Washington Basketball: The Huskies are hoping for a Sprinkle of magic dust
Washington has brought in some serious talent
Even though Kepanang is returning, it's unclear how much he can be counted on having played in just 18 games over the last two seasons due to season-ending injuries. Sprinkle hit the transfer portal hard bringing in eight guys, as well as a couple of highly-ranked recruits.
Sprinkle brought in some scorers and a bunch of veterans. Six of the eight transfers were top three in scoring at their previous stops and all but one of them will be either a junior or a senior. KC Ibekwe comes from Oregon State where the 6’10 center averaged five points and four rebounds in limited minutes and will likely serve as the team’s third center.
Sprinkle did bring in some serious firepower on the frontline, led by one of the top transfers of the offseason, Great Osobor from Utah State. Osobor was a breakout star for Sprinkle and the Aggies last season, nearly averaging a double-double with 17.7 points and nine rebounds. Expect the adept 6’8 big man who also dished out 2.8 assists to possibly play some center minutes if Kepnang has trouble staying on the court.
Oakland’s Chris Conway and Portland’s Tyler Harris will also occupy a lot of frontcourt minutes. As a pair the two averaged 22 points and more than 11 boards last season. The Huskies backcourt was not neglected in the portal. DJ Davis from Butler and Luis Kortright from Rhode Island were brought in as point guards, but both of them are more scoring point guards. Davis poured in nearly 14 points per game last season and Kortright 10, but Kortright did dish out 3.7 assists. Tyree Ihenacho did a little bit of everything at North Dakota last season. The 6’4 senior averaged 14.5 points, five rebounds, and 3.9 assists despite missing the first 11 games of the year. Mekhi Mason comes from Rice where he netted 14 points and four rebounds and shot 35.7% from deep in his two years at Rice.
The incoming class is ranked 38th by 247sports and the eight transfers gave Sprinkle the 8th best transfer ranking in the country. Two freshmen are coming in for the Huskies, and there are a couple of good ones that could crack the rotation in their first year. Zoom Diallo and Jase Butler are both four-star, 6’4 combo guards from California with Diallo ranked 53rd and Butler just outside the top 100 at 104. New players who were successful elsewhere don’t necessarily equate to success at a new school, so the offense's success remains to be seen but the talent is certainly there.