31. UCLA Bruins
32. Oregon Ducks
34. Florida Gators
35. Ole Miss
36. USC Trojans
39. Mississippi State Bulldogs
41. Memphis Tigers
42. McNeese Cowboys
45. VCU Rams
46. Dayton Flyers
47. St Mary’s Gaels
49. UCF Knights
52. Clemson Tigers
53. New Mexico Lobos
58. SMU Mustangs
60. Nevada Wolfpack
61. TCU Horned Frogs
63. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
65. Syracuse Orange
68. Iowa Hawkeyes
70. Butler Bulldogs
71. Princeton Tigers
74. Oklahoma Sooners
75. West Virginia Mountaineers
76. Georgia Bulldogs
77. UAB Blazers
80. Missouri Tigers
In this world of basketball, we all have one team, regardless of the level, that we love more than the rest(even more than the other teams you support), the team that you would sacrifice a limb for to see them climb the mountain top…the Maryland Terrapins are that team for me. I am an adult with too many Maryland jerseys in my closet, and too many Maryland basketball games logged in my cranium to count(but are there ever too many?). As I look over at the Anthony Cowan Jr. jersey hanging next to a classic red Len Bias jersey in my closet, I revel at the prosperous possibilities for the Terps in 2024-2025…with the best roster on paper since 2020(the year COVID robbed that great squad), Maryland is for real this year, and Kevin Willard will not be looking to play around in year three after a disappointing 2023-2024 campaign…here is where our team has the Terps ranked heading into the 2024-2025 season.
| Steven | Maxwell | Kam | Cody |
| 41 | 20 | 28 | 28 |
We have to start with Derik Queen…the second-highest recruit ever for Maryland basketball according to 247Sports, Baltimore’s very own, and the McDonald’s All-American game co-MVP. The Derik Queen hype has reached heights seldom seen in College Park for an incoming true freshman, and Maryland fans should be excited! Derik Queen is an NBA talent and one of the most gifted bigs in the country as a true freshman! Queen’s rare blend of size, playmaking, and versatility on offense make him a problem for opposing teams. When he is active on the defensive end, he can create turnovers by walling off defenders to contest shots, sliding over on the help side to block shots, or swiping the ball with his deceptively quick hands and instincts. Queen should have minimal difficulties with the physicality and size of the college game, but the question on everyone’s mind is, How does DQ fit alongside JuJu?
Julian ‘JuJu’ Reese is entering his fourth season at Maryland with 65 career starts in a Terps uniform. JuJu Reese is beloved by Terps fans(including myself; he is one of my all-time favorite Terps)but has been through a lot while at Maryland…Shoot, he was recruited by Turg and Bino and coached by Danny Manning! Now, as a senior, coming off an All-Big Ten honorable mention campaign, Juju, along with DQ, will be looked towards as the catalysts for this Terps team…
When envisioning the Juju-DQ pairing, I draw parallels to the former frontcourt pairing in the NBA of Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert for the Minnesota Timberwolves. In KAT/DQ, you have a versatile offensive option with playmaking ability, spacing ability[though DQ is not nearly as proven as a 3-point spacer], and plus shooting ability(not to mention some interesting shot creation). In Rudy/JuJu, you have a physically imposing big with rim protection and shot-blocking chops that can rim run on the other end and finish lobs and post touches, not to mention both bring plus screening ability for their creators! Derik Queen and JuJu Reese have a ways to go on the hardwood together before being a pairing similar to the potency of KAT and Rudy. Still, the roles are very similar and the concerns of the two playing alongside each other are overblown, especially with the added shooting that this 2024-2025 roster now brings.
The 2023-2024 Terps were the worst shooting team I have ever seen in College Park. That is not an exaggeration…The Terps had a clear mission this offseason…ADD SHOOTING, which is precisely what the Terps did when they signed Ja’Kobi Gillespie from Belmont. In the one place the Terps did find shooting success last season (thank you, Jahmir Young), Ja’Kobi Gillespie should be right at home in College Park…in two seasons at Belmont, Gillespie shot 51.1% from the field and just a shade under 35% from behind the arc. Gillespie will be the Terps starting point guard, and after becoming a star in the Missouri Valley Conference, Gillespie will look to brighten his star in the Big Ten…
Selton Miguel, the expected running mate, will also be there alongside Ja’Kobi Gillespie. Miguel comes to College Park from USF as a fifth-year and is the most gifted shot-creator on the roster… Miguel’s scoring and shot creation at the off-ball spot has been a missing element in Maryland basketball in recent years. Miguel is built like a pro guard at 6’4, 217 lbs, bringing turnover creation on the defensive end, logging 48 total steals and blocks for USF last season. One note on Miguel is he has back-to-back seasons with over 100 3-point attempts, and Miguel averaged 36% shooting from behind the arc during those seasons…with how desperate Maryland has been in recent years for production from behind the arc, Selton Miguel will be a welcomed addition to the starting backcourt!
