Washington Basketball: Transfer wing Erik Stevenson commits

Washington basketball has started its offseason well by securing a commitment from transfer wing Erik Stevenson. What might he bring to the program?

The transfer market has grown tremendously in college basketball over the past several years. Now, perhaps more than ever, college coaches around the country turn to proven commodities to fill out their rosters for the coming seasons. That is once again the case during the 2020 offseason and former Wichita State guard Erik Stevenson quickly became one of the hottest targets when he announced his intention to transfer.

Several power conference programs immediately reached out to the 6-foot-3 wing and he narrowed his list to just five shortly after: Washington, Gonzaga, Oregon, San Diego State, and Maryland.

All of these programs represented strong potential fits but the Lacey, WA native eventually made his decision to truly return home. By committing to play for the Washington Huskies, Stevenson will now call Seattle his home court, which is just about an hour from his hometown.

https://twitter.com/ej_stevenson5/status/1242910988262756352

This is a huge snag for Washington head coach Mike Hopkins because Stevenson is a proven talent at the high-major level and has two years of eligibility remaining.

Under the current transfer rules, Stevenson will have to sit out this coming campaign before joining the roster for the following two years. There is still the possibility of a “one-time transfer waiver” coming into effect this offseason that will allow Stevenson to play immediately, though.

Over the course of this past season, Stevenson played in 31 games (21 starts) for Wichita State and posted respectable numbers. He averaged 11.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.5 steals per game for the campaign on shooting splits of .377/.304/.783.

Although those are not the most efficient numbers, he is the type of player that can be very dangerous when he gets hot from deep. He attempted 5.4 3-pointers per game as he is not shy about letting it fly.

Washington features its fair share of backcourt pieces on its roster already, but Stevenson will add a different dimension to that group. He will already bring a couple of years of experience to the floor and can also provide a shooting punch that the team is missing. He should slide into the rotation nicely.

Stevenson might not be a five-star recruit but he could be a really strong fit in Seattle. Washington desperately needs more 3-point shooting threats and that is exactly what he can bring to the court. Stevenson is also a local product and a return home could be what he needs to post a breakout season.