Last Year: 22-13; Fifth (11-9) in the Big Ten Conference, lost in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament
Head Coach: Kevin Willard (Second Year)
Projected Starting Lineup
| PG Jahmir Young – 6’1″, 185 – Senior (5th) |
| SG DeShawn Harris-Smith – 6’5″, 215 – Freshman |
| SF Jordan Geronimo – 6’6″, 225 – Junior |
| PF Donta Scott – 6’8″, 230 – Senior (5th) |
| F/C Julian ‘Juju’ Reese – 6’9″, 230 – Junior |
Projected Starters’ 2022-23 Stats
Jahmir Young: 15.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.1 apg, 1.3 spg – 41.5% FG
DeShawn Harris-Smith: Consensus Top 50 recruit
Jordan Geronimo: 4.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 0.9 bpg, 0.5 spg – 54.8% FG @ Indiana
Donta Scott: 11.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.6 apg, 0.8 bpg – 39.1% FG
Juju Reese: 11.4 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 1.2 bpg, 0.8 spg – 63.2% FG
Experienced Reserves
| G Jahari Long – 6’5″, 200 – Junior |
| W Noah Batchelor – 6’6″, 185 – Sophomore |
| F/C Caelum Swanton-Roger – 6’11”, 220 – Sophomore |
| G Chance Stephens – 6’3″, 185 – Junior |
| F/C Mady Traoré – 6’11”, 200 – Sophomore |
Experienced Reserves’ 2022-23 Stats
Jahari Long: 2.1 ppg, 0.7 rpg, 1.1 apg, 0.3 spg – 40.6% FG
Noah Batchelor: 1.6 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 0.3 apg – 27.8% FG
Caelum Swanton-Roger: 0.8 ppg, 0.9 rpg – 70.0% FG
Chance Stephens: 6.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 0.5 apg – 37.4% 3FG @ Loyola Marymount
Mady Traoré: 1.4 ppg, 0.4 rpg – 57.1% FG in seven games played @ New Mexico State
Freshmen
| W Jamie Kaiser – 6’6″, 205 – Freshman – Consensus Top 100 recruit |
| G Jahnathan Lamothe – 6’4″, 192 – Freshman – Consensus Top 150 recruit |
| C Braden Pierce – 7’0″, 230 – Freshman |
Sometimes, a coach takes a new job because there are a couple of stars on a team who will make their life easy. Sometimes, they take a job out of respect for the prestige of the employing institution. Sometimes, they just want to get paid.
Sometimes a coach takes a job because they identify with a program, and want to build it up in their own image; make it as much a passion project as employment. When Kevin Willard, former Iona & Seton Hall coach and longtime Rick Pitino disciple, was brought to College Park last spring, it felt like a very correct pairing.
As befits the take-on-all-comers attitude he espouses, Willard didn’t exactly inherit a finished portrait last year. So he set to the task of re-making Maryland’s roster. He made sure that the players who stayed on understood the task before them. And by December, the results were speaking for themselves. Despite it seeming during the summer as though the Terrapins were a team clinging together with duct-tape and some bent nails at the corners, Maryland won the first eight games of Willard’s tenure. Then, the Terps beat up #3 Purdue, finished league play 11-9 – good for fifth place in the Big Ten – and won a game in the NCAA Tournament.
Notice has been well-served that this is now Willard’s team. Most of last year’s core returns, plus two ballyhooed freshmen and a bunch of solid, developing parts. And whereas some of their rivals swung for the fences in the Transfer Portal, Willard and his staff have recruited a measured sprinkling of transfers who should fit into useful roles. These Terps are going to be similar to last year’s team, or so the Maryland fans – and coach Willard – hope.
It was not with tremendous national fanfare that Jahmir Young signed with the Terps last spring. He was merely a really good guard from the C-USA ranks who was returning home and could, hopefully, help lead Maryland’s backcourt. Then, the Upper Marlboro native went and had an All-Big Ten season. Now, Young is back to use his extra year and run the show for Maryland once again – and is proud to lead his home state school towards greater heights.
“Maryland is home and it has been a dream and honor to represent my state,” Young said in a statement announcing his return. “I believe in Coach Willard’s vision for the program and in my teammates…I can’t wait to get back to work as we build on the foundation set last season.” Young is a scoring point guard, a guy who loves to use his dribble to attack the defense and open up good opportunities both inside the lane and on the perimeter. A terrific athlete with a strong and confident handle, Young uses the bounce. screening action and his quick-twitch agility to get where he wants, and there aren’t a great many defenders who can stay in front of Young when he really decides he would like to score in the paint. As Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said following his team’s first game against him this year, “To be honest, Young is a load.” Said Nebraska’s former NBA standout and coach Fred Hoiberg, “Jahmir Young is one of the toughest covers in this league, an all-league player.”
