Had a chance to talk for a little while today with Isaiah Thomas, the former Curtis High School guard who committed to the Huskies last spring.

Thomas, you may recall, was urged last fall to instead go to South Kent (Conn.) Prep School to solve some academic issues, which will delay his entry into college until the fall of 2008.

But Thomas reiterated today that when he does enroll, he will definitely be a Washington Husky.

"I'm committed to them and they are committed to me,'' Thomas said, adding he plans to sign during the early period next November.

Thomas is home for spring break but returns to South Kent this weekend. He will return home this summer to play for the Friends of Hoop AAU team, then return to South Kent in the fall for another season there.

"I've got to stay for another year,'' Thomas said.

Thomas said he enjoyed this season at South Kent after struggling early with a little homesickness.

"It's going good now, once I got used to being away from home and school,'' he said, adding that he averaged 27 points and eight assists this season for South Kent.

The team lost in the semifinals of the New England Preparatory School Athletic
Conference playoffs, details of which are here.

While home, Thomas has played a little pickup ball with Franklin's Venoy Overton, who also recently committed to UW and will sign next month.

Thomas said he's excited about the thought of playing alongside Overton in UW's backcourt.

"We played on some AAU teams when we were younger, so we've got a good relationship,'' Thomas said. "It'll be good playing with another hometown basketball player.''

Thomas said there is no issue with how the two play together.

"He's the two and I'm the one, or he's the one and I'm the two --- it doesn't matter,'' Thomas said. "We just play basketball.''

That's a philosophy that jibes with that of coach Lorenzo Romar, who disdains classifying his players, particularly in the backcourt.

At South Kent, Thomas played alongside another future Husky, big man Matthew Bryan-Amaning, who has already signed and will enroll as a member of the Class of 2007.

"He's a good player,'' Thomas said. "He's a three and a four. He posts up more than he's on the wing. But he's real athletic. .... He'll add athleticism and energy and he gets a lot of rebounds. He's going to bring a lot to Washington.''

Though he was initially a little anxious about the move to South Kent, Thomas said he's now happy with the way things have worked out.

"It's made me grow up a lot faster and realize what I've got to do to get where I want to be,'' he said.