The Commitment Impact of Nigel Williams-Goss

Nigel Williams-Goss is a highly talented player. You can’t become the starting point guard at nationally ranked Findlay Prep by being a bum. He is smart, talented, can score, can distribute, and has a high basketball IQ.

His commitment to Washington is the most important recruit UW could have signed this early. No one in the class of 2013 is as influential as Williams-Goss. He is a leader on and off the court. He is a leader in every regard, he has “swag”, he has “class”, and he garners the respect of both his teammates and opponents.

One 2013 recruit told me, “He is my favorite point guard to play with in the whole country.” (Note: This recruit does not go to Findlay.) Why? Because he is a leader, knows how to win, and knows how to distribute the ball.

This should be music to a Husky fan’s ears. The past year there was so much talk of leadership on the UW team because there wasn’t any leadership. And the ones that had it forced onto them, didn’t know what to do with it. Part of the reason the team struggled at random points in the season and eventually failed to make the NCAA tournament was because of leadership. UW was stacked with talent but not a single player that really could lead the team on the court.

Williams-Goss isn’t scared to do that, he embraces it, and he will be doing it as a freshman when he first laces up his shoes and steps on the court. It’s in his blood.

He is also a recruiter. He wants others to join him. One recruit told me that he is basically the student recruiter at Findlay. He has helped Findlay bring in some talent. Can he help UW bring in some?

He is certainly going to try. He said in his blogpost on Recruiting Spotlight that he was going to start talking with Aaron Gordon, Isaac Hamilton, and Marcus Lee about joining him at UW. All three are in the top 100 according to all databases for 2013.

Now, as a guy that follows and covers recruiting, I understand that your peer plays a very small role in your final decision to attend a University. However, sometimes the difference between committing to UNLV or Florida (as examples) are very small. If your friend is advocating for Florida, that may be the push you need to commit there.

Therefore, to give a better example of a UW recruit and Williams-Goss. If Aaron Gordon is thinking Kentucky, Washington, Oregon, or New Mexico and all are pretty even with the slight lead going to UW. Williams-Goss may be the extra push he needs to commit to UW.

However, don’t weigh into it too much that Williams-Goss is going to convince all the stars to come to UW because he may not convince any or  he may be able to convince one or two of them to join him. It’s really depends on each player and each situation but regardless, grabbing Williams-Goss this early is a big move for Washington.