Washington becomes the third former UK guard in OKC, where he’ll team up with All-NBA guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as well as rookie and top-10 pick Cason Wallace.

As a rookie last season, Washington averaged 4.7 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 14.0 minutes while appearing in 31 games for the Rockets. Playing for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League, Washington averaged 23.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 6.1 assists, including a season-high 53 points in a loss to the Stockton Kings on Jan. 13.

Washington was selected by the Memphis Grizzlies with the 29th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft before being traded to the Rockets.

During his lone season at Kentucky in 2021-22, Washington started in 29 of 31 appearances for the Wildcats as as a freshman, averaging 12.5 points, 3.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game while shooting 45.1 percent from the field and 35 percent from 3-point range on his way to earning Second Team All-SEC honors by both the league’s coaches and media. He was named SEC Freshman of the Week five times and was a semifinalist for the Jerry West Award as the nation’s top shooting guard.

He posted five 20-point games and became the first Wildcat since Ashton Hagans in 2019-20 to record double-doubles in both points and rebounds and points and assists.

Washington scored a season-high 28 points in Kentucky’s 107-79 win over No. 22 Tennessee at Rupp Arena on Jan. 15. The margin of victory was UK’s most in a win over UT since 2010. He also scored 25 points on 4 of 5 three-point shooting in an SEC Tournament win over Vanderbilt in Tampa.

In UK’s 23 wins in which he played, Washington averaged 14.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.

Washington broke John Wall‘s UK single-game assist record with 17 points and 17 assists in a 92-77 win over Georgia. The Phoenix native finished the regular season ranked first in the SEC and 31st nationally with a 2.43 assist-to-turnover ratio.

“TyTy is a play-making guard who has the ability to play on the ball or off and still impact the game in a variety of ways,” UK head coach John Calipari said. “We’ve had a number of players leave here and be successful at the next level who are in a similar mode as TyTy. I’m excited for TyTy and his family because I know with his work ethic, his ability to play within himself and allow the game to come to him, that he will have the opportunity to be another one of our guys to find success in that league. TyTy’s best days as a basketball player are in front of him and he and his family know that they have my full support as he chases his dreams.”

A one-time Creighton commit, Washington became the first-ever Arizona native to sign with Kentucky, finishing the 2021 recruiting cycle ranked No. 15 overall and the No. 4 point guard in the 2021 class according to the industry average 247Sports Composite.