Davis & Gray Declare for the Draft

[SCspur]

Don't forget about Baylor and Texas for next season....no reason they shouldn't be considered prime contenders and they both just jumped over South Carolina I do believe....

How does Baylor jump over SC? Texas I can understand due to talent but What does Baylor have that SC doesn't? They lost 4 players and we lost 3

 

[triaddukefan]

SC was never going to repeat no matter who came back.

99.4% of WCBB people felt that Mississippi State would never defeat Connecticut Friday night... and we see how that turned out. NEVER say never.

 

[Charliebball]

How does Baylor jump over SC? Texas I can understand due to talent but What does Baylor have that SC doesn't? They lost 4 players and we lost 3

You may be right there, forgot they lost both Davis and Jones.........still, Brown really improved this year becoming a truly dominant inside presence at both ends of the floor.......... combined with Mompremier and Cox and that's a lot of size to deal with..............I also like Swanson's game and Chou was surprisingly good towards the end of the season............Richards and Morris both very talented guards coming in should move quickly into their rotation.......I guess we'll just have to wait and see how they progress...........

 

[Shorty Dee]

I didn't expect Allisha and Kaela to go pro this year. As a fan of WCBB, I wish the women would stay their 4 or 5 years in school.

 

[SCspur]

You may be right there, forgot they lost both Davis and Jones....still, Brown really improved this year becoming a truly dominant inside presence at both ends of the floor..... combined with Mompremier and Cox and that's a lot of size to deal with....I also like Swanson's game and Chou was surprisingly good towards the end of the season..Richards and Morris both very talented guards coming in should move quickly into their rotation..I guess we'll just have to wait and see how they progress......

Yes Brown is very talented and is going to be a force these next two years. I would like to see more development out of Cox and Mompremier. If Cox makes the leap Brown did then Baylor would be even more formidable then this past year. Mompremier needs a jump shot and focus on not being foul prone. But I don't expect them to fall off that much if at all next year.

 

[oldude]

Yes Brown is very talented and is going to be a force these next two years. I would like to see more development out of Cox and Mompremier. If Cox makes the leap Brown did then Baylor would be even more formidable then this past year. Mompremier needs a jump shot and focus on not being foul prone. But I don't expect them to fall off that much if at all next year.

I think it's going to be difficult for Baylor to play with 2 Bigs on the floor at the same time, just as I felt it was difficult for SC to do so.

 

[SCspur]

I think it's going to be difficult for Baylor to play with 2 Bigs on the floor at the same time, just as I felt it was difficult for SC to do so.

Yeah I think the 4 guard 1 post lineup is the way to play the game. It helps the offense flow and it allows to defend different players better. Which is why it's bitter sweet Gray is leaving because she played the 4 flawlessly. She could defend bigger players and also stretch the D to the arch offensively. I think Grissett and come in and provide the same style Gray had.

 

[tennparker3]

I don't mind players going if they are seniors academically. Not everybody wants to be in school for another year when they finally reach that point where they can go start making a living for themselves. Most women have their degrees by their third year anyway because so many of them take classes in the summer so they have extra training/development time. I think almost everyone on Tennessee's roster that is a junior or senior had their degrees by May of last year or this past December. Heck, Rennia Davis will likely have her bachelor degree by the end of the summer going into her sophomore year because of summer classes and the fact she already has an associate's degree thanks to AP classes. Draya Carter would've been a 5th year senior this past year if she played but she had her degree for 2 years already... of course she didn't play for health reasons.

Stanford, Arizona State, Washington, Wisconsin and Minnesota are all teams I believe have multiple rising Juniors and Seniors that have already obtained their degrees. Kaela and Alisha both graduated in December I think too, or earlier. So I say go pro and have zero regrets, especially if you go out on top like South Carolina did.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Who will start for Dawn next year?

Wilson, of course
Tyasha Harris also seems a lock
Cuevas-Moore?
Harrigan?
Cliney?

I think the starting 5 will be Wilson, Herbert Harrigan, Alexis Jennings (forward who transferred from Kentucky), Cuevas-Moore and Harris. Cliney and the great incoming freshman class, plus sophomores Bradshaw and Patrick. I wouldn't be surprised to see Dawn bring in a graduate transfer like she did with Sarah Imovbioh a couple of years ago. Losing Coates, Davis and Gray will certainly hurt, but we're still going to be a top ten team.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

I believe the Latin saying is, " While I breathe, I hope."

Keep taking deep breaths SCspur.

Ironically, that is the motto of the State of South Carolina: Dum Spiro Spero.

 

[tennparker3]

I think the starting 5 will be Wilson, Herbert Harrigan, Alexis Jennings (forward who transferred from Kentucky), Cuevas-Moore and Harris. Cliney and the great incoming freshman class, plus sophomores Bradshaw and Patrick. I wouldn't be surprised to see Dawn bring in a graduate transfer like she did with Sarah Imovbioh a couple of years ago. Losing Coates, Davis and Gray will certainly hurt, but we're still going to be a top ten team.

I saw on twitter some folks saying that Dawn talked about the possibility of adding to new players coming in.
They bring in a great wing talent in 6'1 Elisia Grissett. She is the #4 ranked wing in the 2017 class.
6'3 LaDazhia Williams will be a great player IMO. She is better than most of the front court players we saw in the AA game.
5'11 Bianca Jackson was the Gatorade State POY in Alabama and recruitded by every SEC school. She is the daughter of two college coaches. I've seen her play quite a bit and she is on the same level as most of the better known recruits.
Then they have 5'9 Haley Troup who will give some solid depth at the guard spots and she can score. Reminds of a shorter Peyton Little who played at Oklahoma.

