Gamecocks and transfers

[Fightin Choke]

Patrick just SIGNED today, being day one of Spring Signing Period and all. She actually verballed a month or two ago. I also think her decision has no bearing on Harris, she may still go elsewhere, but I doubt it's because of Patrick signing today. SC has plenty of space on roster with 5 graduations and 2 defections. Patrick is here to spell Gray/Davis at 2 and 3 with her scoring ability... Harris is needed for point guard.

Everything else is about right. Thumbs up.

You are correct, and Tyasha Harris DOES indeed sign with South Carolina, filling a position of need with a top-notch talent. It's a great day for the Gamecocks!

 

[SCGamecock]

You are correct, and Tyasha Harris DOES indeed sign with South Carolina, filling a position of need with a top-notch talent. It's a great day for the Gamecocks!

Smiling from ear to ear!

I hope she's ready to compete for that starting spot!

 

[msf22b]

I'm not as big a Dawn fan as some others.
For a champion point guard, one might expect better development for that position on her team.
And mediocre guard play has surely effected the overall quality of the team's play.
For all the gifted scorers on the team, they sure don't score much.
I would think she's gotten to a decent point and perhaps plateaued.
Talent and size can get you just so far.
I'll be more positive when she has a National Championship or two on her resume.
But I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't quite get there.

 

[SCGamecock]

SC's guard play will get better simply because she's upgraded the talent there. We've actually done more with less considering our guard talent.. Mitchell wasn't even a McDAA..

Our first McDAA in a while (probably in program history) at guard was Bianca Cuevas. Think about what Dawn was able to do to this point with minimal guard talent.

Next year.. she trades Tiffany Mitchell, Khadijah Sessions, Tina Roy, Asia Dozier for... Kaela Davis, Alisha Gray, Bianca Cuevas, Doniyah Cliney, Araion Bradshaw, Tyasha Harris, and Victoria Patrick.

So in roughly an offseason, she goes from graduating a senior class with no AAs and 1(?) top 50 player in Tiffany Mitchell.. to now having a backcourt with TWO (still not a lot) McDAAs (Davis/Cuevas), THREE players that could've been McDAAs (Gray, Harris, Bradshaw) and steady players in Cliney, who was still a top 100 player, and Patrick, who I suspect is underrated.

As usual, critiques are great but let's see how Dawn does with players other schools actually wanted..

 

[LIUCHusky]

Let's not forget that Columbia is a BEAUTIFUL campus, and an excellent University. It is in the SEC (SEC Football!) with an incredible stadium, the weather is FAB...South Carolina has a LOT going for it.

One of these days Coach Staley will figure out how to win the big games, and how to get the most out of her players. Just be glad that Jeff Walz doesn't have her recruiting prowess (yet).

Take Connecticut weather over SC any day. If you like hot and really humid 4 or 5 months per year OK. No extremes of weather in CT.

 

[donalddoowop]

I guess their coaches become more experienced every year.

I think Dawn will learn from any mistakes she made the last two years, if in fact she made any. SC is coming together for sure. However, after looking at the players tOS, Baylor and ND has coming in next season, SC will have much more than UCONN to overcome. They may be more talented than before yet still not win a NC before Wilson graduates.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Maybe a better way to say it is that they are very very welcoming to talented transfers unlike a certain team located in Southern New England....

Quinnipiac?

 

[SCGamecock]

Take Connecticut weather over SC any day. If you like hot and really humid 4 or 5 months per year OK. No extremes of weather in CT.

No extremes in weather? It snows in APRIL for Christ sakes.. I know this because I live in Connecticut now and it snowed like a week ago..

SC weather is no picnic either, if you can stand brutally humid 5 month summers (it gets hot in CT too) then the rest of the year is a breeze relatively speaking...

Connecticut has a humid continental climate which is literally the definition of extremes; hot summers/cold winters.

South Carolina has a humid subtropical climate; hot summers/mild winters.

Take your pick, there's a flavor for everyone!

 

[Charliebball]

That's really not a fair statement... She's a Husky... that's all that should matter...

Sorry..............I meant no criticism of Ms Butler I was stating that her transfer was an aberation as in an unlikely event

 

[Charliebball]

Quinnipiac?

Not really sure about their transfer policy......................I was thinking about Southern Ct State

 

[Charliebball]

I think you are confusing his statement. He wished that the Huskies accepted MORE transfers. He stated that the fact that she transferred in was the aberration, not Natalie herself!

Thanks for that although come to think of it, Butler is a 6'5" center.........now that is an aberration when it comes to recent UConn signings!!!!!

 

[MarieYLee]

Harris is a great get. IF they can get Azura Stevens, then it puts a lot less pressure on Dawn to land a monster 2017 class to stay in the top 5-10. When Wilson/Gray/Davis leaves, they would still have Stevens (RS-Sr), Harris (Jr), and whoever they get in 2017 will be a Sophomore and any 2018 freshman.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I'm not as big a Dawn fan as some others.
For a champion point guard, one might expect better development for that position on her team.
And mediocre guard play has surely effected the overall quality of the team's play.
For all the gifted scorers on the team, they sure don't score much.
I would think she's gotten to a decent point and perhaps plateaued.
Talent and size can get you just so far.
I'll be more positive when she has a National Championship or two on her resume.
But I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't quite get there.

you have to realize when you are discussing guard play, that Tiffany Mitchell is part of the equation.

