Can former Maryland wing Darryl Morsell crack an NBA rotation?

Can former Terp Darryl Morsell crack an NBA rotation? originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

The Washington Wizards have the 10th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Here is the latest in our series on draft prospects who could fall around where the Wizards will select…

2022 NBA Draft Wizards Prospect Profile: Darryl Morsell

Team: Marquette

Position: G/F

Age: 23

Height: 6-5

Weight: 205

Wingspan: N/A

2021/22 stats: 31 G, 13.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.2 spg, 0.4 bpg, 44.6 FG% (4.8/10.8), 34.7 3PT% (1.4/4.0), 77.1 FT% (2.4/3.1)

Player comparison: Josh Richardson

Projections: NBC Sports Washington N/A, Sports Illustrated N/A, Ringer N/A, Athletic N/A, ESPN N/A, NBADraft.net N/A, Bleacher Report N/A

5 things to know:

– Morsell, a Baltimore native, spent the first four years of his college career at Maryland before transferring to Marquette for his fifth and final year of eligibility at the college level. He started over 100 games for the Terps and was consistently one of their best defenders. Morsell took on a bigger role offensively when he transferred to Marquette and posted career numbers in usage, scoring and 3-point percentage with the Golden Eagles. The Wizards brought him in for a pre-draft workout in late May.

– Defense will pave Morsell’s path to the NBA and consistent minutes if he can find his way on a roster. He’s a tough, physical defender who can guard all three spots on the perimeter. Morsell won Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in his final season at Maryland. If he can continue to guard wings and ballhandlers at a high level and even hold his own against a few bigger wings playing the power forward spot in small lineups, he should have no problems getting on the floor.

– Morsell’s defense will help get him on the floor in the NBA, but his offense and 3-point stroke will determine how long he can stay there. At Maryland, Morsell only converted 26.7% of his 3-point attempts but increased his efficiency (34.7%) with more volume (4.0 attempts per game) at Marquette. Throw in him hitting 77% of his free throws and there’s some hope that his improvement as a shooter will continue. Morsell’s on-ball reps will be limited in the NBA, but if he can convert enough spot-up threes to complement his impact on defense it’ll be hard for coaches to take him out of games.

Story continues

– He’s not perfect by any means, but Morsell flashed some playmaking chops in college and especially when he took over a bigger role with Marquette. It’s not a skill NBA teams will lean on with him, as stated before, Morsell will likely be tasked with knocking down spot-up threes. If he can effectively drive past closeouts and make the right play when the defense rotates to him, it’ll only add to to his profile as a 3-and-D wing.

– Morsell played high school basketball at Mount Saint Joseph in Baltimore, MD. He was a consensus four-star recruit who helped lead his team to Baltimore Catholic League and Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference titles alongside former Maryland teammate Jalen Smith. Smith now plays for the Indiana Pacers.

Fit with Wizards:

Versatile wings are at a premium in the NBA today, so if the Wizards believe Morsell can develop into one then they should certainly target him in the draft or as an undrafted free agent. As of now, Morsell’s draft stock probably puts him toward the end of the second round, so using No. 10 on him is out of the question.

Maybe Washington could target him with the 56th overall pick. It’s unlikely they find a prospect who can contribute right away at that spot, and perhaps Morsell’s defense and improvement as a shooter is enough to persuade Washington to take a shot on him as an end-of-bench piece to start.

If not and Morsell goes undrafted, they could always push to sign him as an undrafted free agent and see how he fares in summer league before deciding whether to bring him to training camp.

2022 NBA Draft profiles:

Jabari Smith Jr., Auburn

Chet Holmgren, Gonzaga

Jaden Ivey, Purdue

Paolo Banchero, Duke

Keegan Murray, Iowa

Shaedon Sharpe, Kentucky

Johnny Davis, Wisconsin

Jalen Duren, Memphis

Dyson Daniels, G-League Ignite

Ousmane Dieng, International

Tari Eason, LSU