Maryland Basketball Scoop: Transfer Talk | Rodney Rice Update | Who's Leaving?
It's been a busy day for Maryland basketball, with all eyes on the introduction of new coach Buzz Williams. Who's staying and going? What about the portal? Where do things stand with Rodney Rice? Here's the scoop.
It's been a busy day for
Maryland basketball, with all eyes on the introduction of new coach
Buzz Williams. Williams said he hadn't recruited in the whirlwind 36 hours or so since he got the job, but that process will begin quickly, along with hiring a staff. Who's staying and going? What about the portal? Where do things stand with
Rodney Rice? Here's the scoop.
Willard held a meeting this morning that most of the team attended, including Rodney Rice. As I reported earlier, he hadn't contacted
Rice individually. Unless he doesn't want to keep him, that's something that should happen soon. As the only proven piece still around, Rice would consider staying at Maryland if he felt comfortable with Williams. But he also has a ton of offers, including some bluebloods, so I don't see him waiting for long.
A source said the gist of the meeting's message was, "If you want to stay, reach out to me. If not, that's OK too."
It's unclear who Williams will hire for his staff. We know
Greivis Vasquez is interested, but despite his tweeting, he hasn't spoken to Williams. Coaches tend to want a mix of their own guys and new ones with local connections—or at least guys who've coached and recruited before. Maybe Vasquez could start in another staff role, but it's probably a long shot he'll be one of the assistants. You never know, though.
It sounds like strength and conditioning coach Kyle Tarp won't be retained, ending a long tenure that began under
Gary Williams. Few have been inside the program as long as Tarp. Williams let him go last night.
I'm told
David Cox and Greg Manning will join Willard at
Villanova, so you can cross them off the list of possible assistants. Willard hasn't named his staff yet, but I've heard
Kevin Norris is expecting to go to Villanova. Meanwhile, former top Nova assistant
Mike Nardi and former Willard assistant
Grant Billmeier have also been rumored as additions. Billmeier may be leaving the
NJIT head coaching job to join the staff. Someone is being left out.
As an aside, Billmeier's potential move is a sign of the times in college basketball. With money ruling and small programs being squeezed out of the picture, we could see head coaches from smaller programs become assistants at power conference schools as a means of survival. Similarly, former Maryland staffer
Tevon Saddler has been rumored to be leaving his job as Nicholls State's head coach to become an assistant under new N.C. State coach
Will Wade.
Back to Maryland: I'm working to find out if Williams will land Texas A&M transfer Pharrell Payne. Payne, a chiseled and athletic 6-9 junior, averaged 10.4 points and 5.1 rebounds this year on 64.6 percent shooting. He'd be a strong addition, but it sounds like the price tag is soaring.
Then again, sources inside the program and high-level supporters continue to insist they have a major war chest built up.
Another name I heard today is David Coit, a
Kansas transfer. Coit doesn't appear to be a starter-level prospect—a 5-8 guard who averaged 18.1 points at
Northern Illinois but struggled at KU. More transfer names should be pouring in over the upcoming days and weeks.
Colby Giacubeno reports that Williams has been reaching out to local power brokers, including Team Thrill director Mookie Dobbins, who is Derik Queen's mentor, and Wayne Pratt, who's Kevin Durant's dad and the Team Durant director.
In terms of Williams' staff, I'm hearing he's likely to bring in
Wabissa Bede, who was listed as a "program aide" in his Texas A&M bio:
An integral part of the culture within the Texas A&M basketball team, former
Virginia Tech basketball standout Wabissa Bede enters his third season as the program aide in 2023–24.
In this role, Bede assists with all aspects of the program—recruiting organization, student-athlete development, advanced analytics, and camps. Bede was recruited to Virginia Tech by then-head coach Buzz Williams, and he played his first two seasons for Williams.
The question is whether he's joining as an assistant coach or in a similar role to what he had at Texas A&M.
Ricky Harris, the player personnel director who played a role in Derik Queen and Ja'Kobi Gillespie's recruitment, is also leaving with Willard. He's personable and strongly connected in Baltimore and is a to keep an eye on down the road.
Someone close to Malachi Palmer told me yesterday that he wants to stay and loves being at Maryland, then he entered the portal. Palmer is a Pennsylvania native, and Willard is high on his potential, so Villanova might be a threat.
"He's supposed to be setting up a time to talk to coach Buzz again," he said.
