Reese Waters is not a man of many words, but he is a man of his word and he promised to speak about his status for this season and beyond only after the stress fracture in his right foot had fully healed.
San Diego State’s senior guard received full medical clearance Thursday, four months after the initial diagnosis. Here’s what he said:
“I’m going to redshirt this year and come back next year.”
Come back to San Diego State?
“Yes.”
That’s all he offered, but it’s enough to put a wide smile across the face coach Brian Dutcher and, you figure, a legion of Aztecs worried about what next season’s roster might look like in the era of the NIL inducements and unlimited free agency.
“Just overjoyed,” Dutcher said. “Reese is a preseason all-conference player. He was our only returning starter. We saw what he can do when he’s at his best — the Cal game, Gonzaga. We know what he’s capable of. And now to have him as a fifth-year senior, it’s like the perfect world for us.
“He’s mature, he knows how to play, he’s an elite player with a chance to play at the next level, and to know we’ll have him back next year is just a great kick-off for the (2025-26) season.”
The initial plan was for Waters to return in mid-December after six to eight weeks in a protective boot and play the remainder of the season. But a CT scan showed the navicular bone on the top of the foot hadn’t fully healed, and he went back in the boot.
Subsequent scans had similar findings, and it became apparent as January became February that the 6-foot-6 guard who began his career at USC would not return this season.
The bigger question was, with a medical waiver to reclaim his final year of eligibility, whether Waters would use it at SDSU. Thursday’s pronouncement, then, confirmed that.
“I envision him being a first-team all-conference player and on the NBA draft board,” Dutcher said.
Waters was the Aztecs’ top returning scorer from last season, averaging 9.6 points while starting 23 games. In 13 nonconference games, though, he averaged 14.3 points — including 22 against Gonzaga and 24 against Cal — and shot 45.1% on 3s before a sprained ankle in the Mountain West opener cast his numbers into a tailspin. He opened the season by making 43 straight free throws. He also was their most versatile defender.
Waters was allowed to remove the boot last month and in recent weeks has progressed from stationary shooting to jumpers on the move. He participates in warmups with the team at practice and some drills, but not yet in live segments.
There’s no rush.
“He has rehabbed religiously to put himself at this point, and to finally get the good news that the foot is completely healed is a huge relief of all of us,” Dutcher said. “We don’t want him doing too much now. You don’t sit as long as he sat, then run back in at full speed.
“It’s about easing him back, getting his legs back underneath him and not doing anything to risk his health now. Just slowly playing himself back into shape, knowing that next year is a long way away right now.”
Waters’ decision to return without wading into the NIL market is not a surprise to those around the program. He faced a similar decision last spring and opted to return, reasoning: “I like the coaches, I like the culture, it’s very comfortable. It’s definitely a place where I’ve grown my game, and I don’t think anywhere else could do that.”
Another indication of his intentions: He attends every practice and meeting, and has accompanied the team on every road trip.
“His leadership is important,” Dutcher said. “Even though he’s not on the floor, he has a voice. He’s a tremendous mentor to Taj (DeGourville) and Pharaoh (Compton) and all the freshmen, telling them about what it is at this level. I think they appreciate him. I know they go to meals together and he does a good job of talking to them, letting them know now, as frustrating as it can be sometimes, how good they have it here at San Diego State.
“That’s just his personality, his giving nature. He’s a really, really nice young man who doesn’t care only about himself. He cares about others, and he shows that by his actions.”
There are five games left before the Mountain West tournament and, they hope, NCAA Tournament. But it’s hard not to gaze ahead to next season, with a roster that slews far younger than past SDSU teams.
Florida Atlantic transfer Nick Boyd has another year of eligibility left and indicated when he arrived last summer that he planned on staying two years. DeGourville, Compton and starting forward Magoon Gwath are all freshmen. Miles Byrd, BJ Davis and Miles Heide are sophomores.
The only rotation pieces that run out of eligibility are forward Jared Coleman-Jones and guard Wayne McKinney III.
It’s also hard not to gaze back at this season and wonder what might have been with a healthy Waters.
“I try not to get into that,” Dutcher said, “but when you have one starter back you feel like you at least have a kickoff point. To come into the year, and lose the only starter we had back and a preseason all-conference player, was a blow.
“We’ve done a good job overcoming it, but obviously we’re a better team with Reese on the floor.”
