Zylan Cheatham takes official visit to Washington

Washington has an important football game this weekend, but the basketball program also has a critical task at hand. Huskies Head Coach Lorenzo Romar and his coaching staff host 2014 forward, Zylan Cheatham, on an official visit at Washington starting today.

Cheatham, a 6-foot-7 forward from Phoenix, Arizona is the Huskies' priority recruit of the class of 2014. Earlier this summer, Washington gained verbal commitments from 2014 forward Donaven Dorsey and 2014 center Tristan Etienne. Dorsey will be taking his official visit this weekend while Etienne will be on an unofficial visit.

Listed as a power forward, Cheatham's skillset is diverse enough to make him an effective player on the wing for the Huskies. Some reasonable comparisons to Cheatham include former Huskies Bobby Jones and Quincy Pondexter. Both players held the same qualities as Cheatham: size, motor and athleticism. Ball-handling is a small concern, but at this point, Cheatham would have an immediate impact at Washington as a freshman.

Earlier this month, Cheatham made an official visit to San Diego St., and in mid-October he'll take an official visit to New Mexico. Cheatham said he'll likely make a decision a week or two after his visit to New Mexico.

This past summer, the Washington coaching staff made an extraordinary effort to show their dedication to Cheatham – with Romar and assistant coach T.J. Otzelberger traveling across the country to watch the majority of his games on the AAU circuit. This weekend will be Cheatham's second visit to Seattle this year, he made an earlier unofficial visit to Washington during the inaugural alumni game in Juny.

The stakes are high this weekend for Romar and his staff – the program has invested a large amount of time and energy in recruiting Cheatham. This weekend is their best chance to make a lasting impact on him.