Maryland is set to host former Wisconsin starting guard Connor Essegian for an official visit starting tomorrow.
For those that don't remember, he was a starter as a true freshman a couple of seasons ago and showed a lot of promise, averaging 11.7 points and 3.7 rebounds while shooting 36% from three and nearly 90% from the charity stripe in just over 27 minutes of action per game.
I'll admit, I was really impressed with the kid when I watched him and he seemed like he might have a huge sophomore season. Then Gard brought in St. John's transfer AJ Storr and freshman John Blackwell to get bigger and more athletic and he basically became a bench warmer this season, averaging 3.2 points in just over 7 minutes per game.
If he is willing to compete for a spot at the 2/3 with the expectation he plays maybe 20-plus minutes a game, I think with his outside stroke and previous Big Ten experience he could be a really nice addition. There had been a lot of smoke with regards to Essegian and Michigan and he was expected to visit Ann Arbor at some point this week, also. But I'm hearing that Michigan visit has now been put on the back burner with this Maryland visit now popping up.
While Essegian is visiting College Park, top Terps target Bryce Pope will take an unofficial visit to USC. As I previously mentioned a few days ago, source told me that Musselman targeted Pope as a guy he wanted very early on with the expectation that he'd end up at USC. Musselman just landed UPenn transfer PG Clark Slajchert, who is originally from LA. Again, Musselman reached out early on seemingly with the idea he'd likely be at USC. But while he's added a couple of guys through the portal already, Mussleman has a ton of spots to fill and a ton of playing time to offer as the previous roster has been completely gutted.
As of now, I'd still expect Pope to visit Maryland officially as scheduled, and the Terps have a real shot here, but again, USC is a serious threat and will have him on campus this week.
Reading the tea leaves with regards to Essegian, quickly setting up this Maryland visit and the Michigan visit now in question while Pope is at USC has me thinking that it is possible he commits while on his visit.
They have also held talks with South Florida transfer Selton Miguel who averaged 14.7 point, 3.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game this past season. USF won the AAC this past season and Miguel was 2nd team All-AAC and 6th man of the year. He has good size at 6-foot-4 and shot 39% from three this past season. Providence and Michigan two other schools I've heard are very much in the mix. Terps have a connection in that he's from Angola, the home of former Terp and current NBA big man Bruno Fernando.
For those that don't remember, he was a starter as a true freshman a couple of seasons ago and showed a lot of promise, averaging 11.7 points and 3.7 rebounds while shooting 36% from three and nearly 90% from the charity stripe in just over 27 minutes of action per game.
I'll admit, I was really impressed with the kid when I watched him and he seemed like he might have a huge sophomore season. Then Gard brought in St. John's transfer AJ Storr and freshman John Blackwell to get bigger and more athletic and he basically became a bench warmer this season, averaging 3.2 points in just over 7 minutes per game.
If he is willing to compete for a spot at the 2/3 with the expectation he plays maybe 20-plus minutes a game, I think with his outside stroke and previous Big Ten experience he could be a really nice addition. There had been a lot of smoke with regards to Essegian and Michigan and he was expected to visit Ann Arbor at some point this week, also. But I'm hearing that Michigan visit has now been put on the back burner with this Maryland visit now popping up.
While Essegian is visiting College Park, top Terps target Bryce Pope will take an unofficial visit to USC. As I previously mentioned a few days ago, source told me that Musselman targeted Pope as a guy he wanted very early on with the expectation that he'd end up at USC. Musselman just landed UPenn transfer PG Clark Slajchert, who is originally from LA. Again, Musselman reached out early on seemingly with the idea he'd likely be at USC. But while he's added a couple of guys through the portal already, Mussleman has a ton of spots to fill and a ton of playing time to offer as the previous roster has been completely gutted.
As of now, I'd still expect Pope to visit Maryland officially as scheduled, and the Terps have a real shot here, but again, USC is a serious threat and will have him on campus this week.
Reading the tea leaves with regards to Essegian, quickly setting up this Maryland visit and the Michigan visit now in question while Pope is at USC has me thinking that it is possible he commits while on his visit.
They have also held talks with South Florida transfer Selton Miguel who averaged 14.7 point, 3.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game this past season. USF won the AAC this past season and Miguel was 2nd team All-AAC and 6th man of the year. He has good size at 6-foot-4 and shot 39% from three this past season. Providence and Michigan two other schools I've heard are very much in the mix. Terps have a connection in that he's from Angola, the home of former Terp and current NBA big man Bruno Fernando.
