The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1087622
74 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY JACEY ZEMBAL D ereon Seabron bet on himself a year ago, and the move paid off with a ver- bal commitment to NC State Jan. 14. Seabron had 13 scholarship offers after being named the Class 4 State Player of the Year in Virginia following a senior season in which he averaged 22.5 points and 11.0 rebounds per game at Lake Taylor High in Norfolk, Va. Seabron wanted higher profile offers, so he elected for a post-grad year at Massanut- ten Military Academy in Woodstock, Va. NC State first-year assistant coach Roy Roberson first noticed him during an open gym workout at the school early in last fall. From there, the relationship and recruit- ment blossomed, and soon Seabron real- ized NC State was getting serious. "I think it was the day after Thanks- giving," Seabron remembered. "Coach [Kevin] Keatts had asked me to give him a call. We had a real good conversation." That led to Seabron eventually taking an official visit to Raleigh Jan. 11-13, and on that trip he gained a premonition. "I had a feeling I was going to commit after the visit," he said. And that is what Seabron did. The 6-5, 200-pounder picked NC State over Geor- gia, Pitt, Providence and VCU. Somewhat ironically, he watched NC State beat Pitt on his visit. He had taken official visits to VCU, Minnesota and East Carolina in the fall. "On the NC State visit, I just felt the love," he noted. "I just loved the atmo- sphere. I loved NC State's playing style. I love how Coach Keatts builds his guards. They develop a lot when they get there. "And it's not that far from home. I just felt like it was the right fit for me." Matt Hatfield of VirginiaPreps.com — which is part of the Rivals.com network — remembers watching Seabron play before the start of his freshman year at Portsmouth (Va.) I.C. Norcom High and then seeing him blossom his sophomore year at Lake Taylor. "He really started to attack and not defer to his teammates and play too unselfishly — which he still does at times. He's not a selfish kind of kid," Hatfield said. "Once he started to attack you could see he had the ability to get to the rack and finish through contact. He has playmaker abilities." Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Corey Evans has been tracking Seabron this winter and has come away impressed. The Rivals.com three-star prospect is ranked No. 134 overall in the country in the class of 2019. "I've probably seen him four or five times," Evans said. "The one thing with him will be how well will he shoots the ball. You love his toughness, his playmak- ing skills and his size. "You love his potential to be a multi- positional defender. He has a chance to be really good. He has definitely progressed, and gotten better and better." Both Evans and Hatfield said becoming better from three-point range is a priority for when he gets to college. "He is definitely becoming a better shooter or at least is more confident in making shots," Evans said. "If he can be- come a threat from 15 to 18 feet, he could be a really good college ballplayer." Seabron had offers from Robert Morris, Central Connecticut State, Norfolk State, Towson, Radford, Mount St. Mary's, Cop- pin State and Hampton coming out of Lake Taylor. Hatfield thinks North Texas was a strong possibility at one point last spring. He finished with 17 total offers. NC State Lands Talented In-State Sophomore Terquavion Smith Terquavion Smith didn't see any reason to wait on picking his college. The Wolfpack offered the 6-3, 175-pound Smith at halftime of the Virginia-NC State football game Sept. 29 in Raleigh, and he has followed up with multiple unofficial visits since then. Smith had thought about committing to the Wolfpack for a while, and the Farmville (N.C.) Central High standout made it of- ficial Feb. 18 when he informed Keatts and assistant coach James Johnson. "I already knew," said Smith, 16. "They fit my style of play, and it is where I wanted to be. That is where I feel I can be my best. "I think I fit in very well. And they have a good environment [at PNC Arena] with a lot of fans." Smith grew up an NC State fan thanks to his grandfather, who was thrilled with the news. ■ BASKETBALL RECRUITING NC State Lands Coveted Post-Graduate Prep Prospect Dereon Seabron Seabron, the 2017-18 Class 4 State Player of the Year in Virginia, is rated as a three-star recruit and the No. 134 overall player in the class of 2019 by Rivals.com. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM "I just loved the atmosphere, and I loved NC State's playing style. I love how Coach [Kevin] Keatts builds his guards. They develop a lot when they get there." ■ Seabron on picking the Pack