Wesley Yates commits to Washington Huskies; Texas high school star ranked nation's No. 2 shooting guard

BEAUMONT, Texas — Beaumont United senior Wesley Yates III, the country's No. 2 shooting guard in the 2023 recruiting class, has committed to play college basketball for the Washington Huskies.

Yates verbally committed to the Huskies during a ceremony in a packed auditorium Wednesday morning, choosing Washington out of a group of nine finalists.

He picked the Huskies, who recently emerged as a heavy favorite, over Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Gonzaga, Houston, LSU, Stanford and Texas among a larger list of Division I programs that offered the 6-foot-4 guard.

Yates has cemented himself as one of the Lone Star State's premier combo guards during his time at Beaumont United.

He helped lead the Timberwolves to a combined 100-6 record during his three-year high school career, establishing himself as one of the most reliable scorers and capable defenders in Southeast Texas.

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Despite potential opportunities elsewhere, though, Yates stayed in Beaumont and helped build up the basketball program at Beaumont United, a school that opened in 2018, into one of the state's perennial powerhouses.

Yates led the Timberwolves to back-to-back UIL Class 5A state championships and a combined 67-3 record during the past two seasons.

SBLive recognized Yates with First Team All-East Texas and Class 5A All-State Texas Boys Basketball honors from SBLive Sports for his performance as a junior during the 2021-22 season when he averaged 19.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 2.0 assists on 44.5% shooting.

Yates, a consensus four-star recruit, garnered 26 offers from Division I college basketball programs and has been tabbed the Lone Star State's No. 2 overall prospect within the Class of 2023 by 247 Sports.

He now joins the second Beaumont United boys basketball player in the last two years to commit to play Division I ball, following in the footsteps of former Timberwolves and current Houston Cougars forward Terrance Arceneaux.

Yates becomes the first verbal commit in the Washington Huskies' 2023 men's basketball recruiting class and the program's highest-rated commit since Isaiah Stewart No. 3) and Jaden McDaniels (No. 8) in 2019.