While Young can get a bit of tunnel vision at times, he is still a capable and talented passer who both creates space and easy buckets for his buddies. Each of the past three seasons, Young has shown a more developed mid-range game, and in his first year in College Park, Young attempted at least 135 shots at the rim, from mid-range and beyond the arc, per Bart Torvik. Unfortunately, although Young was a 35% career shooter from three while at Charlotte, he sank to a career-low 31% last year. After a concerted effort in the gym this offseason, Young is hoping to be even more dangerous from the outside in his second year in the Big Ten. This season, Young is looking to show that he’s polished off the edges of his game and is ready to truly show all he’s got for the home fans.
The Maryland institution that is Donta Scott returns for one more season before he goes to join Perry Ellis in the College Hoopsters’ retirement community…or, you know, signs with a professional team.Scott has already played 129 games in College Park, starting 114 of them and scoring more than 1,300 career points. A skilled combo forward, Scott has averaged double figures in each of the past three seasons, and the Terps feel good knowing that they can rely on the veteran big man as a steady scorer. “I love Donta. I’ve never had a player – and I’ve told him this – I’ve never had a player that has played as hard as he has,” Willard told reporters after Maryland’s Senior Night last year. “Every possession, every game, every practice. I mean, he’s like that in practice.”
Scott is nimble with good touch around the basket, and his jumper is effective out beyond the three point arc. The owner of 158 career made treys, Scott has been something of an enigma from downtown the last two years. He made 44% of his triple tries as a sophomore, but since then, Scott is just 84 of 280 (30%) from the outside. His jumper inside the arc has remained consistent, with Scott sitting comfortably between the 40-42% rate ranges each of his past three seasons, per Bart Torvik; it’s just the deepest range which has gone wonky for Scott. While he can sometimes throw the ball into harm’s way, Scott is a talented passer, and hopes to operate even more effectively this season working some big-to-big feeds alongside developing star Julian ‘Juju’ Reese. When Scott was a freshman, the Terps shared the Big Ten title and were ranked #12 in all the land when the Covid-19 Pandemic shut down the NCAA Tournament. Last year was thus the first time Scott had played in the Big Dance, and he’s bound and determined to get back and stay awhile.
Coming off of a breakout year, Maryland fans can’t wait to see what’s next for Juju Reese. Rated a Top 50 recruit by some services three years ago, Reese has shown a whole lot of potential in his two seasons as a Terp. Highly mobile with great athleticism and agility for his size and length, Reese is a disruptive rim protector and active rebounder. He posted seven double-doubles last year, including in four consecutive games to close out the month of February. Such was his improvement over the course of the year that Reese averaged 13.8 points, 9.1 boards and 2.1 blocks on 65% shooting over Maryland’s final nine games.
While he isn’t yet the face-up threat that Scott has proven to be, Reese is great at cleaning up around the rim and gets plenty of good looks as the roll man after screening for Jahmir Young. Reese has looked to gain strength this summer, as he was sometimes moved around against his will by the brawnier post players in the conference. And Reese has worked hard to hone his jump shot; even if he never becomes a perimeter scoring threat, Reese is going to earn plenty of trips to the free throw line and knows that he must cash in more of them than the 53% he shot last season. With added muscle and two years’ experience combined with Reese’s athleticism, the young big is looking forward to an even more impactful third season. If Reese can keep to his current trajectory, Willard may have two all-league players on the floor by the end of the time March rolls around.
“DeShawn, he’s a tough son of a gun. Makes everybody around him better.”
– Kevin Willard
Willard is welcoming four total freshmen to College Park this fall, and two of them in particular have been eagerly awaited by Terps fans. DeShawn Harris-Smith, a big, lengthy, playmaking wing with exceptional passion for the game, figures to be an instant fan favorite. “I mean, he’s as good a player that I’ll ever coach. DeShawn is, he’s a tough son of a gun. Makes everybody around him better,” Willard told 247 Sports. While, like all freshmen, he’s got some edges which need sanding, it’s not just his skill and athleticism which give Harris-Smith the look of a star: he is one of the most intense competitors and willing workers of anyone in his class.
