Paradise Valley High School's 6-foot-6 junior wing Paul Watson is our #2 overall prospect in Arizona's 2013 class (with the recent departure of Torren Jones to the state of Indiana). On Saturday evening, Watson gave a verbal commitment to a basketball program in the Mountain West Conference, and became the first prospect in Arizona's 2013 class to commit to a college.
Watson gave a commitment to Fresno State University and 2nd-year head coach Rodney Terry and his basketball staff - completing the 2013 recruiting class for Fresno State.
Heading into the spring of 2012, Watson was regarded as good a prospect as there was in the state of Arizona. Watson headed into the spring with offers on the table from Arizona State, Colorado, Fresno State, Boise State, Texas Tech and Oregon State. While he received a lot of different division-I interest from many schools, his college recruitment did not change much over the spring and summer months.
After a very subpar spring performance for himself, Watson changed travel teams in the summer and had a much stronger performance. The talented wing prospect decided to end his college rather sooner than later.
"It was the right place for me," Watson said this morning.
Watson had a good junior season, his best of his high school career - leading his Trojans this season to a 24-6 overall record on the season and a quarterfinal finish in the Division-II state playoffs, after a narrow overtime loss to Kellis HS (52-51).
Watson averaged 19 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists per/game last season, and will look to raise those numbers during his senior season. Watson is a sure-fire talent with a nice skillset and excellent athleticism, combined with very good size for the wing position. He definitely passes the eye-test as a college prospect.
Watson is also a very good student and advised me that he currently has a 3.2 CUM GPA.
In the spring, when Watson was asked when he would make his decision, he told me "probably by the end of the summer time - going into my senior year." Well, looks like he did just as he planned.
Congratulations to Watson on this accomplishment for himself and his family.
Arizona Hoop Review Scouting Report: Watson is a nice wing prospect with a combination of size, skill and athleticism. Similar to that of Indiana Pacer's (NBA) young forward Paul George, Watson is able to make plays for himself or others off the dribble, while being able to finish plays around the basket. A terrific athlete, Watson is able to make plays many cannot as a result of his excellent body control and bounce off the floor. He has a good handle of the basketball and is very versatile - his best asset as a player. A good rebounder, as a result of his athleticism and length, Watson needs to focus more on this area of his game to maximize his potential as a player. He is a good defender that plays the passing lanes, and has the potential to become a much better defender with more focus in this area as well. He is a good shooter with range, but is at his best from mid-range where he is able to jump over defenders and score or finish plays at the rim. Watson has the potential to become a very good talent at the next level, so it will be very important what playing style he chooses in college. He will be at his best in an up-tempo playing style. A very nice prospect that is a high-major recruit.
