Who’s the best point guard in Maryland basketball history?

Last summer, we ran a series of polls to determine the best players in Maryland football history by position, which gave us a fan-voted all-time Terps team. This summer we’ll run it back, but with Maryland basketball. We’ll start at point guard and continue the series throughout the coming weeks.

For the purpose of this poll, the only players considered were those that played point guard at the college level. Maryland may not be the “Point Guard U” Mark Turgeon wants to make it, but the Terps have periodically been blessed with floor generals that have left their mark on program history.

Here are our nominees, ordered alphabetically. Vote and let us know your favorites in the comments.

Steve Blake

Having helped deliver the program’s only NCAA Championship in 2002 and both of its Final Four appearances, Blake easily makes the list. A four-year starter for the Terps from 1999-2003, he was renowned for his passing, ranking first in Maryland history and sixth in NCAA history with 972 career assists. He’d become a second-round pick of the Washington Wizards following his championship run, kicking off a 13-year NBA career that came to a close in 2016. Blake is now getting into coaching, spending last season as an intern on Portland’s staff.

Keith Gatlin

Gatlin deserves inclusion after holding down the floor general spot next to a some program legends. Helming teams that included Len Bias and Adrian Branch, Gatlin was not required to score in bunches and managed to keep both scorers relatively satisfied en route to two straight Sweet 16s in 1984-85 and another tournament appearance in 1986.

After taking a year away from the game after Bias’ death, Gatlin returned to helped guide Maryland back to the postseason in 1988. A 1,000-point scorer in his own right, his most lasting impression on the program record books came from his passing, ranking No. 3 in career assists with 649. He’d never make it to the NBA, in part due to the cloud of Bias’ death, but has come full circle, having coached incoming Terp Aaron Wiggins at Wesleyan Christian Academy.

John Lucas

Lucas was one of three members of Maryland’s 1973-74 team to be named a Second Team All-American, along with Len Elmore and Tom McMillen, and also earned a First Team All-ACC nod the same year. He’d go on to earn First Team All-American nods the next two seasons—the only Maryland player to ever earn such recognition twice—and led the Terps to the Elite Eight his junior year. He ranks top-10 in Maryland history in both points and assists, ranking No. 6 with 2,015 points and No. 5 with 514 assists. Lucas went on to become the first Maryland player drafted No. 1 overall in the NBA in 1976. He’d go on to play 14 years in the NBA, including a 1986 Finals appearance, before getting into coaching in 1992.

Melo Trimble

Time will tell how much of this is recency bias, but Trimble should be remembered for guiding the Terps’ transition into a new conference. The Upper Marlboro, Maryland, native made two All-Big Ten first teams in his three seasons in College Park. In 2016, Trimble also led Maryland to its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2003, and he left school ranked No. 13 in both career points (1,658) and assists (403). He went undrafted in 2017, and averaged 16.2 points and 5.3 assists per game in 48 contests with the Iowa Wolves this past season.

Greivis Vasquez

The Caracas, Venezuela, native came to America in 2004 and played next to Kevin Durant at Montrose Christian in Rockville before coming to College Park in 2006. By the time Vasquez was finished at Maryland, he was second all-time at Maryland with 2,171 points and 772 assists. He’s the only player in program history to lead his team in scoring, rebounds, assists, steals and minutes, for his exploits during the 2008-09 season.

The 2010 Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year, Bob Cousy Award winner and NBA first-round pick also lands in Maryland’s top-10 career steals and top-25 in rebounds with 191 plucks and 647 boards. Currently looking to make a professional roster, the 6’6 Vasquez is a six-year NBA veteran, last playing for the Brooklyn Nets in 2016.

Honorable mentions: Brad Davis, Greg Manning, Gene Shue