Langston Wilson Announces Intention to Enter Transfer Portal

Mar 11, 2023 - 10:50 PM

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Husky forward Langston Wilson announced today that he will be entering the transfer portal when it opens beginning Monday. He has one more season of eligibility remaining and is the first Washington player to announce their intention to leave. Center Braxton Meah indicated on Twitter yesterday that he plans to return.

Wilson came to the Huskies as a JUCO transfer from Georgia Highlands College. He initially committed to Alabama but was recruited over in the transfer portal and re-opened his recruitment before deciding on Washington. A heart condition meant that Wilson didn’t get to play basketball in high school and so he was very raw as a prospect despite his prodigious athleticism.

In his first season at Washington there were clear indications that Wilson’s star seemed to be on the rise. He couldn’t stop committing fouls, which is normal for a player new to basketball, but the talent was there. He ended up leading the team in 3-point percentage at 37.5% although in not that many attempts. He ended up averaging 2.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 0.4 blocks per game in almost exactly 10 minutes.

This season though Wilson was never able to find a foothold. The team struggled mightily early on whenever Wilson came in the game. When Franck Kepnang tore his ACL it opened up playing time at the center spot but the coaching staff chose instead to burn Jackson Grant’s redshirt and play Braxton Meah heavy minutes rather than play Wilson. Grant was largely ineffective and so the staff yo-yoed between each for a few games at a time. The end result was Wilson played in just 17 games averaging 6.2 minutes scoring 1.8 points with 1.9 rebounds per game.

Obviously the fanbase awaits news one way or the other of whether head coach Mike Hopkins will return for the 2023-24 season. Given Langston’s usage last year it seems reasonable to think that he would be more likely to depart if given news that Hopkins is sticking around. But we’ll see what happens in the coming days.

Hopefully Wilson is able to transfer somewhere that he’ll get extensive playing time and have a chance to work through his foul troubles and show off his tremendous athleticism more clearly. He always seemed to stay positive and was often the last one in the gym after games working out even when he didn’t get to come off the bench. I’ll be rooting for Langston at his next stop.