Ok, a lot going on with hoops recruiting so here's the latest. Will start with the transfer portal and finish with the high school prospects. Here we go....
- The only visit set up for this week to this point is Duquesne transfer Primo Spears who began his official visit to Maryland yesterday. Spears is down to a final three of Maryland, TCU and Oklahoma. He will finish up his official visit in College Park and he then has an in-home visit set up with TCU's Jamie Dixon on Thursday. Again, I really like the Terps' chances here, as they have all kinds of playing time to sell and with him already being very familiar with the area having prepped at Mt. Zion.
- After looking like the Terps might have to wait a while on a decision from Jahmir Young, he is now planning on committing later this week. Early on, Maryland looked like a near lock for Young, who visited Maryland immediately after putting his name in the transfer portal. He fills an obvious need, would start, get a ton of minutes and have a chance to showcase his game against arguably the best conference in the country. But this isn't quite the slam dunk it seemed right out of the gate, as Georgetown has put themselves in the mix with the addition of Jordan Brooks to the staff. Brooks has immediately given the Hoyas some juice locally, as they are now expected to land a commitment from DeMatha five-star wing Tyrell Ward later this week. (I was the first to put in a FutureCast for Ward to the Hoyas). But Brooks' addition to Ewing's staff also allowed the Hoyas to get Jahmir Young on campus for a visit a few days ago. By all accounts, Young had zero interest in the Hoyas until Brooks was brought on board. He and his mother have a strong relationship with Brooks that goes back to when Young was in elementary school. It also sounds like the G'town staff put the squeeze on Niagra transfer Marcus Hammond (committed to Notre Dame yesterday) and Jahmir Young, telling both of them that they aren't waiting around any longer and whoever commits first gets a spot in their backcourt. Young also visited Miami and they might have been a threat as well, but with Nijel Pack committing and getting that huge NIL deal, the Canes are no longer in play, per a source. At the end of the day, I still like Maryland's chances here, but it is not the slam dunk it was a few weeks ago. The Hoyas are a real threat with Jordan Brooks on staff and the recent additions of Brandon Murray and soon to be Tyrell Ward. If Young picks the Terps, this will be the biggest, most important commitment of the offseason.
- South Carolina transfer guard Jermaine Couisnard doesn't seem like he is any closer to picking a school after completing his official visit to Ohio State the other day. In fact, with the Buckeyes picking up a commitment from West Virginia transfer Sean McNeil (who Maryland was also interested in) Sunday night, it appears OSU could be out for Couisnard. He has an official visit scheduled for Gonzaga which is set to begin on Thursday. Those are the only visits he has planned as of now, although he said he might still take one or two more. The Terps seem to be in a decent spot here, but we really won't know exactly where they stand until he finishes out his Gonzaga visit and decides on taking any others.
- Detroit transfer guard Antoine Davis, who took his first official visit to Maryland last week, most recently completed an official visit with Kansas State, which he raved about on social media, noting that it was better than both his visit to Maryland and G'town. He is set to visit BYU later this week and I expect that visit to take place, but Kansas State seems like they are going to be very difficult to beat as far as landing Davis.
- Maryland is among the schools that have reached out to Texas senior guard Courtney Ramey, who is in the portal after averaging 9.4 points, 3.5 boards, 1.6 assists and a steal per game last season. The list of schools after him is a who's who, including Gonzaga, Kansas, Illinois and Ohio State. Still, good to hear the Terps are involved.
- One new name that jumped in the portal yesterday that might be worth keeping an eye on is Jay Heath. He began his career at Boston College and played for the ASU Sun Devils last season, averaging 10.6 points and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting 43% from three. He attended Woodrow Wilson High in DC and played for Team Melo back in the day. I thought Maryland should have gone after him last year and I still think he'd be a really nice piece.
- The Terps hosted 2022 point guard Adou Thiero out of the Pittsburgh area a few days ago and by all accounts the visit went well. But he snuck in an official visit at Xavier yesterday and is still planning on visiting Kentucky. His father played for Calipari at Memphis. This is a kid who's stock is fast rising. We'll have to wait and see where the Terps stand after his Kentucky visit.
- A couple of new high school offers went out this week following another weekend of AAU play. The first is 2023 Albany City Rocks guard Trey Autry. If the name Autry sounds familiar, that is because his dad is former Syracuse star and now assistant Red Autry. He had a big game versus Brad Beal Elite over the weekend, going for 22 points and 5 assists on 7-12 shooting. He also picked up an offer from Nebraska. The Terps and Huskers are his first two high major offers. He plays his high school ball at Western Reserve in Ohio.
Another new high school offer went out to 2024 Hudson Catholic (NJ) guard Tahaad Pettiford. He's looked impressive during the first two EYBL sessions running with the NY Lightning.
- 2023 top-25 big man Aaron Bradshaw told Rivals over the weekend that he has two visits planned in the near future, to Maryland and Kentucky. Bradshaw is a 7-foot athletic freak out of New Jersey. He's an elite rim protector who's offensive game is starting to catch up with his defense.
