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Washington basketball lands a huge 2021 commitment

By Roman Tomashoff

COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: Head coach Mike Hopkins of the Washington Huskies reacts as they take on the Utah State Aggies during the second half of the game in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. The Washington Huskies won 78-61. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: Head coach Mike Hopkins of the Washington Huskies reacts as they take on the Utah State Aggies during the second half of the game in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. The Washington Huskies won 78-61. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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The 2020 recruiting cycle has been pretty slow for Washington basketball, but the class of 2021 just got a giant boost from its first commit

After a big win in Anchorage last night, Mike Hopkins and the rest of the Washington basketball program got a big boost for the incredibly important class of 2021, landing their first commitment of the cycle, and in a top 100 player from Olympia nonetheless!

Jackson Grant, a 6’9, 205 pound center out of Olympia (Wash.) High is ranked 53rd overall in the 247 Sports composite rankings, and number two in the state of Washington behind only five-star forward Paolo Banchero.

Grant is an excellent prospect, and projects as a power forward (to me at least) at the next level. His offensive game is what stands out to me the most, he’s great with his back to the basket. Grant also looks like he’s developing a pretty nice jump shot, that looks really fluid for someone his size. He’s got great floor awareness as well and knows how to find the open man.

Don’t let the 205-pound frame fool you, Grant knows how to get physical down low, and is excellent at using his frame to get into position to rebound and take good, high percentage looks.

On defense, he’s got exactly what Mike Hopkins is looking for inside for the 2-3 zone, long arms, ball skills, and he’s really good on the glass. From his film, he looks to be so much bigger than everyone else on the floor, but that shouldn’t discount the bounce that he shows to go back up on misses and to catch passes, athleticism like that is unteachable. With a skill set like that, he’ll definitely find himself a place in the NBA one day too.

The 2021 basketball class is probably the best the state of Washington has ever seen (as is the football class, but that’s for another time) and Grant’s early commitment has established him as the leader of the 2021 class, that includes two other top 100 players in Banchero and point guard Nolan Hickman from Eastside Catholic.

Congratulations to Jackson on his commitment to UW, and we can’t wait to see him in purple and gold!!

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