Maryland Men’s Basketball Recruiting Notebook
Nov 12, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Mark Turgeon tosses a ball to the referee during their game against the Morehead State Eagles at the Comcast Center. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports
The 2012-2013 high school basketball season is officially upon us. With games starting all over the DMV and around the country featuring Maryland commitments,offers, and targets taking the floor, I wanted to compile a list of what Terps recruits you should look out for this year.
2013 Signees
Roddy Peters – As we all know by now, Roddy Peters has elected to have surgery on his shoulder and has shut things down for his senior season. Peters played one game for Suitland High and scored 16 points in a loss to Wise HS before making the decision to have surgery now so that he will be fully healed by the time he steps foot on the University of Maryland campus as a student for the first time. I outlined my thoughts on Peters injury as well as his decision to have surgery now in an article posted on the website last week. I am of the opinion that Peters made the right decision in taking care of this now and Peters as well as the Terrapins will be better off going forward because of it. Peters is considered a consensus five-star prospect as well as the top rated recruit from the talent rich state of Maryland.
Damonte Dodd – Dodd is currently spending a prep year at Massanutten Military Academy. He was a late bloomer whom the Terrapins staff discovered late in his senior year of HS. Dodd boasts a wingspan of 7’2” and has a solid frame at 6’9” and 240 lb’s. Dodd is rated as a four-star center according to the 247Sports Composite rankings and is considered to be the 127th best player in the class of 2013 as well as the 10th best center and the 9th best prospect in the state of Virginia. Dodd’s Massanutten Military Academy team has some major D1 talent on its roster as he plays alongside Frank Mason (Kansas commitment), DeAndre Burnett (Miami FL commitment) and Garland Owens (Boston College commitment). Dodd is looked at as a big, strong body that is active on the defensive end and will lock down any rebound in his area. The upside in Dodd is apparent as head coach Mark Turgeon has been quoted as saying Dodd’s “best days on the basketball court are ahead of him.”
2014 Offers/Targets
Dwayne Morgan – Morgan is without a doubt the crown jewel in the 2014 class for Mark Turgeon and the Terrapins. The Baltimore native is considered to be a five-star recruit according to the 247Sports Composite rankings and the #20 player in his class. Standing at 6’7” and 180 lb’s the SF prospect from Baltimore has a top group of Indiana, Maryland, Missouri and UNLV at this time but the Terrapins have been making a noticeable push for the services of Morgan. Morgan has been on three unofficial visits to the Maryland campus since August, more than any other school recruiting him, and was in attendance at Midnight Madness which is always a large recruiting event. Morgan is considered to be the top prospect in the state of Maryland for the class of 2014 and his recruiter of note is Bino Ranson.
Dion Wiley – The shooting guard from Potomac, MD is considered to be the consensus number two player in the state of Maryland in 2014 as well as a top 50 recruit nationally. Wiley is further along in the process than most 2014 recruits as he has already locked down a top three of Maryland, Georgetown and UVA. Known as a prototypical scoring guard, Wiley had an impressive performance in the National HS Hoops Festival last weekend scoring 24 points while grabbing 5 rebounds in a 15 point win over St. Johns College High School (D.C.). The one knock on Wiley’s game at this point is that he has a tendency to sometimes settle for the outside jumper instead of attempting to get off a mid-range look at the basket. If Wiley is to improve upon this aspect of his game becoming more of a well-rounded player during his senior season then he will find himself climbing the recruiting rankings even more. Wiley also was on hand at Midnight Madness on October 12th and is being recruited to Maryland by assistant coach Dalonte Hill.
Obi Enechionyia – The 6’10” big man from St. James School in Sharpsburg, MD has seen his stock rise as his prep career has moved forward. Maryland offered Enechionyia in July and currently sits at the top of his list along with the Indiana Hoosiers. According to the 247Sports Composite rankings Enechionyia is considered to be a four-star recruit and the 4th best prospect in the state of Maryland for 2014 and the 12th best PF recruit in the country for that class. Prior to Indiana offering at the end of September the Terrapins were at the top by themselves in the hunt to secure the services of Enechionyia but the Big Ten offer has intrigued Obi enough where he is legitimately interested in the Hoosiers. Depending on how his outside game develops Enechionyia could conceivably play either the three or the four in college making him an in-demand prospect to keep an eye on.
