Basketball Recruiting Update: One Battle at a Time

Although there’s still one scholarship for 2018 up for grabs, the Huskies are sitting out transfer season and don’t appear to have anything immediately lined up for that spot. At this point it wouldn’t be surprising to see them leave that spot open given it’s unlikely that 13th man would see playing time this year. But the 2019 recruiting season is now fully in swing and this week was probably the worst for Washington so far on that front.

No Longer Under Consideration

Wendell Moore, SF, 6’5, 210. Cox Mill H.S, Concord, North Carolina

247Sports: 5 star, #26 overall; Rivals: 5 star, #25 overall; ESPN: 5 star, #22 overall

Other Offers: Duke, North Carolina, NC State, Wake Forest, South Carolina

Washington made Moore’s top-10 back in the fall but they didn’t qualify for his top-5 released last week. Instead, he has decided to stay in the Carolina’s for school no matter where he goes. This one was going to be close to impossible no matter what and it might be better for Washington to get eliminated now rather than string Hopkins along and use up time and recruiting resources better spent elsewhere. But Moore is an exceptional talent and was worth the gamble.

Khalif Battle, SG, 6’4, 180. Trenton Catholic School, Metuchen, New Jersey

247Sports: 4 star, #116 overall; Rivals: 4 star, #96 overall; ESPN: 4 star

Battle committed to Butler this past week and ended any chance of the Huskies reeling him in through Hopkins’ Syracuse connections. Coach Hop recruited Khalif’s older brother Tyus to Syracuse. Tyus is a potential 1st round pick who is currently testing the waters in the NBA draft. The Huskies looked like they were serious players for Khalif back in the fall but both they and Syracuse lost interest during the high school season.

Nate Pryor, PG, 6’1, 165. West Seattle HS, Seattle, Washington

The comments can finally stop. Pryor committed to North Idaho College over the weekend and officially ended the speculation of whether the West Seattle star would end up at Montlake. He signed with Washington last year during the Spring signing period but never ended up qualifying academically. A year at prep school signaled an attempt to end up at Washington for 2019 but that strategy didn’t pay off. It remains to be seen if Pryor will ever end up at a D-1 program but we’ll wish the best to anybody who wanted to be a Dawg so good luck Nate!

New Offer

RaeQuan Battle, SG, 6’5, 200. Marysville-Pilchuck High School, Marysville, Washington.

The Huskies missed out on a pair of wings last week in Moore and Battle but they are looking to replace the latter both in name and play. This is the first offer for a player who has been completely off the radar up until this past week. RaeQuan doesn’t have a profile on any of the major recruiting sites so there’s not even a star rating for him at the moment. I have to imagine he’s the only player to make an All-EYBL team in either of the first two sessions for who that is the case which means it should be rectified soon.

At the halfway point of the Nike EYBL sessions so far Battle is averaging 15.9 ppg and 3.4 rpg while shooting 44.8% from 3-point range for Seattle Rotary. If Jaylen Nowell were to turn pro next season (not outrageous to suggest) then it’s possible that Washington loses its 4 leaders in 3-pt attempts in one off-season so bringing in a plus plus shooter seems a must.

Battle interviewed this past week and said that the Huskies were one of several teams that had expressed interest including Oklahoma, Houston, Connecticut, and Pepperdine. It will be interesting to see where Battle falls in the rankings once they’re updated going into the summer and if Washington sees him as a primary option at SG for the 2019 class. It also doesn’t hurt that Battle is playing on the same team as Washington targets Jaden McDaniels and (2021) Paolo Banchero as well as potential point guard options Noah Williams and Marcus Tsohonis (who doesn’t have an offer at the moment but could play his way into one).

Right now I see 7 prospects with offers from Washington for whom UW has at least a 1% chance of reeling in. There will be at least 4 openings from seniors graduating plus potentially 1-2 more from turning Pro or transferring. Unless Hopkins reels in basically everyone with an offer right now, we can expect to see more offers handed out in the next few months so stay tuned.

The List for 2019

Realistic Goals

P.J Fuller, PG/SG, 6’5, 160. Garfield H.S, Seattle, Washington.

247Sports: 4 star, #37 overall; Rivals: 4 star, #58 overall; ESPN: 4 star, #45 overall

Other Offers: Arizona, USC, Florida State, Tennessee, Arizona State

AAU: Adidas Gauntlet, Bradley Panthers

25.8 minutes per game; 15 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.7 apg, 41.5% FG, 31.3% 3pt, 60% FT

Jaden McDaniels, SF, 6’10, 200. Federal Way H.S, Federal Way, Washington.

247Sports: 4 star, #91 overall; Rivals: 4 star, #45 overall; ESPN: NR

Other Offers: Arizona, Oklahoma, San Diego State, Texas

AAU: Nike EYBL, Seattle Rotary

26.1 minutes per game; 17.6 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 2.0 apg, 49% FG, 24% 3pt, 71.2% FT

Max Agbonkpolo, SF, 6’8, 180. Santa Margarita Catholic H.S, Rancho Santa Margarita, California.

247Sports: 4 star, #60 overall; Rivals: 4 star, #94 overall; ESPN: NR

Other Offers: USC, Arizona, Arizona State, Texas

AAU: Adidas Gauntlet, Pump and Run

27.6 minutes per game; 13.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.6 apg, 50% FG, 20% 3pt, 68.9% FT

RaeQuan Battle, SG, 6’5, 200. Marysville-Pilchuck High School, Marysville, Washington.

Other Offers: NONE

AAU: Nike EYBL, Seattle Rotary.

20.5 minutes per game; 15.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.9 apg, 48.8% FG, 44.8% 3pt, 77.3% FT

Noah Williams, PG, 6’5, 185. O’Dea H.S, Seattle, Washington.

247Sports: 3 star, #235 overall; Rivals: NR; ESPN: NR

Other Offers: NONE

AAU: Nike EYBL, Seattle Rotary

16.5 minutes per game; 9.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 3.9 apg, 38.6% FG, 16.7% 3pt, 75% FT

Never say Never

Onyeka Okongwu, PF/C, 6’9, 235. Chino Hills H.S, Chino Hills, California.

247Sports: 4 star, #21 overall; Rivals: 5 star, #21 overall; ESPN: 5 star, #16 overall

Other Offers: UCLA, USC, Kansas, Arizona State

AAU: Adidas Gauntlet, Compton Magic (Injured, yet to play)

Longest of the Longshots

Isaiah Stewart, PF/C, 6’8, 243. La Lumiere School, Rochester, New York.

247Sports: 5 star, #23 overall; Rivals: 5 star, #10 overall; ESPN: 5 star, #13 overall

Other Offers: Duke, Villanova, Syracuse, Notre Dame, Texas

AAU: Nike EYBL, The City Rocks

16.2 minutes per game; 16.1 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 1.4 apg, 60.2% FG, 65.6% FT

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