Montlake Continues To Be Painful Place for Wesley Yates III

Wesley Yates III probably wonders what does he have to do to stay healthy and play for the University of Washington basketball team.

Two years ago, the 6-foot-4 sophomore guard from Beaumont, Texas, missed all 32 games for the Mike Hopkins-coached Huskies.

He injured a foot before the 2023-34 season began and re-injured it while attempting to make a midseason return.

After spending a relatively healthy year at USC, in which he appeared in 33 of the Trojans' 35 games, Yates returned to the now Danny Sprinkle-coached Huskies -- and he's injured again.

Against Seattle University on Dec. 19, he broke his wrist, had surgery and he's been sidelined once more, with no indication for when he might return.

At least Yates was able to play in 11 games for the Huskies this time and show off those offensive skills that make him the team's second-leading scorer at 14.9 points per outing.

Wesley Yates III is shown at Climate Pledge Arena. | Dave Sizer photo

He currently finds himself sort of in basketball limbo, where the possibility exists that he might miss the rest of the season or he could be back within a month.

"It could be six months, it could three weeks, we don't know," Sprinkle said. "He'll go back and continue to get X-rays. It's a very rare kind of bone he broke."

Lathan Sommerville is dealing with a knee injury that wasn't as bad as first feared. | Dave Sizer photo

For Monday's game against Utah, Yates was dressed in sweats and wore a heavy wrap on his right wrist as he used his left hand to direct balls to teammates during warm-ups prior to them beating the Utes 74-65 at Alaska Airlines Arena.

After getting hurt against Seattle U, he missed his second game of the season, as did forward Lathan Sommerville, who is dealing with a knee injury.

At least the news for the Rutgers transfer was a bit more encouraging, with the 6-foot-10 sophomore forward dealing with a knee that wasn't structurally damaged. He was hurt in practice the day after the Seattle U game.

"I'm happy for him and thankful it's not something more serious," Sprinkle said. "When we watched it, it didn't look good. We all thought he tore something. ... Now it's just sore and it was a little swollen, so it's just a matter of time. It could be a week, it could be two, it could be tomorrow. I''m not sure."

It's been a challenging season for the Huskies in keeping people healthy and even putting together a lineup on the floor that holds up. Sprinkle has started nine different players so far.

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