Maryland's Latest Commitment: Jared Nickens

On Sunday afternoon head coach Mark Turgeon and Maryland picked up their third recruit from the class of 2014 in 6’6” wing Jared Nickens who recently finished his junior year at Westtown High in Pennsylvania. This commitment gives the Terps another versatile player to go along with point guard Romelo Trimble and sharp shooter Dion Wiley. 

While Trimble and Wiley made their names early on in their high school careers, Nickens is just beginning to scratch the surface of his potential. Although he did not join his two future teammates at the recent NBPA Top 100 camp, Nickens was named to the Under Armour Invitational All-Star game that recently took place in Las Vegas. 

Jared Nickens

During the first live recruiting session in April, Nickens led his Sports U / Team Izod AAU team to the championship with a win over future teammate Trimble and his DC Assault AAU team in the Pitt Jam Fest. Nickens was arguably the most impressive and consistent player during the three day period and Turgeon was one of the few high major head coaches to appear for all three days in Pittsburgh. While Turgeon was there to support his future point guard in Trimble he also witnessed numerous Sports U games and obviously liked what he saw.

Over a three day span, Nickens was the most impressive player for the tournament champions. One of the many tall and lengthy wings in the tournament, Nickens possessed the best ability to score at all three levels in the 17U age group. He knocked down deep threes with consistency, showed a soft touch on his mid-range jump shots, and finished above the rim with ease when around the basket. With a game similar to that of Rashad Vaughn, Nickens churned out impressive game after game in Pittsburgh. Nickens will need to add some weight to his frame in the future, but for now he proved to be one of the top scorers on the Under Armour circuit.

Over the past year, Nickens expanded his game from just a shooter to a well-rounded offensive threat. While not an amazing athlete, Nickens is athletic enough to get to the rim off the dribble and finish amongst taller opponents. He also relies on a nice fade-away jump shot to create additional open space on his shots. 

As noted in April, Nickens needs to add strength to his frame especially with Maryland’s move into the Big 10. Right now his lengthy wing span offsets his lack of strength but that might not always work in the future. 

With this recent commitment, Mark Turgeon made it clear that he plans on having Maryland basketball back on the map sooner rather than later. Just over one week ago, Turgeon was being praised for his ability to land the top player from both the DC area AAU powerhouses in Team Takeover and DC Assault. Now with a commitment from the under rated Nickens, Maryland is set at the guard and small forward positions in the years to come and can focus on recruiting quality big men to College Park.

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