I don't think the drop off will be as drastic as a lot of people think. Dawn got pretty good production out of Herbert-Harrigan and Harris for freshman so there is no reason to think she can't do it with a very talented class that fills in the spots Gray, Coates and Davis leave behind. It'll be interesting to see how much better Harris gets. She can score but Staley didn't really ask for it from her. I think that changes next season. SC will be top 5 I think despite their losses.

 

[SCGamecock]

Ironically, that is the motto of the State of South Carolina: Dum Spiro Spero.

I knew I recognized that somewhere...

 

[DaddyChoc]

lawd I hate the pressure that is being put on Stevens and the UConn Husky for the 17-18 season

 

[j66kicker]

lawd I hate the pressure that is being put on Stevens and the UConn Husky for the 17-18 season

Not that much really - just if we win it all it's because of her, and if we don't it's because of her And what did she expect?

That's what our great ones - DT, Maya, Stewie -wanted! (BTW I think deep down that's what KLS wants too)

 

[Charliebball]

I don't mind players going if they are seniors academically. Not everybody wants to be in school for another year when they finally reach that point where they can go start making a living for themselves. Most women have their degrees by their third year anyway because so many of them take classes in the summer so they have extra training/development time. I think almost everyone on Tennessee's roster that is a junior or senior had their degrees by May of last year or this past December. Heck, Rennia Davis will likely have her bachelor degree by the end of the summer going into her sophomore year because of summer classes and the fact she already has an associate's degree thanks to AP classes. Draya Carter would've been a 5th year senior this past year if she played but she had her degree for 2 years already... of course she didn't play for health reasons.

Stanford, Arizona State, Washington, Wisconsin and Minnesota are all teams I believe have multiple rising Juniors and Seniors that have already obtained their degrees. Kaela and Alisha both graduated in December I think too, or earlier. So I say go pro and have zero regrets, especially if you go out on top like South Carolina did.

I don't know how some of these kids graduate in less then four years with all of their full time sports commitments ..........I played D3 sports and barely graduated after four years

 

[Vowelguy]

I don't know how some of these kids graduate in less then four years with all of their full time sports commitments .....I played D3 sports and barely graduated after four years

Many take classes over the summer to lighten their in-season loads.

 

[Charliebball]

since this is a South Carolina focused thread:

 

[Charliebball]

Here's another;

Prentice Beverly‏ @PBevBallNPrep 17h17 hours ago
S/O @GamecockWBB signee @haleytroup13 takes home Alabama 7A Player of Y

 

[CocoHusky]

Many take classes over the summer to lighten their in-season loads.

Also the number of classes that available to these kids online has drastically increased even in the past 5 years or so.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I think that's a fair assessment. the SEC will still be brutal next year no mater what.

I believe the SEC race is now wide open.

Maybe Tennessee and Miss State would have challenged anyway, but I think USC would have to have been the clear favorite with everyone returning.

I think Wilson will really be challenged to take the team on fully and you might see here put up much bigger numbers than before. But its pretty tough to guess how much perimeter support she will be getting.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

We're not going to be UConn talented, bringing in waves of top 20 players off the bench, but we were never going to be that regardless of whether Gray and Davis had elected to stay or not...

Wilson alone separates SC from the middle of the SEC pack.. and she's joined by another McDAA in Cuevas who (like I predicted in the preseason) took a step forward for us. Wilson will also have a frontcourt partner in Alexis Jennings, a former top 40 player that can score inside and out. You also have Tyasha Harris, a former top 30 player who was thrown in the fire as a freshmen and played the point guard position very well. Harris will take a sophomore leap, she's talented. I don't know who's going to play SF for us..

5. Jennings
4. Wilson
3. ????
2. Cuevas-Moore
1. Tyasha Harris

So no, we're not going to be UConn-level talented.. but the cupboard is not bare at South Carolina. It's just not as full.


ps: three of those players started for the team that just won the national championship, with one of the three winning MOP, and that experience can't be underestimated.. it's not a flashy lineup, but it will be an effective one.

Harris
Cuevas
Cliney
Jennings
Wilson

That's your starting lineup to begin with. Cuevas and Cliney might lose their jobs as the season goes on. Just depends on what the freshmen are able to do or whether perhaps one of the people that did not play much is able to step into a role.

I do think if everyone would have come back, USC could have put waves of talent on the floor. Whether that would have been equal to what UCONN could field, I don't know.

I'd like to see Cliney improve her offense a bit and then see a young wing beat out Cuevas for the SG spot.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

S Carolina will find out how it feels when every opponent they face has the game vs the Gamecocks circled on their calendars.

I think USC was used to that in the SEC already. And probably in the non-conference to some degree.

 

[HGN]

Christyn Williams may include SCAR on her list of school choices now.

Trb123 , go wash your mouth out with soap.

 

[DaddyChoc]

I believe the SEC race is now wide open.

Maybe Tennessee and Miss State would have challenged anyway, but I think USC would have to have been the clear favorite with everyone returning.

I think Wilson will really be challenged to take the team on fully and you might see here put up much bigger numbers than before. But its pretty tough to guess how much perimeter support she will be getting.

Coates wasnt chopped liver... she carried the Gamecocks most of the season (without looking at numbers)

 

[jsloanjr]

Best wishes to both young women