Jake Wahlin committed to BYU this week, giving the Cougars their third transfer addition of the cycle. The 6-foot-10 forward chose BYU over Kansas State, Cincinnati, Cal and other schools, according to sources familiar with the decision.
Wahlin’s path back to Provo has taken a long way around. He signed with BYU before his mission, returned home and spent two seasons at Utah, then played this past season at Clemson, where he started 29 games and averaged 5.3 points and 3.9 rebounds in 20 minutes per game. He shot 34.5% from three overall and 37% from deep in ACC play, numbers that fit the kind of frontcourt player BYU has been trying to add.
That production matters because Wahlin is not just a big body. He can play the wing or function as a stretch four, and he finished top 10 in ACC play in defensive rebound percentage. For a BYU roster looking for size, shooting and versatility, that combination made him one of the more useful transfer targets on the board.
There was still competition late. One source said Kentucky had recently watched Wahlin’s film and made an aggressive push this week to land him, a sign that the market tightened quickly once more programs got a closer look. Still, the pull of a school he grew up following won out, and BYU gets a player it once signed, lost to a mission and is now bringing home after stops at two other programs.
The commitment leaves BYU with another rotation option and a clearer picture of what the frontcourt can look like next season. It also shows how quickly the transfer market can change when a player with proven size and shooting becomes available. For Wahlin, the move closes a circle that began before his mission and now ends with a return to the program he chose first.
