Top Indiana Prep Player Jalen Washington From Gary Commits to North Carolina

Jalen Washington said getting an offer from North Carolina was a dream come true, and the top-ranked high school player in Indiana from Gary West Side committed to the Tar Heels on Friday.

Jalen Washington of Gary West Side, a five-star center/forward who is the No. 1-ranked player in the state of Indiana, announced on Friday afternoon that he was committing to North Carolina.

Washington is 6-foot-9 and 215 pounds and has played center during his injury-riddled high school career in Northwest Indiana, but is projected as a forward in college. He was the most heavily recruited player in the state, and chose the Tar Heels over Indiana, Purdue, Michigan State and several others.

Washington made an official visit to North Carolina last week, and was impressed with first-year coach Hubert Davis, who took over for Roy Williams earlier this summer. He is Davis' third commitment since taking over. 

Washington is an athletic big man who can score from all three levels. He has dealt with two major injuries so far during his high school career, including an ACL injury that took away most of his sophomore season, but that hasn't stopped all of the best programs from recruiting him hard.

That's certainly been the case with Indiana, who's put the full court press on his recruiting. New head coach Mike Woodson has been actively involved, as has assistant Dane Fife, who was already recruiting him last year when he was an assistant at Michigan State.

Washington has been enamored with North Carolina from the start. When he was offered by North Carolina in May, he said it was like a dream come true," Washington said. "UNC is great, and to get that offer from coach (Hubert) Davis, I was so hyped in my room. I was just super happy. It was awesome."

2022 five-star Jalen Washington has committed to North Carolina, he tells @On3Recruits. pic.twitter.com/GT63whKTkS

— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) July 9, 2021