UCLA wins out with five-star wing Peyton Watson
The decision has been made by five-star wing Peyton Watson. After breaking out as a national target this time last year and enjoying the typical recruitment that a top-15 prospect usually does, Watson gave his verbal commitment to UCLA on Monday evening.
“I am the number-one player from California and I feel like UCLA is the original blue blood,” Watson told Rivals.com. “It is hard to pass up an amazing school where my parents can see me play and have the support of my community behind me.”
Standing over 6-foot-7, Watson has continued to grow in recent years and while strength gain is a must moving ahead, the talent and abilities are all present. Picking the Bruins over Arizona, Gonzaga, Michigan, Oregon and USC, native of nearby Long Beach is rated as the 16th best prospect in his class, and as the fifth-ranked small forward in America.
A major score for Mick Cronin, Watson is a tremendously talented prospect that impacts the game on both ends. Thanks to his size, length, instincts and athleticism, Watson is one of the few that is just as good defensively as he is on the offensive side of the ball. He has continued to improve as a shooter but is best as a slasher that uses his length well on the attack. Watson competes with a solid motor and is someone that can guard legitimately both wing spots on the perimeter and the power forward position.
After being burned by Daishen Nix and his decision to skip college in order to compete in the new G-League select program, Watson will be the highest-rated recruit that Cronin has ever enrolled. Just Chris Smith, who has yet to determine if he will return to UCLA for his senior year, is slated to graduate in the spring. Watson will join four-star guard Will McClendon on the Westwood campus next fall which currently make up a top-10 class nationally.