Mt. San Jacs Williams Bound for Memphis
Waki Williams needed just one official visit to make up his mind on a college this spring.
Williams, the long and mobile 6-8 power forward from Mt. San Jacinto College in California, committed to Memphis this week after visiting the Conference USA program from Apr. 7-9.
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JUCO Junction has confirmed the commitment with Mt. San Jac Head Coach Patrick Springer. Williams signed the letter of intent with Memphis today.
"They did a good job of recruiting him all season," Springer said. "He liked Houston a lot, but then they got fired. He cancelled some visits, so he must have really liked his trip to Memphis."
Williams was slated to visit Southern Miss along with teammate Tihon Johnson this upcoming weekend (Apr. 16-18). But his pledge to Memphis has scuttled those plans.
Even though Williams' season was cut short by a knee injury, he averaged 15.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, shooting 51 percent from the floor, 38 percent beyond the arc and 66 percent from the foul line.
"Waki is really talented offensively, and he does a great job passing out of the double team in the low post," Springer said. "What was an awakening to him was that he needs to be a more physical player and pay more attention to detail when it comes to rebounding."
"He's a good rebounder, but he must focus on positioning and keeping two hands on the ball," Springer continued. "He also struggled to track down offensive rebounds from the perimeter."
Williams suffered a knee injury late in the season, tearing his meniscus. When he went under the knife to have that repaired, surgeons discovered a cyst. That presented some complications and some preventitive measures were taken.
If all goes well, Williams could be back in the gym playing ball by the middle of the summer.
"He should be cleared to play at Memphis next year," Springer said. "His rehab is ahead of schedule."
A native of Columbus, Ohio, Williams will have two years of eligibility remaining at Memphis.