Hakim Hart, a senior shooting guard for Maryland men’s basketball, announced Thursday afternoon that he is declaring for the NBA draft while retaining his college eligibility and entering his name in the transfer portal.
The 6-foot-8, 206-pound Hart finished this past season ranked second among the Terps (22-13) in points (11.4 per game), assists (2.6) and steals (1.2). He was an All-Big Ten honorable mention, too, and helped the team advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before falling, 73-51, to overall No. 1 seed Alabama on Saturday night in Birmingham, Alabama.
“First and foremost, I want to thank God for blessing me with the opportunity to play basketball at the University of Maryland these past four years,” he wrote via Instagram. “To my family, who has supported me throughout this journey, thank you for the sacrifices you have made to help me pursue my dream. To my coaches, teammates, and the entire University of Maryland community, thank you for providing me with the resources, guidance, and support to reach this point in my career.
“With that being said, I’m excited to announce that I will be pursuing my lifelong dream and declaring for the 2023 NBA draft while maintaining my college eligibility and also entering my name in the transfer portal to assure I make the best decision for my family,” he concluded.
The transfer portal is a database of players interested in transferring from their current school. Former Maryland and Mount Saint Joseph standout Darryl Morsell made a similar move at the end of the 2020-21 season before ultimately transferring to Marquette for his final college season.
Because the 2019-20 season was canceled by the coronavirus pandemic, Hart, who was a freshman at the time, had an extra year of eligibility. The day before the team’s NCAA Tournament first-round game against No. 9 seed West Virginia on Thursday, Hart had expressed his delight at returning to the postseason after being a member of last year’s squad that stumbled to a 15-17 record.
“It definitely means a lot,” he said. “During our college career, this is what you try to do the most. You try to win championships. It definitely means a lot to be here again.”
Hart’s announcement follows reports on Tuesday that redshirt freshman shooting guard Ike Cornish also intends to enter the transfer portal.
The 6-6, 190-pound Cornish, a Baltimore native who spent two years at Dulaney High before transferring to Legacy Early College in South Carolina, appeared in 20 games this winter and averaged 1.5 points and 0.3 rebounds.
The departures of Hart and Cornish would leave the Terps with two open scholarship positions. They are still waiting to hear from graduate student point guard Jahmir Young and senior small forward Donta Scott, who could fill those remaining spots.
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