Rated by some as a Top 25 national recruit, Harris-Smith is a great defender who will take on any assignment. He has the strength and aggression to hang with larger players, and Harris-Smith’s explosively quick feet and active hands help him to blanket opponents on the perimeter. When he creates a turnover, Harris-Smith loves to get to the other end and finish at the rim. He’s not a polished product yet as a shooter, but he makes enough jumpers to keep defenses honest – and it’s not really as though Harris-Smith needs to be a shooter in order to make an impact. He doesn’t always look perfectly under control when driving in among the trees, but Harris-Smith’s mentality sets a tone for his teammates and gets him to the foul line regularly. Harris-Smith is also a terrific and willing passer, and he will create for teammates in the open court, from the perimeter, or on his way to the rim. A left-hand-dominant ballhandler, Harris-Smith needs to continue developing his right, but is confident in initiating offense and making the correct reads. Harris-Smith has already appeared on some projections for Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and he was invited to train with the Team USA U-19 National Team this summer. The hype is palpable, but valid: and DeShawn Harris-Smith will put on some kind of a show when he finally hits the floor in a Maryland jersey.
Joining Harris-Smith as a Top 100 national prospect, Jamie Kaiser is from just over the border in Virginia and figures to play an similarly vital role in his first season of collegiate hoops. A former football player, Kaiser brings more of the physical toughness which Willard loves to see, along with a terrific jumper and overall feel on offense. Maryland always seemed an obvious choice for Kaiser; he was a Terps fan growing up. “I had gone to games since I was a kid,” Kaiser remembered to Glenn Clark Radio after signing with the Terps. “When they were in the ACC it was jumping. I watched Dez Wells, Terrell Stoglin. I was just a big fan of Maryland basketball. It was only 40 minutes from my house.” Now, Kaiser will look to begin authoring his own legacy in College Park, and with the need for an injection of shot-making into the lineup, Kaiser is in the right place at the right time. With range out beyond 25 feet and a smooth, quick release, Kaiser is dangerous pretty much whenever he catches the ball. He does work inside as well, but lacks elite athleticism in the paint, relying on his strength and inexorable will to post up and score over or through smaller players. When allowed to spot up, Kaiser makes the defense pay, and he’s becoming better at rising up to shoot off the bounce, even when closely guarded. If his jumper is ready to translate to the Big Ten, the spotlight will be on Kaiser quite a bit in his rookie year.
Jahari Long, once skinny as the pine saplings of his southeastern Texas home, was a largely unheralded playmaker when he first committed to Willard in 2020. Back then, he was the coach at Seton Hall, and Long became a Pirate. Now nearly 6’5″ and strong after being forced to rehabilitate following a series of injuries to start his career, Long is a grizzled veteran who provides solid depth at the point. Long played sparingly back during his first season in New Jersey, and then suffered a knee injury in practice the summer prior to his sophomore campaign. Though he tried to play through the damage, Long eventually had to be shut down for surgery. After getting healthy and following Willard to College Park, Long played every game for the Terrapins last season and posted career-highs across the board. A confident ballhandler and talented distributor, Long has the size, skill and smarts to be an even bigger factor this winter. A good penetrator who can bring it to the rim or feed his teammates once he’s drawn the defense, Long handed out 38 helpers against just 18 turnovers in his first year as a Terrapin and made 40% of his triple tries. A strong defender whose versatility has grown in association with his physical stature, Long can fit as a complimentary piece in a few different groupings. This year, healthy and surrounded by the most talent of his career, Long hopes to truly show off his full repertoire.
| Five Stats Which Tell The Tale (with national ranks) |
| 63.5 – Opponent Points Per Game (23rd) |
| .462 – Assists Per Field Goal Made (301st) |
| 5.6 – Opponent 3FG Made Per Game (17th) |
| 32.8% – Team 3FG Percentage (237th) |
| 6.9% – Team Block Rate (73rd) |
Willard brought in former Loyola Marymount guard Chance Stephens, but Maryland fans probably won’t get a look at him until next year. Stephens started four games and averaged just under 18 minutes as a freshman last year, making 37.4% of his attempts from downtown. Unfortunately, he tore his Patella tendon in workouts this summer. Once he’s able to rejoin the Terps, Willard believes that Stephens will use his length and clean release to grow into a valuable reserve artillerist. Similarly, Mady Traoré may not play huge minutes immediately, but Willard hopes to nurture the former New Mexico State big guy’s considerable skills. With tremendous mobility and even better length, Traoré oozes potential defensively. “He is a very athletic player whose length will help us defensively, both on the wing and at the rim, while also having a versatile set of skills on the offensive side,” Willard says of his new forward. Though limited by injuries last season, Traoré was rated a 4-star prospect by some recruiting services and had turned down Kansas, Arizona and more than a dozen other prominent schools before committing to New Mexico State. If Willard and his staff can begin tapping into Traoré’s vast potential, the Terps will have a fascinating new toy up front.
