For one, he is an eastcoast guy who had little to no ties out West. Hop has much more credibility back east than he does out west. I think he is relying a lot on Will Conroy to recruit the local kids.
His first couple classes were great. The fact he was able to bring Naz and Wright all the way out to Seattle on short notice, was amazing. Then was able to get McDaniels and Stewart. FWIW, I think McDaniels was going to UW regardless who the coach was, and Stewart was going wherever Hop was going. Quade clearly followed Hop to UW.
But since then, it's been a rough go for Hop. Hop and the staff didn't put much effort into the 2020 class as it was considered a down year locally. 2021 was considered one of the best group of kids coming out of the state. Hop was only able to bring in Jackson Grant, who is considered a top 50 recruit. However he missed on Banchero (future lottery pick), Hickman and others.
Romar was a terrible coach but he was highly respected around Seattle, probably similar to Hop back east. I just don't know if Hop has the pull locally to put a fence around the state. Seattle produces a ton of NBA talent, but if you can't get the local kids, UW stands no chance in basketball.