Romelo Trimble – The combo guard from Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, VA informed @TheRecruitScoop today that he will be making his college decision tomorrow and will choose between Maryland, Cincinnati and Rutgers. Trimble is considered to be a four-star recruit, the 2nd ranked prospect in the state of VA and the 4th ranked combo guard in the class of 2014. Dalonte Hill has handled the recruitment of Trimble up to this point and has put the Terrapins in a position where they are considered the favorite to land the 2014 guard. I will be trying to gather more information on Trimble’s announcement Thursday over the course of the next 24 hours but at this point in time I fully expect Trimble to pledge his commitment to the University of Maryland tomorrow.
Phil Booth – The combo guard out of Mount St. Joes HS in Baltimore, MD put on quite the show as he led his team to the Gonzaga DC Classic championship last weekend. In wins over Archbishop Carroll (DC), The Bullis School (MD) and Sidwell Friends (MD) Booth scored 46 points over the course of the three day tournament against some of the top talent in the country. A consensus four-star recruit by the major recruiting services Booth is considering scholarship offers from Maryland, Georgetown, Indiana, SMU, Syracuse and Villanova. Booth is looked at as the 5th ranked prospect in the state of MD and the 12th ranked shooting guard in the class of 2014. Booth has unofficially visited the Maryland campus three times since June, including a trip to Midnight Madness in October, and is being recruited by Bino Ranson.
Rashad Vaughn – The consensus five-star recruit by way of Minneapolis, Minnesota has the Terrapins on his list of schools he is still considering. The Terrapins have put themselves in a decent position to potentially land the 6’5” shooting guard. Vaughn would be a big get were he to pledge to the Terrapins as he is as gifted a scorer as you will find in the prep ranks. As a sophomore Vaughn averaged 28 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists per game. Vaughn has yet to visit the University of Maryland and has not scheduled any visits to College Park in the future at this time but as he is still considering 11 schools in total I would expect the visit schedule will figure itself out as Vaughn narrows his list. He is being recruited to Maryland by assistant coach Bino Ranson.
Justin Jackson – It wouldn’t be a recruiting notebook if there was no mention of a highly ranked prospect in Texas that Mark Turgeon was going after and that is exactly what you have in the recruitment of Justin Jackson. Jackson, a 6’7” small forward from Spring, Texas, is a consensus top 20 prospect in the class of 2014. He is regarded as the third best recruit in the state of Texas as well as the fifth best SF prospect in the country. At this time Jackson holds offers from 13 high major schools stretching from the ACC to the Pac-12. Normally, this is a recruit that the Terrapins would have very little chance at landing but with the way that Turgeon has been able to position himself with top flight talent in the state since he arrived at Maryland it is not out of the question to think the Terrapins will be a real factor in his recruitment. Mark Turgeon is the recruiter of note for Jackson.
Kaleb Joseph – The 6’2” point guard out of Massachusetts, by way of New Hampshire, holds a Maryland offer and is highly interested in the Terps at this time. A consensus four-star point guard Joseph holds offers from 12 mid to high major schools. Joseph is considered to be the 2nd ranked recruit in the state of Massachusetts, a top 60 player nationally, as well as one of the top 12 point guard prospects in the 2014 class. Depending on what happens with some of the other guard prospects left on the board will tell the story as to how hard the Terps continue to go after Jospeh. His recruiter of record is assistant Scott Spinelli.
Chinanu Onuaku – Most of you will probably notice the last name here. Chinanu is the brother of former Syracuse big man Arinze Onuaku which doesn’t hurt his cause as a prospect that has broken onto the scene late. Playing for DC Assault the Terrapins coaching staff, specifically his recruiter of record Dalonte Hill, will have seen plenty of Onuaku on the basketball court by the time things are all said and done and his recruitment has come to a close. At this point in time Onuaku doesn’t hold an offer from Maryland but they are keeping an eye on his progress as he plays for local power Riverdale Baptist this season. Standing at 6’10” and 220 lb’s Onuaku has plenty of ability to add weight to his frame to better prepare himself for the rigors of playing in the post at the college level. His offensive game is less refined than his ability on defense which is why he has not garnered much attention from D1 schools until recently but with offers from Xavier, Seton Hall, Virginia Tech and DePaul already having come in for Onuaku it would not shock me in the slightest to see that number grow exponentially were he to have a solid junior year at Riverdale. Currently Onuaku is unranked by the major recruiting services.
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There you have it, our first Maryland men’s basketball recruiting notebook. This will be a feature that I will continue throughout the winter as covering recruiting is a 24/7/365 type of business to follow as it is everchanging. I hope you enjoy this feature and were able to learn a little more about the prospects the Terrapins will be going after to fill their open slots in the class of 2014.