate.

Despite some success, the NCAA Portal beckoned. Thomas felt he was equipped to handle a larger role and transferred to NSU where he had immediate eligibility.

Thomas says his increased productivity is a product of greater opportunity.

“My team puts me in the right position, and coach (Robert Jones) runs stuff off me. I’ve never had that before,” he told the Virginian-Pilot. “Always before, I had to go get my points – go get ’em. I’ve never had stuff run through me.”

NSU’s NET power ranking of 170 (out of about 350) is tops among all HBCU Division I schools.

The Spartans face a stiff challenge Jan. 2 at University of Tennessee before opening MEAC play Jan. 6 at South Carolina State.