Elite Guard Deshawndre Washington Announces Decision to Sign with NM State, Reunites with Heiar

story links

LAS CRUCES, NM – Greg Heiar is finishing up his puzzle and one of the last pieces is stud guard Deshawndre Washington who was a key cog for Heiar last season at Northwest Florida State College where the two earned a national title.

The NM State head coach announced Wednesday that the 6-7 point guard has signed a National Letter of Intent to put on the Crimson and White in 2022-23.

Deshawndre Washington | G | Jr | 6-7 | 195 | Chicago, Ill./Morgan Park HS/South Suburban College/Northwest Florida State College
• Enhanced his recruiting profile in a major way by the time his junior college career was a matter of record.
• Lauded as one of the nation’s premier junior college players after leading Northwest Florida State College to the NJCAA Division I National Championship in 2021-22.
• Started 35 of the Raiders’ 36 games and was one of just two players to take part in all 36 contests.
• Averaged 12.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals in 30.6 minutes per game.
• Concluded the season with shooting splits of .483/.372/.685 while leading the team in field goals made (158), free throws made (100) and free throw attempts (146).
• Registered a streak of 15-straight games with 10 or more points and concluded the year with 25 outings of 10+ points. Once the month of March rolled around, posted both of his 20+ point outings on the year.
• Concluded the season with eight double-doubles to serve as the Raiders’ top rebounder.
• Hauled in a multitude of high-profile individual awards including Panhandle Conference Player of the Year, FCSAA All-State/NJCAA All-Region 8 team, NJCAA Division I First Team All-American and NJCAA Division I National Championship Tournament Most Valuable Player.
• Latched on to offers from the likes of Alabama, Arizona State, Boise State, DePaul, Missouri, South Carolina and UTEP following his run to the NJCAA Division I National Championship bout at Northwest Florida State.
• Began his collegiate career at South Suburban College at the NJCAA Division II level and ripped it up at that institution in 2020-21.
• Was named the NJCAA Division II Player of the Year, the NJCAA Region IV Player of the Year, NJCAA Division II First Team All-American and earned a spot on the NJCAA Division II National Championship All-Tournament Team.
• Posted averages of 27.0 points, 13.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 2.8 blocked shots and 2.7 steals per game through his sole season at South Suburban College.
• Starred at Morgan Park High School in his native Chicago, Ill., as a prep while playing alongside former Illinois star and current Chicago Bulls player Ayo Dosunmu.

What they’re saying about Washington
NM State head coach Greg Heiar | “We are super excited to welcome Deshawndre Washington to our Aggie family. He is an extension of the coaching staff every day with his passion, energy, competitiveness and work ethic. I call D-Wash my “Queen Chess Piece” because of his versatility on both ends of the court. Shawn is a tremendous floor general and leader among his teammates and has a contagious personality. His vision and ability to make plays for others first at his size is priceless, he is elite at getting his hands on the ball and adds another two-way player to the roster. I love the confidence he carries himself with both on and off the court and that is what you want in one of your captains. He has everything you want in a player: mindset, size, skills, is coachable and has the desire to be a winner in all aspects of life.It was a blessing to be able to be a part of his development, growth & maturity over the course of the last nine months, but that was just the beginning of what’s to come because of the belief a and trust we have in each other. The sky is the limit for him. Aggie Nation, you will love him as a player, but most importantly, as a person. #aggieup”

++NM State++