Jamal Bey, Washington Huskies.
The Washington Huskies go into their sixth season under head basketball coach Mike Hopkins. In his first two years, Hopkins was the Pac-12 Coach of the Year both times. Since then, UW is 37-53, which includes last season’s 17-15 mark.
Although their 11-9 Pac-12 record was good enough for fifth place, the Huskies weren’t selected to play in a postseason tournament. That was probably due to their soft non-conference schedule, where they went 6-6.
Hopkins still has three years left on his contract. He may not be back for a seventh season if the Washington Huskies don’t reach the postseason. Meanwhile, former Husky player and current Associate Head Coach Will Conroy waits in the wings.
Nine players from last year’s team left the Husky program. Five were on scholarship, while the other four were walk-ons.
Terrell Brown Jr., who led the Huskies and the Pac-12 in scoring (21.7 points a game), and Daejon Davis came to Washington as graduate students and were out of eligibility.
Emmitt Mathews Jr. transferred in last year from Virginia. He decided to return there for his final season. Last year, Matthews was the Washington Huskies’ second-best player.
Redshirt junior center Nate Roberts declared for the NBA and is ineligible to return. Most likely, he will play overseas. Sophomore Dominiq Penn, who had little playing time, transferred to Seattle University.
Fifth-year senior Jamal Bey is Washington’s most familiar season this season and the only returning starter. Bey’s best season was two years ago when he averaged 10.3 points a game and was the Pac-12 best three-point shooter at 50%. Bey is the only Huskies starter to return.
P.J. Fuller wasn’t a full-time starter last year, but his 22.5 minutes per game was fourth on the team. The former TCU transfer averaged 7.4 PPG. He could be a starter or the sixth man once again.
Another returner from UW’s bench is junior Cole Bajema from Lynden, Washington. This will be Bajema’s third season at Washington after starting his college career at Michigan.
Last year, the 6’7” wing averaged 19.5 minutes and 5.4 per game. If Fuller starts, Bajema could be one of UW’s key reserves.
The following three players didn’t get much playing time in 2021-22, but the Washington Huskies expect more from them this season.
To top the list is Jackson Grant, who was a McDonald All-American from Olympia, Washington. Grant appeared in 25 games and averaged 6.5 minutes, 1.1 points, and 1.5 rebounds per game. At 6’10”, he has good size and could start at either center or power forward.
Battling with Grant for playing time is 6’9” Langston Wilson. The former JUCO player made 28 appearances last year. He averaged 9.9 minutes, 2.6 points, and 2.6 boards.
Sophomore Samuel Ariyibi, a small forward from Nigeria, who the Huskies found at the NBA Africa Academy, could see his minutes increase. Last season Ariyibi only played in four games.
For this year, four players transferred to the Washington Huskies.
Senior forward Keion Brooks Jr. transferred in from Kentucky as one of the two big names coming to Seattle. Last year he averaged 10.8 points a game for the Wildcats. Last January, against Kansas, Brooks scored a career-high 27 points.
He declared for the NBA draft in 2022; however, he kept his college eligibility by not hiring an agent. Instead of going back to Kentucky, Brooks decided to transfer.
Guard Noah Williams went to O’Dea High School in Seattle and decided to come back home for his senior season. He played his first three seasons at Washington State.
Williams’ production took a big dip in 2021-22. He averaged 9.5 points, shooting 36.4% from the floor and 26.2 % from behind the arc. That’s down from 14.1, 42.4%, and 37.9% a year earlier.
UW’s third transfer is another familiar face from within the Pac-12. Franck Kepnang joins the Washington Huskies from Oregon.
The 6’11 center averaged 4.7 points a game, along with 3.1 rebounds and 1.2 blocks last year in 14.5 minutes. His role will be to replace Roberts as Washington’s defensive stopper in the paint.
Braxton Meah, 7’1” center, played at Fresno State his first two years. He failed to make a big impact averaging just 8.1 minutes per game for the Bulldogs.
The Washington Huskies have three freshmen joining the squad this year.
Koren Johnson, a four-star recruit from Seattle, comes to the Huskies as a combo guard. He can play both point and shooting guard.
Johnson was a big recruit for Hopkins. He was Washington’s number one high school player last year out of Wasatch Academy.
Tyler Linhardt is another local coming from Kings High School in Seattle. The 6’7” forward was a three-star recruit.
The Huskies went out of state to get another three-star recruit. Keyon Merrifield Jr. is a 6’2 point guard from Flint, Michigan.
It looks like Brooks, Williams, and Bey are likely starters. There is serious competition for the other two jobs.
The biggest question may be who runs the point. Does Hopkins go with one of his freshmen or let Williams handle the ball?
Washington’s first game is against Weber State on November 7.
Again, the Huskies have a soft non-league schedule, but there are a few interesting matchups. Highlighting their non-conference slate is Gonzaga on December 9 in Spokane, and Auburn comes to Seattle on December 21.
The Huskies will also play in the Wooden Legacy Tournament, November 23-24, in Anaheim, CA. The other teams participating are Fresno State, St. Mary’s, and Vanderbilt.
Pac-12 play begins on December 1 at Oregon State. Three days later is the conference home opener against Colorado.
Do you think the Washington Huskies will have a good year? Is this Mike Hopkins’ last season at Montlake? Go Dawgs!