Melo Trimble Declares for 2016 NBA Draft: Latest Comments and Reaction

Melo Trimble's Maryland career may be over after two seasons. The Terrapins' leading scorer entered the 2016 NBA draft on Monday, according to Roman Stubbs of the Washington Post, though he won't hire an agent, making a return to Maryland possible.

The sophomore guard made the decision after Maryland's exit in the Sweet 16 of the 2016 NCAA tournament, losing 79-63 at the hands of Kansas.

To a certain extent, it's a bit surprising Trimble would make the jump to the NBA now. While Maryland as a whole had a good season, he took a step backward in terms of individual performance. His scoring and shooting both dipped from their 2014-15 levels:

Season	G	PTS	FG%	3P%	FT%	REB	AST	STL	TO
2014-15	35	16.2	.444	.412	.863	3.9	3.0	1.3	2.5
2015-16	35	14.8	.414	.320	.874	3.7	4.9	1.3	2.7

In his most recent mock draft, Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman didn't have Trimble going in the first round. In a previous mock, he had the Detroit Pistons taking him with the 44th overall pick:

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Trimble has struggled lately, and it's become tougher to ignore the lack of athleticism that shows up under the NBA lens. 

Still, his playmaking and pull-up shooting ability are worth looking into. Trimble will ultimately try to carve out a similar backup role to what D.J. Augustin has had over the last decade.

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While D.J. Augustin has played eight years in the league, he's not exactly the most promising of comparisons, especially for a player who has years of eligibility left.

Trimble's skill set would acquit him well at either guard position. At 6'3", he likely projects to be more of a point guard in the NBA, though, and as a result, his assist numbers aren't all that impressive, especially when combined with his turnovers.

Granted, much in the same way his poor three-point percentage isn't an entirely accurate gauge of his shooting ability, Trimble is a better passer than the stat sheet would have you believe. His decision-making will still need to improve for him to be a viable starting point guard in the NBA.

He's also a good ball-handler, which allows him to get into the paint with relative ease, via NCAA March Madness:

Trimble is also a bit like James Harden in that he can be a foul magnet as a result of his constant drives. Six times this year he attempted 10 or more free throws in a game. ESPN's Jeff Goodman noted a particularly impressive two-game stretch during the Big Dance:

On one hand, Trimble looks like a prime example of a player whose draft stock continued to creep downward as the college basketball season went on, to the extent he might be better off staying in college.

On the other hand, plenty of college stars have returned to school with an eye toward increasing their future earnings, and they ended up worse off than they were the year before. Trimble could suffer a major injury, or his performance in the second half of this year could carry over into the 2016-17 campaign.

At the very least, Trimble should be an NBA draft selection. The likelihood his name isn't called among the 60 first- and second-round selections is slim. In that respect, he can only help himself once invited to the NBA Draft Combine and team workouts.

Even if he never becomes an All-Star-caliber guard, he should have a lengthy and productive NBA career if he chooses to stay in the draft.