After filling the void left vacant by Jahmir Young, head coach Kevin Willard moved quickly to find his replacement before ultimately signing former Belmont guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie, but the backcourt still needed tweaking. With the list of available players growing by the day, Maryland turned to a handful of veteran guards to bring to campus with former USF guard Selton Miguel among them.
After two seasons at Kansas State, Miguel transferred to USF where he stepped back into a rotational role in his first season with the Bulls, sitting third on the team in scoring (10.3 ppg) while shooting 33% from three and 42% from the field. Then came his senior year when Miguel went on to win both sixth man of the year and most improved honors in the AAC, becoming the first Bull in 23 years to win the sixth man award, after averaging 14.9 points per game with three games of 20 points or more.
Miguel capitalized on his improved stock to enter both the 2024 NBA Draft and transfer portal in early April, but it didn’t take long for a flurry of schools to jump into the picture. Chris Beard and the Rebels were the first school to host Miguel for a visit but Maryland was a priority school for the veteran guard to get to. Miguel arrived in College Park on Sunday, April 14 and stayed through Monday where he got a chance to see how he fits into head coach Kevin Willard’s plan.
“A two-guard coming in to score the ball. Me coming in and being the guy there, just coming in and be ready to score the ball, make plays for each other and be ready to be that guy to make plays,” Miguel told IBG about why Maryland won out. “They showed me the campus, basically showed me everything. The facilities to the campus, we went out to eat, so I got to see everything really.”
There was another angle that made Maryland a priority school in Miguel’s portal process: Bruno Fernando, Miguel’s godbrother.
“I have one of my guys there who went to school there, Bruno [Fernando]. It’s just a plus that coach Kevin was there. And how coach lets his guards play, that’s an advantage and a plus going there. I had other visits to go to but I wanted to make Maryland a priority.”
After visiting Maryland, Miguel canceled his remaining visits after it was clear the Terps were the frontrunner. “I felt like it’s home.”
Head coach Kevin Willard was active in the pursuit of the reigning AAC sixth man of the year, but the longstanding relationship between him and new assistant Kevin Norris bolstered the Terps’ chances. “I knew coach [Kevin] Norris from UCF. He’s known me since I came to the states when I was like 18 years old.”
Miguel joins Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Rodney Rice as the newest transfer portal additions for Kevin Willard this offseason, and he still has room to work with two scholarships still available.
Related Links
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VIP: basketball portal frenzy, football portal efforts, NIL confidence (+)
