Josh Smith picks UCLA
Words. Austin Burton
The biggest of the big-name big men is off the board, as 6-10, 270-pound Josh Smith (Kentwood H.S., Wash.) verbally committed to UCLA earlier this week over Washington. From the Seattle Times:
“They’ve kind of been the front-runner for a while, them and UW,” Smith said of the Bruins. “They’ve both been recruiting me since the beginning. In the end, when I looked at everything I was looking for, I decided UCLA was my choice.”
He said location was a prime factor, with Washington being a 25-minute drive away and UCLA being a two-hour flight.
“Neither one was too far from my family,” Smith said. “And both of them don’t really have a big man right now, or their big man would rather be a four than a five, and it would be important for me to be an impact player right away.”
He said he has family on his mother’s side living in California that he is looking forward to reconnecting with.
Before giving his commitment to the UCLA coaching staff, Smith said his first call was to UW coach Lorenzo Romar.
“I said thank you for everything, but I’ve made my decision to go to UCLA,” Smith said.
For UCLA, landing five-star recruits is as easy as it gets for any program in the country. For Washington, watching Smith go to their conference rival counts as yet another near-miss with a highly-regarded local prospect, something of a recent trend during the Romar era.
Raising its national profile on the backs of Seattle-bred players Nate Robinson and Brandon Roy a few years ago, the Huskies have also lost out on local stars Marcus Williams (Arizona), Terrence Williams (Louisville), Micah Downs (Kansas/Gonzaga), Jamelle McMillan (Arizona State), Peyton Siva (Louisville) and Aaron Dotson (LSU). Then there was Martell Webster, who committed to UW but eventually decided to go straight to the NBA.
And in addition to Smith’s decision to leave the state, Class of 2011 guard Tony Wroten (Garfield H.S., Seattle) is believed to be leaning toward schools on the East Coast like Syracuse and UConn.
Romar has been able to get locals like Isaiah Thomas, Abdul Gaddy, Venoy Overton, Spencer Hawes and Jon Brockman, but a little more success with in-home talent would put UW that much closer to national contender status.
NIIIIIIIIIICE… I like the Bruins!
Josh Selby diaries started on CourtCred: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYFx9sg4MSc
I am a UCLA fan and I was fairly disapointed. I wanted to see him join Isiah Thomas and Abdul Gaddy and see what that trio could do.