Washington State freshman forward Mael Hamon-Crespin leaves team for ‘personal reasons’

PULLMAN – Mael Hamon-Crespin, a true freshman forward for Washington State’s basketball team who showed potential off the bench early this season, has left the program “for personal reasons,” according to a release issued by the school Friday.

The 6-foot-9 native of France appeared in eight games and played some key minutes for a shorthanded WSU frontcourt. Hamon-Crespin averaged 3.0 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.5 blocks in 8.1 minutes per game. He shot 6 for 15 from 3-point range and 40% from the field.

Hamon-Crespin was absent for the Cougars’ game Thursday against George Washington at the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu. Asked after the game for an update on Hamon-Crespon, coach Kyle Smith told reporters, “He’s got some personal thing he’s tending to. I’ll talk to him and get a definite on what’s going on, but he needs a break right now.”

Hamon-Crespin spent three years at INSEP, a training academy just outside of Paris, and played three seasons against international professionals in the Nationale Masculine 1 league. Hamon-Crespin averaged 8.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in France’s third tier of pro play. He also suited up for France’s U18 national program and averaged 9.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game at the 2021 FIBA European Challenges.

He signed with the Cougars in June over offers from Oregon State, BYU, Saint Louis and Saint Mary’s.

“He is a skillful big man with size, which is an important piece to our puzzle,” Smith said of Hamon-Crespin this summer, per a school release. “With his ability to make 3s and stretch the floor, he will complement our lengthy and athletic frontcourt talent. He comes from the elite French junior program INSEP, and he is very experienced in international competition.”

Hamon-Crespin played limited minutes as a freshman, exhibiting a soft shooting touch and advanced ball skills for a big man while having the size (235 pounds) to hold his own underneath. His departure leaves the Cougars with more concerns about an already undermanned frontcourt.

Starting center Dishon Jackson is out for the season due to an unspecified medical issue.

The Cougars must rely heavily on 6-11 sophomore Mouhamed Gueye, who is averaging 13.4 points and eight rebounds in 30.5 minutes per game. WSU will likely ask true freshman center Adrame Diongue to take on an expanded role. Veteran wings DJ Rodman and Andrej Jakimovski, and junior forward Carlos Rosario, can give the Cougars some minutes in the paint.

WSU’s other frontcourt option is the 6-11, 325-pound Jack Wilson, a former backup offensive tackle for WSU’s football team who played basketball at Oregon State and Idaho before switching sports in 2021.

Since wrapping up his football career and joining the basketball program in late November, Wilson has played a combined 2 minutes in two games.