- The only visit set up for this week to this point is Duquesne transfer Primo Spears who began his official visit to Maryland yesterday. Spears is down to a final three of Maryland, TCU and Oklahoma. He will finish up his official visit in College Park and he then has an in-home visit set up with TCU's Jamie Dixon on Thursday. Again, I really like the Terps' chances here, as they have all kinds of playing time to sell and with him already being very familiar with the area having prepped at Mt. Zion.
- After looking like the Terps might have to wait a while on a decision from Jahmir Young, he is now planning on committing later this week. Early on, Maryland looked like a near lock for Young, who visited Maryland immediately after putting his name in the transfer portal. He fills an obvious need, would start, get a ton of minutes and have a chance to showcase his game against arguably the best conference in the country. But this isn't quite the slam dunk it seemed right out of the gate, as Georgetown has put themselves in the mix with the addition of Jordan Brooks to the staff. Brooks has immediately given the Hoyas some juice locally, as they are now expected to land a commitment from DeMatha five-star wing Tyrell Ward later this week. (I was the first to put in a FutureCast for Ward to the Hoyas). But Brooks' addition to Ewing's staff also allowed the Hoyas to get Jahmir Young on campus for a visit a few days ago. By all accounts, Young had zero interest in the Hoyas until Brooks was brought on board. He and his mother have a strong relationship with Brooks that goes back to when Young was in elementary school. It also sounds like the G'town staff put the squeeze on Niagra transfer Marcus Hammond (committed to Notre Dame yesterday) and Jahmir Young, telling both of them that they aren't waiting around any longer and whoever commits first gets a spot in their backcourt. Young also visited Miami and they might have been a threat as well, but with Nijel Pack committing and getting that huge NIL deal, the Canes are no longer in play, per a source. At the end of the day, I still like Maryland's chances here, but it is not the slam dunk it was a few weeks ago. The Hoyas are a real threat with Jordan Brooks on staff and the recent additions of Brandon Murray and soon to be Tyrell Ward. If Young picks the Terps, this will be the biggest, most important commitment of the offseason.
- South Carolina transfer guard Jermaine Couisnard doesn't seem like he is any closer to picking a school after completing his official visit to Ohio State the other day. In fact, with the Buckeyes picking up a commitment from West Virginia transfer Sean McNeil (who Maryland was also interested in) Sunday night, it appears OSU could be out for Couisnard. He has an official visit scheduled for Gonzaga which is set to begin on Thursday. Those are the only visits he has planned as of now, although he said he might still take one or two more. The Terps seem to be in a decent spot here, but we really won't know exactly where they stand until he finishes out his Gonzaga visit and decides on taking any others.
- Detroit transfer guard Antoine Davis, who took his first official visit to Maryland last week, most recently completed an official visit with Kansas State, which he raved about on social media, noting that it was better than both his visit to Maryland and G'town. He is set to visit BYU later this week and I expect that visit to take place, but Kansas State seems like they are going to be very difficult to beat as far as landing Davis.
- Maryland is among the schools that have reached out to Texas senior guard Courtney Ramey, who is in the portal after averaging 9.4 points, 3.5 boards, 1.6 assists and a steal per game last season. The list of schools after him is a who's who, including Gonzaga, Kansas, Illinois and Ohio State. Still, good to hear the Terps are involved.
- One new name that jumped in the portal yesterday that might be worth keeping an eye on is Jay Heath. He began his career at Boston College and played for the ASU Sun Devils last season, averaging 10.6 points and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting 43% from three. He attended Woodrow Wilson High in DC and played for Team Melo back in the day. I thought Maryland should have gone after him last year and I still think he'd be a really nice piece.
- The Terps hosted 2022 point guard Adou Thiero out of the Pittsburgh area a few days ago and by all accounts the visit went well. But he snuck in an official visit at Xavier yesterday and is still planning on visiting Kentucky. His father played for Calipari at Memphis. This is a kid who's stock is fast rising. We'll have to wait and see where the Terps stand after his Kentucky visit.
- A couple of new high school offers went out this week following another weekend of AAU play. The first is 2023 Albany City Rocks guard Trey Autry. If the name Autry sounds familiar, that is because his dad is former Syracuse star and now assistant Red Autry. He had a big game versus Brad Beal Elite over the weekend, going for 22 points and 5 assists on 7-12 shooting. He also picked up an offer from Nebraska. The Terps and Huskers are his first two high major offers. He plays his high school ball at Western Reserve in Ohio.
Another new high school offer went out to 2024 Hudson Catholic (NJ) guard Tahaad Pettiford. He's looked impressive during the first two EYBL sessions running with the NY Lightning.
- 2023 top-25 big man Aaron Bradshaw told Rivals over the weekend that he has two visits planned in the near future, to Maryland and Kentucky. Bradshaw is a 7-foot athletic freak out of New Jersey. He's an elite rim protector who's offensive game is starting to catch up with his defense.
