When we first heard Maryland and Rutgers were coming to the Big Ten, many of us were like “meh, whatever.” Yes, Maryland basketball has a rich history, but they have been pretty down lately. Entering this season they had missed the past four NCAA Tournaments. A true ACC power in the late ’90s and early ’00s, the Terps had really fallen fast since the 2002 national title
Still, the program has always had players with really awesome names. The name tradition continues with Dez Wells (full name Dezmine Wells) and we can reignite the “Fear the Turtle” tradition, as Wells, freshman point guard Melo Trimble and junior forward Jake Layman are the three most fearsome of the Terps.
Maryland reached it’s highest national ranking in 12 years (the year after the title) and finished with 26 wins, the most ever for a regular season in school history. Wells is currently riding a streak of 12 games in double figure scoring and counting. Here’s where we have the senior swingman, or wing in our latest NBA mock draft:
52. Dez Wells, SG, Maryland, 6-5, Sr.
He’s also ranked #51 in NBA Draft.Net’s mock draft.
The big, athletic wing projects as a two at the next level so we tried to do something different with our exclusive interview with Dez Wells. We talked about the top 5 NBA shooting guards, including Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls.
Have a listen below:
In our latest bracketology, we have Maryland as a #3 seed in the East. If they can win the Big Ten Tournament title, maybe they can move their way up to the #2 seed line. Coach Mark Turgeon preaches defense. It’s the staple of his program and always the highest priority.
“Really the only thing you have in this game is your competitive edge and your work ethic,” said Wells
“So we’re ready for whatever challenges that lie ahead of us.”
“We all bought into what Coach Turgeon wants from us this year, and it’s a special thing that we have. So whatever we have to do, we don’t care.”
Dez Wells is finishing his career strong, as his team; with that the price of his NBA Draft stock is increasing. He’s shown a willingness to defend and work hard. That will only drive his stock up more.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with Fox Sports Digital. You can read Banks’ feature stories and op-eds in the Chicago Tribune RedEye newspaper and hear his regular guest spots on numerous sports talk radio stations all across the country.
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