2023-24 Terps Basketball Early Thoughts

Year one of Kevin Willard basketball at Maryland went pretty well by most standards. With an uninspiring roster and a new head coach, many would have understood if the Terps took a step back to reload last season. But that’s not what transpired at all. 

An 8-0 start to the season got people in College Park excited about the potential of Willard’s inaugural squad. December and most of January was a rough stretch for the Terps, but they rebounded nicely to win eight out of 10 games between January 25 and February 26 and earn themselves an 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament.  

Because of this early success in the Willard era and a current roster that features a nice mix of veteran leadership and young talent, the bar is set pretty high for the 2023-2024 season. Let’s take a deeper dive… 

Roster 

Returning: Jahmir Young, Jahari Long, Julian Reese, Noah Batchelor, Donta Scott, Caelum Swanton-Rodger 

Newcomers: Jahnathan Lamothe, Braden Pierce, DeSahwn Harris-Smith, Jamie Kaiser, Chance Stephens (injured), Mady Traore, Jordan Geronimo

As starters last year who are returning for another season of college hoops, Young, Reese, and Scott all figure to slot back into their starting roles. That takes care of most of the starting five, but the questions remain of who’s going to play the two and who’s going to play the three? 

We’ll look into those questions below, but it does seem like the Terps will need some of its newcomers to step into big roles right away.  

Projections & Expectations 

The easiest part to project about this year’s Maryland team is that the leaders of the squad will be fifth-year seniors Young and Scott. They are the elderstatesmen on the roster and have the most collegiate playing time under their belt. It’s fair to say that this year’s team will go as far as these two leaders take it because without them both having All-Big Ten-type seasons it’s hard to see Maryland doing anything special. Reese is also a returning starter who has played a lot of college ball since arriving in College Park, but his demeanor and body language on the court lacked a lot to be desired at times last year and the expectation for him moving forward is that he will bring a newfound maturity into his junior season. 

Young was objectively Maryland’s best player last season and the guy the Terps wanted with the ball in his hand in clutch situations. We pretty much know what we’re going to get from him, but if Reese can take the next step in his game then these two could become the preeminent guard-big combination in the Big Ten. If Young and Reese evolve into a deadly pick-and-roll combo and Scott can play the role of enforcer and third-scoring option, it will take a lot of pressure off the rest of the roster and give the Terps a nice core to build around. 

Maryland found itself in and out of the Associated Press Top 25 Poll last season, but this year they might find more consistent real estate there. Several major media outlets put the Terps in their “Way-too-early Top 25 Polls” this spring, including Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, and The Washington Post. 

“The Terrapins have a pair of top-60 recruits on the way, but Kevin Willard’s biggest get was convincing guard Jahmir Young to stick around and use his fifth year of eligibility,” The Post’s Patrick Stevens wrote back in April. “Young’s presence helped Maryland earn a No. 8 seed in Willard’s first season, and the return of Julian Reese in the post solves plenty of problems as well. Willard established an interesting identity that clashed with the mostly stodgy, plodding Big Ten, and that bodes well as the Terps’ talent level increases.” 

Another March Madness appearance is clearly the modest bar and it’d be even more fulfilling if the Terps can improve upon their seeding and make a run. There’s also a lot of turnover in the Big Ten this season, so contending for a conference title should be on Maryland’s radar. 

Biggest Questions 

What will Willard’s first full recruiting class bring to the table? 

Deshawn Harris-Smith, Jamie Kaiser, Jahn Lamothe and Braden Pierce all enrolled this summer and should be well-acclimated to college life once the season rolls around. Harris-Smith and Kaiser have the biggest upside and could contend for starting roles sooner rather than later. Kaiser is a well-put-together wing who can knock down threes at a high clip. Harris-Smith is deadly off the dribble and is a solid 6-foot-5 guard that could compliment Young in the backcourt nicely. 

What’s the starting five going to look like? 

Tough to say who Willard will trot out to start the first game, or even first few games, of the season. Given the fact that three slots in the starting lineup are presumably taken by Young, Scott and Reese and the best options for the remaining two spots might be freshmen, Willard could opt to start the season with a more experienced starting five as he lets the freshmen get their feet wet against easier non-conference opponents. But my guess is that we’ll see Harris-Smith and Kaiser earn those final two starting spots at some point early in the season. 

Which player makes the biggest leap in production? 

Not many options for this answer, especially since Young set the bar so high for himself last year and Scott might just be what he is at this point. But that pretty much leaves us with the Reese by default. As previously mentioned, Reese took steps back from his freshman to sophomore season in some regards — particularly from the free throw line. But he also showed flashes of his immense upside last year. With a full offseason to work on his pick-and-roll game with Young and another year to mature mentally and physically, he really could rise to All-Big Ten status, especially given the dearth of talented bigs in the conference this year.