Robert Carter Jr. knew others were questioning his decision.
When Carter announced he was transferring from Georgia Tech to Maryland in the summer of 2014, everyone from College Park, Maryland (home of the Terrapins) to Atlanta was dumbfounded, Carter said.
Carter was leaving the Yellow Jackets, a 16-17 team, to join a program coming off a 17-15 season. Five key contributors had bolted from Maryland and transferred to other schools. The team appeared in disarray. But when Carter walked into the gym during his official visit and saw the Terps’ incoming freshman working out, he was sold.
“It looked like me, like what I did back when I was at Georgia Tech, but I didn’t have a lot of people doing that with me,” Carter said Wednesday. “These guys were already doing it, so it kind of made sense. I was like we could definitely win here.”
Nearly two years later, Carter is a key cog for the No. 10 Terps, a national title contender. The junior ranks third on the team in scoring (12.6 points per game) and is shooting nearly 56 percent from the field. While Carter has struggled with foul troubles at times this season, he leads the team with 6.9 rebounds per game.
“Rob could be one of the best players in the country,” reserve guard Jaylen Brantley said after a 96-55 win Dec. 4. “He is going to help everybody get better.”
The former ACC All-Freshman selection has morphed into a team leader, and the 6-foot-9 forward welcomes the challenge of guarding smaller players and is shooting a career-high 31.7 percent on 3-pointers.
“Robert has a lot to his game,” coach Mark Turgeon said before the season began. “Obviously, low-post scoring. He can shoot the ball from the 3, and he’s become a better dribbler and passer.”
When Carter committed to the Terps, he believed the program was on the rise. But the instant success surprised him. The Terps broke a five-year NCAA tournament drought last spring while Carter sat out the campaign because of NCAA transfer rules. They entered this season No. 3 in the preseason Associated Press poll.
“I never expected us to win 26 games last year in the regular season,” Carter said. “I wasn’t expecting to be top-3 in the country coming into this year.”
While Carter is flourishing with the Terps, his former team has struggled. He doesn’t follow the Jackets closely, but wants his old teammates and coaches to succeed.
“I want them to do great, do great, whether I’m there or not,” Carter said.
He regularly uses Face Time to talk with guard Marcus Georges-Hunt, one of his best friends, and texted a trainer recently about the new album from rapper Kayne West. One person Carter hasn’t spoken to since he transferred is coach Brian Gregory.
“When I decided to leave of course he wanted me to stay, but I guess he understood,” Carter said. “It wasn’t nothing bad.”
Carter was part of Gregory’s first recruiting class. He was so committed to the Jackets that he didn’t even consider Maryland when he took an unofficial visit to the university as a high school junior.
“I was going to have an opportunity to start right away,” Carter said of his decision to play for Tech. “I would have an opportunity to play on supposedly a really good team with really good pieces. It really just didn’t come to form.”
So despite starting 49 games in two seasons at Tech, Carter decided to leave following his sophomore season. Weeks later he chose Maryland.
He hasn’t looked back.
“I’m in a great place,” Carter said as he lounged in a chair. “I love it here.”
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