Tristan Etienne commits to Washington

Tristan Etienne, a 6-foot-10 forward from Abbotsford, British Colombia verbally committed to Washington on Thursday morning. Head coach Lorenzo Romar offered the Canadian on Thursday morning after Washington St. had offered on Wednesday. The big man was also garnering strong interest from Portland, Portland St. and UC Irvine. According to reports, Etienne immediately jumped at the offer and decided to commit to his "dream school."

Growing up as a kid when I started watching the NCAA, Washington was a school that I took a liking too," Etienne said. "When I realized I had a chance to go D-1, it was the school I was shooting for and the school I was dreaming about. I’m just so happy I had the opportunity to go there and play." (Via: Seattle Times)

Etienne will not come in and make an immediate impact at Washington, but his height and current skillset offer significant upside down the road for the Huskies. There could also be the chance that Etienne is not done growing yet, meaning he could sprout to a healthy seven feet. Etienne was an under-the-radar recruit throughout much of high school but caught the eyes of the Husky coaching staff after attending camps at Washington in previous summers.

At 6-foot-10, Etienne has shown shot-blocking ability and also a knack for scoring in the post. He needs to add some muscle to his frame and keep on improving his fundamentals if he wishes to become a significant contributor at Washington.

While Etienne isn't a highly-touted recruit, Washington's interest in him might speak about the relative lack of depth at the forward position in the 2014 recruiting class. National recruiting analyst Dave Telep said this:

Here’s where Washington’s addition carries weight. It’s going to be difficult finding size and skill in July. Nationally, the number of power forwards is down, and the depth simply isn’t there at the position. Surely the Huskies took a tour of their targets and figured Etienne brought too much to the table given what was out there in the U.S. high schools and grassroots system. They took a Canadian whom they’ve scouted extensively and conducted research on. (Via: ESPN Insider)

The Huskies now have two scholarships open. Forwards Donaven Dorsey, Zylan Cheatham and Evan Fitzner remain high priority targets for the coaching staff.