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Maryland Basketball: Five-star Jalen Smith set to take official visit to Maryland

By Chris Bengel

Mar 15, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Mark Turgeon looks on during practice prior to the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 15, 2017; Orlando, FL, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Mark Turgeon looks on during practice prior to the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jalen Smith is one of the top players in the state of Maryland and the 2018 class in general.

According to InsideMDSports, Smith will take his first official visit to Maryland sometime in June. Smith was in College Park on an unofficial visit back on Feb. 4 when Maryland faced Purdue.

The Terrapins are chasing the top two players in the Old Line State in guard Immanuel Quickley (John Carroll School) and Smith (Mount Saint Joseph). All three of Smith’s Crystal Ball predictions are in favor of Maryland presently.

Smith is rated as the number-two player in Maryland, according to 247Sports’ Composite rankings. He’s also rated No. 20 overall and the ninth-best power forward in the 2018 class.

Despite Quickley garnering heavy interest from schools like Duke and Kentucky, Smith was tabbed as the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Maryland.

One of the biggest sell point that the Terps have in their favor is incoming freshman guard Darryl Morsell. Morsell also played his high school ball at Mount Saint Joseph, so he already has a rapport with Smith.

The relationship certainly appears to be a strong one, especially since Smith is using one of his five official visits on a local school. Smith is the most likely of the five-star prospects to end up in College Park.

Mark Turgeon and his staff are also recruiting Moses Brown (Archbishop Molloy, NY) and Silvio De Sousa (IMG Academy, Fla.).

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Smith would be a huge addition for the Terps considering how much the frontcourt struggled throughout the 2016-17 season. He would also be the first five-star prospect to come to College Park since Diamond Stone in 2015.