Five Huskies Bolted Through the Portal Last Year. Here's How They Actually Fared

The transfer portal is about to open again for the Washington Huskies men's basketball program, and honestly? It's starting to feel like a yearly tradition at this point. Coach Danny Sprinkle is bracing for impact once more as guards Zoom Diallo, JJ Mandaquit, and Courtland Muldrew have already announced their departures. That's five straight years of brutal attrition for the program, and the Huskies are down to just eight scholarship players after a rough 16-17 season. Sprinkle thought he'd need to reload with three transfers. Now he's looking at five or six. Before we see who walks through the door next, let's rewind and see what happened to last year's defectors.

The Bounce-Back Stories That Actually Worked

Not everyone who left UW found immediate success elsewhere, but a couple of guys showed what happens when they land in the right spot. Jase Butler was the cautionary tale at Washington, a four-star recruit from San Anselmo, California who averaged just 1.9 points in 18 games as a reserve. The backcourt was too crowded. He couldn't crack in. But at Colorado State? Butler became a foundational piece. He averaged 9.3 points on 45.4% shooting from the field and 41.1% from three-point range in 34 games, including 17 starts, as the Rams went 21-13. That's the kind of turnaround that makes you wonder what could've been if he'd landed in a better fit from day one.

The Mixed Bags and Tough Transitions

Then there's Tyler Harris, the lanky 6-foot-8 forward who was once projected as a first-round NBA draft pick back at the University of Portland. He showed flashes at Washington with a devastating perimeter jumper (49.5% on threes), but he wasn't reliable at the free-throw line (69.4%). Despite shooting 49.2% from the field and averaging 11.8 points, Harris bounced to Vanderbilt as his third team in three years. The production tanked fast. He averaged just 5.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 12.8 minutes mostly off the bench as the Commodores finished 27-9 and made the NCAA tournament second round.

Mekhi Mason, a 6-5 guard who started his career at Rice before landing at UW, had one decent stretch in February with three straight 20-point games and 15.4 points per game over his final seven games. Then he transferred to Wake Forest and averaged only 7.4 points per game while the Deacons went 18-17. Wilhelm Breidenbach, the sweet-shooting 6-10 big man who appeared in 62 of 63 games at Washington over two seasons, landed at Grand Canyon but saw his shooting percentages crater. He went from 50.5% field goal shooting at UW to 38.1% at Grand Canyon.

The Huskies learned some hard lessons last year. Now Sprinkle has to do it all over again.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.