Derik Queen formed a strict after-school routine in kindergarten.
Upon arriving at his Baltimore home, Queen would greet his mom, drop off his backpack and hop on his blue Mongoose bike. He’d ride about six blocks to his favorite basketball court. From there, Queen was at peace.
He’d dribble like a madman and chuck shots at the rim — sometimes with friends, sometimes on his own — until the streetlights lit. His mom, Lisa Anderson, never questioned his whereabouts. If she needed him, she knew where to find him.
“He always had a basketball,” Anderson said. “I was never worried about him getting into trouble.”
Anderson worked the early morning shift when Queen was young. He’d make his favorite meal when he got hungry — tuna fish and Kool-Aid. Anderson said her son has always been independent, determined and eager to learn.
Those traits spurred Queen to leave Baltimore at 16 and transfer to prep school powerhouse Montverde Academy. He sacrificed family for basketball in the process.
Now back home with Maryland men’s basketball, Queen has both. He can be around the people who mean most to him while playing the sport he’s poured his life into.
A leap of faith
Anderson was initially against the move to Montverde. She didn’t question the program’s rich tradition or Queen’s on-court fit, but wasn’t ready to be more than 900 miles away from her only child.
“It was just like, he’s so young. Going to Florida by himself? What if something happened? How would I get there?” Anderson said. “I just thought about all the what-ifs.”
The staff bombarded Queen and Anderson with phone calls and Zoom meetings. Queen pleaded with Anderson to let him go. Mookie Dobbins, Queen’s former AAU coach and current trainer, felt he would benefit from playing other top prospects daily. Anderson eventually relented.
Queen struggled his first year at Montverde. He wasn’t used to having a roommate or sharing a bathroom, and on the court, he was buried behind senior big men Malik Reneau and Dillon Mitchell. Queen played just two minutes in Montverde’s 2022 national championship win over Link Academy.
There were days Queen wanted to go back home.
“It was hard,” Queen said. “I thought I didn’t want to do it no more.”
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Anderson told her son he had to wait his turn. She reminded Queen of a saying he coined for when times got tough.
“It’ll get greater later,” Anderson told him.
Queen became a full-time starter his junior year and took another leap as a senior. Montverde cruised to a 33-0 record last year and beat Paul VI in the Chipotle Nationals Boys Championship.
Montverde assistant coach Joe Katuka said Queen grew more than any of his teammates at Montverde — including fellow five-stars Cooper Flagg, Liam McNeeley and Asa Newell — because of the adversity he faced early on. Anderson said it brought a beast out of him.
“The family knew the bigger picture for him was to be here and to grow,” Katuka said. “When he bought in, everything was just different for him.”
“It’s special”
Queen’s never been the most athletic or physically gifted basketball player on the floor. That hasn’t stopped him from displaying a level of self-belief few others possess.
“He always had a confidence [about him],” Dobbins said. “He always talked trash. He always thought he was the best player in the gym, even before he was the best player.”
Once he became the best player among his peers — around seventh or eighth grade — Dobbins laid out his vision.
“I told him, ‘If we work at this for the next 12 months, ninth grade you’ll probably be the best prospect in the country,’” he said. “And when those first rankings came out from [ESPN] for the freshmen, he was the No. 1 player in the country.”
Queen won the MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year award at St. Frances. He displayed abnormal skills for a player his age, regularly picking defenses apart with his passing prowess and polished scoring.
Queen became widely recognized as a top prospect in the country who would have a chance to play at the highest level.
Dobbins credited Queen’s ascension to his body catching up to his mind. He said Queen always knew what he wanted to do on the court, he just hadn’t settled into his growing limbs yet. Once that happened, Queen dominated.
“I wasn’t just bigger,” Queen said. “I was just better.”
Queen’s passing was a staple of his game, even back then.
The center routinely whipped left-handed passes into players’ shooting pockets, hit cutters in stride and threw lobs to other big men. Katuka estimated Montverde ran 20 to 30 percent of its offense through Queen.
Montverde and Queen’s AAU team watched Denver Nuggets film and ran sets inspired by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić. Montverde had plays called “Denver Out” and “Denver Double.”
Queen said he enjoys playing with the ball in his hands because a lot of big men have never guarded someone like him before.
“His knowledge of the game is just different,” Katuka said. “It’s special.”
Coming home
Anderson was with Dobbins in February when Queen sent a text.
“I’m going to Maryland,” his message read.
“You know we rocking with you every time,” Dobbins responded. “I’m rocking too,” Anderson said, adding a turtle and heart emoji.
Queen announced his choice Feb. 21. The decision ended years of speculation and a whirlwind of rumors.
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Anderson had an inkling Queen wanted to come home, but she never pressured him. She told him not to pick Maryland solely for familial support — she wanted to make sure it was the right fit.
“He was really committed to what kind of legacy he could have at Maryland,” Dobbins said. “He really wants to compete for a national championship, and he wants to do that at home. He was adamant about that.”
Queen also chose Maryland because he trusted Willard’s vision. Although he has yet to produce a one-and-done prospect in his 16 years as a head coach, Willard expressed confidence to Anderson and Queen that he could be his first.
Willard has plans for Queen to stretch the floor and play with the ball in his hands. Dobbins and Queen worked this offseason to refine his jump shot, which Dobbins said looks fluid.
Queen trained in Houston this summer, scrimmaging with fellow Baltimore natives and current NBA players Jarace Walker and Cam Whitmore. They swept the competition.
Dobbins said Queen, whose ultimate goal is to go pro, didn’t look out of place against them.
Queen’s always been driven to reach the highest level. Now, he can work to get there while living out a part of his basketball dream at Maryland.
“He’s just always envisioned himself playing on that floor,” Dobbins said. “That first game on the floor will be a surreal moment for him.”