One transfer that Maryland fans have already seen quite a bit is Jordan Geronimo, a former Indiana wing. Now that he’s come to College Park, Terps fans are excited to have Geronimo’s tremendous athleticism and boundless energy on their side. He doesn’t alway do things the most orthodox ways, but Geronimo can’t help but want to make plays, and he often does, at both ends of the floor. With a seven-foot wingspan and great quickness, Geronimo defends with lots of abandon, and he hits the offensive glass hard. Geronimo can take the ball away from opponents via a standard steal or with a nearly impossible block from behind as someone is expecting an easy layup. He’s not much of a jump shooter, though, and sometimes at IU, Geronimo didn’t seem comfortable handling the ball or making passes. Willard isn’t asking him to come in and make a lot of reads, though. He’s a Terp because the Maryland staff love Geronimo’s ability as a highly switchable defender, great wing rebounder, and rim-rattling finisher. The Terps have two effective shot-blockers already; with guys like Geronimo and Harris-Smith arriving on the wings, the Terps’ collective block rate will be going up. If Geronimo can become a reliable decision-maker and spot-up shooter, too? Well, that will be coffee after cake.
| Five Out-of-Conference Games to Keep an Eye on |
| @ Villanova – November 17 |
| @ UCLA – December 22 |
| N – Clemson / UAB – November 12 |
| N – Davidson – November 10 |
| vs Mount Saint Mary’s – November 7 |
Noah Batchelor and Caelum Swanton-Roger both played sparingly as freshmen last season, and are back hoping to translate that experience into larger roles. Swanton-Roger’s career as a Terp has already been a huge success, if for no other reason than ‘hey, remember that time when we beat Michigan and our thin, rookie big guy screened, rolled, and dunked all over Hunter Dickinson’s whole corporeal existence?’ The Canadian import is still getting stronger, but gained experience in 21 games a year ago and hopes that his size, improved footwork, and mobility will keep him more consistently in the lineup this winter. Batchelor saw the floor a bit more often in his own freshman year, and has a smooth outside shot on the wing. While he’s not explosively athletic, Batchelor has a good sense for moving without the ball and finding open spaces. He’s not particularly strong at attacking off the bounce, and Batchelor attempted just one shot near the rim in his first campaign – which he missed. Batchelor’s role will be as a 3-and-D guy off the bench, and the sooner he grows reliably into his skills, the sooner Willard will put Batchelor into positions where he can succeed.
Jahnathan Lamothe and Braden Pierce are two quite different players who will round out this year’s freshman class. Pierce checks on at seven feet tall; there is going to be lots of size and length on the next few Terrapin squads. He may redshirt this year to develop and add strength, given the team’s other established guys who will play inside. Pierce has skill, and a bit of shooting range, though. Another member, with Harris-Smith and Kaiser, of Willard’s growing new core of DMV-area youngsters, Lamothe has already played with and against his new teammates over the years, and considers them friends. With these signings, the Terps’ new coach is planting a flag that Maryland fans have long been waiting to see re-placed upon the local recruiting scene. Lamothe brings good size, and can play as a larger point guard for stretches if Willard would like to let Young hunt shots. “A lot of pressure is going to be on [forward Julian Reese], Jahmir, DeShawn, just to facilitate and make shots, so when it comes to me, I just got to be ready to play,” Lamothe told reporters this fall. As another consensus Top 150 local recruit, Maryland fans can’t wait to see all that Lamothe can do.
Recruiting the local talent, getting his guys to play hard as a defining attribute, getting to the NCAA Tournament and then winning there – it was a terrific debut season for Willard. It was so impressive that two of his assistants got their own head coaching jobs this offseason, and Willard has had to replace all three of the lieutenants he had last winter.
“It’s a good first step. I mean, we have a lot more steps that we need to take as a program, and we will get there,” Willard said of his first season at Maryland, following the Terps’ ouster from the NCAA Tournament. “If you had told me I would be playing in the Second Round inheriting five guys on the roster, I would have told you you’re nuts…I mean, I’m proud of the way people look at Maryland basketball right now.”
This Maryland team has three legitimate stars, and the young talent Willard has added shouldn’t take too long to get rolling. Willard is doing the things that both the Maryland administration and fans want to see, and all of those things should be improved this year. If Harris-Smith is as extraordinary as many people around the program are expecting, it could transform Maryland from being a very good team to one with aspirations of cutting down the most famous nets of all. The Terps are going to run people off the court this winter if they aren’t ready for a fight, and Willard’s guys are out to firmly establish that there are true contenders again in College Park.
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