The Washington Huskies may still have one roster spot to fill before the 2026-27 season starts, but the bigger puzzle already sitting in front of Danny Sprinkle is the frontcourt.
Washington is chasing 20-year-old Slovenian guard Urban Kroflic, who would fill the 15th and final scholarship spot if he commits. Sprinkle is in Slovenia making the final push for the combo guard. Even so, the real roster debate for the Huskies is up front, where the options are plentiful and the answers are still fuzzy.
The Huskies bring back center Lathan Sommerville and forwards Mady Traore, Jasir Rencher and Nikola Dzepina. They’ve also added Brazilian forward Wini Braga, Croatian forward Boris Tisma, and transfer portal pickups LeJuan Watts and Steele Venters. Watts can play on the wing, while Venters is more likely to open as the starting small forward than slide into the four or five spots.
That gives Washington plenty of bodies. What it doesn’t give them yet is a clear read on who should start at power forward and center.
Last season’s frontcourt starters are both gone. Forward Hannes Steinbach was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets, and center Franck Kepnang transferred to Kentucky. The Huskies also haven’t had a long look at any of the returning bigs in a starting role.
Sommerville missed about a third of last season because of a knee injury. He appeared in 22 games and started seven.
Rencher’s freshman year was derailed by a heart condition that required surgery. He has been practicing and looks ready for next season, but he only played in eight games and averaged 8.1 minutes.
Traore, one of the top junior college recruits last offseason, sat out the entire year with a foot injury.
Dzepina arrived in December and bounced in and out of the rotation while learning the playbook. He played in 14 games and did not start.
Braga and Tisma are even more of an unknown, since both are coming into the program after international stints and essentially start from scratch in terms of what Washington has seen from them.
Watts is the one frontcourt piece with a proven starting résumé at the Power Four level. He played in 33 games, started 28, and averaged double-digit points for Texas Tech last season, making him the clearest bet to be in the lineup. Beyond him, the Huskies are still sorting out the rest.
If Washington wants Watts at small forward, the pairing that most closely resembles last season’s Steinbach-Kepnang setup would be Braga at the four and Sommerville at the five. But Braga is 6-foot-9, which gives him less size in the post than Steinbach, and Sommerville is an inch shorter than Kepnang. That could mean a noticeable drop on the glass.
If Sprinkle wants to keep Washington dangerous on the boards and create more second-chance chances, Traore looks like the most intriguing center option. At 6-foot-11 with a 7-foot, six-inch wingspan, he brings the length to anchor the middle and may be the best post scorer on the roster because of it.
There’s also a sign he could help stretch the floor. A recent video posted by the team’s official account on X showed Traore knocking down a 3-pointer in practice. If that shot becomes reliable, it would fit nicely with a roster that added a lot of 3-point shooting this offseason.
Given how many frontcourt pieces Washington has, a committee approach is also on the table. Sprinkle and his staff could end up matching lineups to opponents and recent play rather than settling on one fixed pairing.
Some of these questions will start getting answered in practice and during the non-conference schedule. But until Washington finds a consistent four and five, the frontcourt will remain one of the team’s biggest talking points.
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