I knew basketball was decent in Washington. But after digging a little I had no clue as to how good. In fact, it reminds a lot of Indiana high school basketball in the talent it produces and fan interest. On talent, for example Jamaal Williams was the head coach of Seattle Rotary a Nike AAU team for 5 years. While Jamaal was the head coach for Seattle Rotary they produced 4 McDonalds AA’s and 4 of his players are on current NBA rosters. But it’s actually more amazing than that. Seattle Rotary had 4 of its players drafted in the 2019 NBA draft! Think about that for a second:
2019 NBA Draft:
Philadelphia 76’s #20 Matisse Thybulle (2015 Eastside Catholic HS) – Matisse was always a high level defender and athlete, but he was not viewed as a sure shot future NBA draftee if you asked anyone when he was in high school. The three-star recruit proved his worth as an elite defender at UW and between that and his character, he quickly gained momentum among the NBA front offices. Matisse played for Darryl Hennings on the Northwest Xpress experiment, which was a collaboration between ICP (Portland, OR) and Seattle Rotary of Washington.
Cleveland Cavs #30 Kevin Porter Jr. ( 2018 Rainier Beach HS) – The most naturally gifted player out of the four Washington guys selected. Porter has displayed elite talent dating back to his days with A-Plus, before joining Rotary on the EYBL Circuit. He has drawn some comparisons to James Harden due to his shiftiness, step back jumpers and brute strength from the off guard position.
Minnesota Timberwolves #43 Jaylen Nowell 2017 (Garfield HS) – The king of the mid-range has been scorching nets since elementary school with Seattle Rotary. He put together one of the best high school resumes of any Seattle basketball player in recent memory and followed that up with a strong couple years with UW. The Pac-12 Player of the Year is the second player to be drafted by the T-Wolves from Washington, with Zach LaVine (2013 Bothell) being the other in 2014.
Charlotte Hornets #52 Jalen McDaniels (2016 Federal Way HS) – The fourth Seattle Rotary alumni selected in the 2019 NBA Draft hails from Federal Way. Jalen is a gym rat with all of the tools to help an NBA team as he continues to get stronger and sure up his jump shot. Jalen grew up in the Rotary program and it would be little surprise to hear his younger brother’s name be called in 12 months.