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Maryland basketball’s Justin Jackson projected as No. 22 pick in 2018 NBA Draft

This is the Maryland Minute, a short story followed by a roundup of Terps-related news.

By Thomas Kendziora
NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-First Round-Maryland vs Xavier Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Although no Maryland basketball players are projected to be selected in the 2017 NBA Draft, forward Justin Jackson appears to be a serious prospect next season.

DraftExpress has Jackson going No. 22 overall in its 2018 mock draft. It’s obviously way too soon to know who will be in that draft class, as it’s still not clear who’s entering this year, but it’s still worth noting that Jackson has that kind of talent.

Jackson averaged 10.5 points and 6.0 rebounds in his freshman season, highlighted by consecutive outbursts of 28 and 22 points in January. With a 6’8 frame and 7’3 wingspan, he has the size to appeal to NBA scouts, and his 43.8 percent mark from three should help too.

He can declare for the draft and still return to school as long as he doesn’t hire an agent, although it’s unclear if that’s in his plans. The consensus seems to be that a strong, consistent sophomore season will be the best thing for Jackson’s draft stock.

In other news

Melo Trimble, who is expected to declare for this year’s draft any day now, was named an AP All-American honorable mention for the third straight year.

Five-star prospect MJ Walker is still considering Maryland. The Terps don’t have any scholarships available at the moment, but one can open up between now and the end of May, when his NLI is due.

Duke forward Sean Obi is transferring. The last Blue Devils grad transfer, Rasheed Sulaimon, ended up in College Park, but there’s no obvious connection between Obi and the Terps.

Maryland baseball’s midweek road matchup with Saint Joseph’s was postponed, the team announced on Twitter, so the Terps’ next game will be Friday at Rutgers.

(For the baseball crowd, our photographer friend Sung Min Kim wrote a lengthy piece for Deadspin on why and how you should get into the Korea Baseball Organization.)

Maryland women’s lacrosse hosts No. 3 Florida tonight. Here’s our preview.

Today is Maryland’s pro day. Here are some players who can really help themselves out.

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