MHERST, Mass. - UMass head coach Derek Kellogg announced the signing of his first National Letter of Intent for the fall signing period as the Minutemen welcome athletic forward Maxie Esho.

The 6-8, 200-pound native of Upper Marlboro, Maryland is currently playing at Lee Academy in Maine. He played his AAU basketball with DC Assault, the same team UMass� current freshmen Javorn Farrell, Raphiael Putney and Terrell Vinson played for.

�We are thrilled to have Maxie joining the UMass basketball family. Maxie is a player we have known for a long time,� said Kellogg, who brought in what is widely-regarded as the top freshman class in the Atlantic 10 this season. �He is another very long and athletic player with great upside. He have watched him grow as a person and a player for the last couple of years and I know the UMass fans will be excited to get to know him on and off the court. We are looking forward to him having a great senior year at Lee Academy and then coming to UMass. He has the length and athleticism that is necessary for the type of players we want to coach here at UMass.�

In playing with DC Assault, run by Curtis Malone, Esho has been a part of one of the top AAU programs in the nation. He averaged 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds along with two blocks per game in AAU. He played alongside Duke signees Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton, Notre Dame signee Eric Atkins and Richmond newcomer Cedrick Lindsay. Coach Zach Suber has been an integral part of Esho�s life and worked with him as a mentor while he played with DC Assault.

Esho was named to numerous All-Tournament Teams during his AAU career as well as being named to MVP of the Bob Gibbons Tournament of Champions at Chapel Hill, N.C., in 2008. Over the last four years, Esho has been part of more than 120 wins on the AAU circuit.

In 2009, he helped his squad capture the adidas Take 5 championship and the Teak Breakdown Tournament title, while also making the final four at the adidas Super 64 in Las Vegas after winning the crown in 2008. In addition to winning the adidas Super 64 title in �08, DC Assault also captured crowns at the Pittsburgh Jam Fest, the Bob Gibbons Memorial Day Tournament in Raleigh, N.C., the Harley Davidson Tournament in Morgantown, W. Va., and the Playaz Spring Fling in Piscataway, N.J.

Esho played at Henry Wise High School in Upper Marlboro, Md. where he averaged 14 points and seven rebounds per game before moving to Lee Academy.

Esho was given a 90 grade by ESPNU recruiting with the following analysis: �Esho has a great basketball frame equipped with incredible length, broad shoulders and big hands. He has to get significantly stronger, which will help him inside, but Esho has a ton of upside and potential.�

Maxie Esho was born on Feb. 28, 1991 and is the son of Tina Marie Esho.

MHERST - The University of Massachusetts men's basketball team continues to be a landing spot for members of the DC Assault AAU program as forward Maxie Esho, who verbally committed to the Minutemen last fall, has officially signed his national letter of intent.

The 6-foot-8 forward will join former DC Assault players Javorn Farrell, Raphiael Putney and Terrell Vinson next year.

"We're excited to have him," UMass coach Derek Kellogg said. "We've been around him and watched him play for a couple of years now. He's a great kid and he's a long athletic kid that really hasn't scratched the surface (of his potential) yet.

"We'll have to be patient with him, but down the line it will really worth having him come here," he added. "He plays a lot of different positions and defensively he's a little ahead of the curve which is a nice bonus."

PUTNEY TO REDSHIRT? - Kellogg has not wavered in his belief that Putney has star potential, but his chance to fulfill that promise might be better served with a redshirt season.

Putney, an extremely skinny 6-foot-9, 180-pound rookie forward, sat out parts of Monday's practice with a hip injury. He did not play in Friday's 84-67 loss to Central Florida.

While Kellogg believes that a year to get bigger could benefit Putney tremendously, the decision will eventually be up to the player.

"I have not decided yet. I'll probably end up meeting with him over the next few weeks," Kellogg said. "He'll play a lot into it. It's his decision, not my decision. I'll meet with him and see what he wants to do."

Matt Vautour can be reached at [email protected]. Follow UMass coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/GazetteUMass. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at http://www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage.