By ADAM ZAGORIA
Braden Pierce committed to Maryland on his official visit this weekend and is off the board.
The 7-foot, 3-star prospect from IMG Academy (FL) also considered Missouri, Vanderbilt, Pitt, NC State and Rutgers.
“I will be taking my talents to the University of Maryland,” he told ZAGSBLOG ahead of his public announcement.
“I chose Maryland because I feel that it will be the best place for me to go and develop my game. It’s a great family environment. The coaches are building a great culture around the program, and the style of play is exactly what I’m looking for.”
As for what role he’ll play, Pierce said, “They said that I will play the 5-man, but also be able to play freely, giving me the ability to play the perimeter, shoot 3s, and play out of the post.”
His ultimate goal is to reach the NBA.
“I think it will help me reach my ultimate goal of playing in the NBA by being able to practice against great players with attention to detail each day, and playing in one of the best conferences in the country will help for sure,” he said.
Pierce joins shooting guards Jahnathan Lamothe and Jamie Kaiser Jr. (Pierce’s IMG teammate) and small forward Deshawn Harris-Smith in Maryland’s 2023 recruiting class.
“[Maryland coach] Kevin [Willard] did a great job evaluating and recruiting Braden,” said IMG Academy post-grad coach Jimmy Carr, whose team is 17-1 and ranked 3rd nationally.
“He came in the fall to watch Jamie Kaiser, who had already committed and saw Braden and liked his improvement and upside. He’s a legit 7-footer without shoes who has only been playing full-time basketball for less than three years. He runs the floor, has good hands, can catch and score and defend the rim.
“Has been injured of late [with an ankle] but was really starting to get a buzz going about his growth as a player. Maryland has done a real good job and are getting a kid who will be a better college player than high school. Credit to Kevin for trusting his eyes and I trust Kevin to get him better.”
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