JJ Mandaquit verbally commits to Washington

Washington received their second verbal commitment to the 2025 men’s basketball recruiting class when JJ Mandaquita 6-foot-1, 190-pound point guard from Hilo, Hawaii – via Utah Prep in Hurricane, Utah – just announced his decision to join the Huskies.

Mandaquit joins the shooting guard Courtland Muldrew from Oak Hill Academy in Virginiawho verbally committed to UW a month ago.

In addition to Washington, Mandaquit is claiming current scholarship offers from BYU, Louisville, California, CreightonHawaii, TennesseeVirginia, USC, Portland, San Diego StateSanta Clara, Utah, State of Utah, Washington stateand UCLA.

He officially visited Washington the weekend of UW’s home game against Washington Northwest (September 21). He officially visited Louisville the following weekend and BYU less than two weeks later.

Mandaquit was also part of the USA U17 team that won a gold medal at the FIBA ​​U17 World Championship in Istanbul last July. He averaged 6.6 points, 6.1 assists and 2.1 steals in six games.

247 Adam Finkelstein, National Director of Scouting, had this to say about Mandaquit and his game.

“Mandaquit is a true point guard who excels in his ability to lead a team. He will not impress anyone with dynamic explosiveness or individual offense, but will make a name for himself through his reliability, game acumen and intangible gains.” He is at his best in USA Basketball, where he is surrounded by elite talent and as Can act as game planner and leader. However, he is not as suitable if he has to carry too much offensive load or be a primary creator.

“Mandaquit is about 1.90 meters tall and has a frame of almost 90 kilograms. He has big hands, a broad upper body and is physically strong. He’s confident and strong with the ball, using jab-steps and ripping passes to create space, and he sees the game unfold quicker than most. He very reliably guides the team in their sets or actions, even against pressure, and had an assist-to-turnover ratio in FIBA ​​play.

“The most important variable in Mandaquit’s individual offense is the progression of his shots. He converted just 21% of his threes and 59% of his free throws during the 3SSB game and was also just 4:19 from behind the arc in the FIBA ​​game. He has relatively clean mechanics that seem to be trending in the right direction, and over good ball rotation, but must become a willing and consistent attacking threat to keep the opposing defense honest.

“He really works defensively and is most effective in quarter court situations where he can rely on his strength, his competitiveness and his good hands (2 steals per game in 3SSB play) without too much distraction from his help become. He’s also a… Very good perimeter rebounder.

“Overall, Mandaquit is a general who compensates for some athletic limitations with his toughness, leadership skills, defensive tenacity, game IQ and understanding of how to lead a team.”

Four-star rated Mandaquit is ranked as the No. 9 point guard nationally and the No. 3 overall recruit in the state of Utah by 247Sports, which also includes Mandaquit’s Utah Prep teammate AJ Dybantsa. Dybantsa is considered the best player in the country for the 2025 recruiting class and was also offered by Washington.