College Commitment: Isaiah Sampson (2019 Camas HS)
Now that the season is over, it’s time for seniors to start making decisions on their future. For Isaiah Sampson, the choice has already been made. The versatile 6-foot-6, 200-pound swingman from Camas had been hearing from a number of schools in the recruiting process, but after making an official visit recently he’s off the board and heading down south for school.
“I’m going to play next year at Humboldt State University in California,” Sampson said. “I made a visit down there about weeks ago and a couple of days after I made my decision. I just felt like it was the right place for me as far as the campus, the city, the community, the team and the academics too.”
Sampson got a good feel for Humboldt State and the area from a couple of tours, and the time he spent with the basketball team and staff was very enlightening. “I was able to sit in on their practice and their film session – this was on the night of the game,” Sampson said. “Later I got to see the game and they played really well. On Sunday I had a meeting with the coaches and then after a campus tour, I got to play with the guys – that was really fun.”
“They want to put me at the two and the three but they also said that I could two through five, wherever they need me,” Sampson continued. “I need to keep my three point shooting as consistent as possible and keep my percentages up.”
Sampson had also been hearing from Chico State and Cal State Stanislaus, which had wanted him to also visit, but in the end the Lumberjacks had all that he was looking for. As he now preps for the college level, he looks back on his senior season with some pride even though Camas just missed making the playoffs.
“I thought we had a good team this year,” Sampson said. “We had a lot of ups and downs through league especially but I felt we kept on fighting and we never gave up and that was something I really liked about this year’s team. And for our seniors, I think we set a culture especially in practice that the young guys got to see, and hopefully that carries over into the years to come.”
Sampson currently ranks as the #56 player in the PrepHoops Washington Class of 2019 rankings.