With Ja’Kobi and Selton in the backcourt and the JuJu-DQ frontcourt, Enter DeShawn Harris-Smith, the glue guy for the 2024-2025 Terps(and arguably last season’s Terps, too). The All-Freshman campaign was filled with ups and downs for DHS, but the talent was always evident. DHS may have been the biggest victim of the Terps’ struggles last season(outside of Donta and Jahmir), but the requests put upon DHS would seem to change from game to game…For a Terps roster in 2024-2025, I expect a sophomore leap for DHS…a leap to solidify himself as an offensive threat and to be one of the best defensive guards in the Big Ten, both realistic goals for the promising second-year guard.
The optimism for the Terps doesn’t just come from the first five; Maryland is deep on the wing and in the backcourt. Rodney Rice, a Virginia Tech transfer, has minimal college basketball experience due to injuries and personal reasons. However, he seems poised and ready to break onto the scene as he has flashed in major ways in eight career games(scoring double digits in three of those games). Rice was one of the best guards in the 2022 class, and fans should be thrilled to watch Rice return home to Maryland after attending DeMatha and hailing from MD. Rice and Jahari Long should be the first two guards off the bench for Kevin Willard. I really enjoyed the improvement I observed last season with Long, specifically with his confidence. When Jahari Long is confident and attacking on both ends, he makes it difficult to take him off the floor, and that became more prevalent as the season wore on last year. Jahari Long is a longtime Willard-grinder and will be key for the Terps this season off the bench.
Chance Stephens will also be looking to solidify himself in the Terps backcourt rotation this season. Stephens missed last season due to injury and has yet to play for the Terps(transferred from Loyola Marymount), but shooting will be Stephens’ calling card to earn playing time early, and I expect Stephens to earn back-end guard minutes early for coach Willard. In the same vein, Jay Young should also catch some minutes at the end of the guard rotation after playing sparingly last season at Memphis. Young is a plus athlete and provides a fun change-of-pace off the bench.
On the wing, college basketball stalwart Jordan Geronimo returns to provide immediate depth off the bench. Geronimo played everywhere for the Terps and filled the most roles on the court last season for Kevin Willard. Entering his fifth season in 2024-2025, Geronimo will look to over 100 games of Big Ten experience to continue to be the [other] glue guy on this Terps roster. Behind Geronimo likely slides the other true freshman on the roster, Malachi Palmer, a really intriguing wing player who was the number two recruit from Maryland after playing at Mt. Zion. Palmer is another shooter added to this roster by Willard and has the size that will allow him to see the floor early if needed…the biggest question I have with Palmer is his play strength as a freshman, especially on the defensive end.
The biggest question for the Terps this season is what their depth will look like in the frontcourt, specifically with returners Braden Pierce and Tafara Gapare, both of whom will be counted upon this season. After Pierce and Gapare, the Terps are essentially left without answers in the frontcourt regarding depth (Geronimo would likely play small-ball big…again). Gapare, a junior, jumbo forward transfer from Georgia Tech, had the best stretch of his college basketball career to close out last season with the Yellow Jackets. Gapare brings an athletic presence on offense and on the boards and has a game that is slowly stretching to the perimeter. Gapare will be the first big off the bench and has a chance to take a serious third-year leap off the bench; Gapare should fit nicely with both DQ and JuJu playing the five if Gapare comes in at the four and Gapare can also play limited minutes at the five if the Terps go small. Braden Pierce is the theoretical solution for the bench size. At 7′ 0 245 lbs, Pierce has yet to play for the Terps after redshirting last season, but the lack of additions up front this offseason suggests to me that Pierce will be thrown into the fire off the bench with the belief of the coaching staff behind him!
The 2024-2025 Maryland Terrapins should be back in the dance. The Terps haven’t recorded consecutive tournament droughts in over ten years, and Kevin Willard has his best team yet in College Park…his team. The Terps have their scoring backcourt in Ja’Kobi and Selton, the depth in the back with Rodney Rice, Jahari, Jay Young, and Sniper Stephens, the wings in DHS, Geronimo, and the freshman Palmer, the support in front with Gapare and Braden Pierce and the star-duo-frontcourt of JuJu Reese and Derik Queen.
Can this team embrace and take on Kevin Willard’s defensive identity? Will this team be improved offensively…cough shooting…cough? Will this team be able to win on the road in the Big Ten? Can this team take the step to compete in(and make) the dance?
My answers to all the questions above are positive responses. To what degree those positive responses materialize into reality remains to be seen. Still, one thing is for sure: with the 2024-2025 Maryland Terrapins, Reveling in prosperous outcomes may not be far away…
Cheers Terps fans!
The Center Hub 
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