It’s been a good week for new Washington Huskies men’s basketball coach Danny Sprinkle.
On Tuesday, four-star recruit Jase Butler committed to the Huskies, which began a flurry of newcomers joining UW, including a commitment from Butler transfer DJ Davis and former Tacoma-area standout Zoom Diallo, who signed scholarship papers Thursday.
Butler, a 6-foot-4 and 180-pound guard from San Francisco, originally committed to Illinois in December and reopened his recruitment this month.
After visiting Washington last week, Butler, who received interest from Utah and California, pledged to play for the Huskies next season.
“Change of plans … Go Dawgs #committed,” Butler wrote in a social media post that included a photo of him wearing a No. 10 UW jersey.
Butler is rated the No. 97 recruit nationally by 247Sports.com and paired with Diallo, who is ranked 35th, Washington is one of six Big Ten teams bringing in two incoming high-school prospects ranked among the top 100.
“From the moment coach Sprinkle reached out, I immediately knew he was someone that I could see myself playing for,” Butler told 247Sports. “It became clear to me that he is a winner — and winning is my main priority. He understands my game and values what I’m able to bring to the program — versatility, shooting and playmaking ability as a big guard.”
Since taking over last month, Sprinkle has had to rebuild a depleted UW roster that lost 10 players, including five players with expiring eligibility, four who transferred (Koren Johnson, Braxton Meah, Nate Calmese and Wesley Yates III) and recruit Casmir Chavis, who signed in November and reopened his commitment this month.
The Huskies appear to be well stocked in the backcourt with the addition of Rice transfer Mekhi Mason, Diallo, Davis and Butler.
Seemingly, Washington will return center Franck Kepnang and forwards Wilhelm Breidenbach, Christian King and Samuel Ariyibi.
The roster limit is 13, according to NCAA rules and Wednesday marks the close of the 44-day transfer portal window.
More than 1,900 Division I men’s basketball players have entered the portal as of Friday morning.
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