I do agree that the level of play at PG has not been good enough to win a title. It has been good enough to secure three #1 seeds in a row however.

It's a bit odd that Staley's PGs have been the achilles heel, especially when you consider that a major strength of her initial building teams was in the backcourt and at PG.

I think maybe Sessions didn't quite develop offensively like they thought she might and Cuevas really did nothing to push her this past year.

I think between Tyasha Harris and Patrick and Bradshaw, you might see a more complete PG emerge. And I think Cuevas probably has it in her to be pretty good. Whether she gets there or not I don't know. She didn't make much progress this year. But the job is clearly right there for her and she will be surrounded by really good talent.

Chemistry next year will be interesting to see. A lot of players who weren't as talented but filled their role quietly have left in the last couple of years. More talented players are replacing them (arguably) but will it come together?

 

[CocoHusky]

SC's guard play will get better simply because she's upgraded the talent there. We've actually done more with less considering our guard talent.. Mitchell wasn't even a McDAA..

Our first McDAA in a while (probably in program history) at guard was Bianca Cuevas. Think about what Dawn was able to do to this point with minimal guard talent.

Next year.. she trades Tiffany Mitchell, Khadijah Sessions, Tina Roy, Asia Dozier for... Kaela Davis, Alisha Gray, Bianca Cuevas, Doniyah Cliney, Araion Bradshaw, Tyasha Harris, and Victoria Patrick.

So in roughly an offseason, she goes from graduating a senior class with no AAs and 1(?) top 50 player in Tiffany Mitchell.. to now having a backcourt with TWO (still not a lot) McDAAs (Davis/Cuevas), THREE players that could've been McDAAs (Gray, Harris, Bradshaw) and steady players in Cliney, who was still a top 100 player, and Patrick, who I suspect is underrated.

As usual, critiques are great but let's see how Dawn does with players other schools actually wanted..

I'm not sure I can cosign this. Regardless of where she was ranked Tiffany became SEC POY TWICE. Sessions gave you relentless on ball defense that was probably second only to MoJeff in the nation. I just don't see from among this group of guards the potential to achieve 1/2 of the sessions contribution or Tiffany's accomplishments.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I'm not sure I can cosign this. Regardless of where she was ranked Tiffany became SEC POY TWICE. Sessions gave you relentless on ball defense that was probably second only to MoJeff in the nation. I just don't see from among this group of guards the potential to achieve 1/2 of the sessions contribution or Tiffany's accomplishments.

I agree losing an All American is a big deal. But you are replacing Mitchell and Asia Dozier with two players who were all conference in the ACC and who are very experienced with a year in the system. Dozier was a senior and a player who understood her role, but not someone who was particularly effective. The two for two trade might be a wash or slightly to USC's favor. Just sort of depends how the teams comes together.

At PG, I tend to agree from past performance Cuevas is a step down from Sessions, but it is also possible that she did not push to take on the role because it was clear she would not unseat the senior. Sessions had a very underrated season, though it was a shame her tentativeness and shotmaking was a big problem in the loss to Syracuse. As an Achilles heel, Sessions was good enough for a team to win 30 games playing a strong schedule. Not so bad.

I'm not big on freshman PGs, but Tyasha Harris probably has a chance to be special also.

 

[CocoHusky]

I agree losing an All American is a big deal. But you are replacing Mitchell and Asia Dozier with two players who were all conference in the ACC and who are very experienced with a year in the system. Dozier was a senior and a player who understood her role, but not someone who was particularly effective. The two for two trade might be a wash or slightly to USC's favor. Just sort of depends how the teams comes together.

At PG, I tend to agree from past performance Cuevas is a step down from Sessions, but it is also possible that she did not push to take on the role because it was clear she would not unseat the senior. Sessions had a very underrated season, though it was a shame her tentativeness and shotmaking was a big problem in the loss to Syracuse. As an Achilles heel, Sessions was good enough for a team to win 30 games playing a strong schedule. Not so bad.

I'm not big on freshman PGs, but Tyasha Harris probably has a chance to be special also.

I agree with you on most points. But mark my words if you get the GT Davis you will severely miss and appreciate Dozier. If by chance you are seated anywhere (allow for at least 150 feet) near Davis's mother start working on getting new seats like today!

 

[HardHatGuy#2]

Quinnipiac?

That's for Hockey...

 

[HardHatGuy#2]

Take Connecticut weather over SC any day. If you like hot and really humid 4 or 5 months per year OK. No extremes of weather in CT.

It's simple; you pack a change of clothes and some pit stick in your bag. Walk to classes until you sweat one set out, change, then the next bunch of classes. It's only that bad during summer semesters, anyway.

On top of that, when it snows (rarely), most of the students have NO IDEA how to make a snowball. By the time they figure it out, they look like snowmen.

 

[Charliebball]

That's for Hockey...

Yes.....I watched them in the NCAA Championship game the other day.............they lost!!!!!!!

 

[SCGamecock]

I agree with you on most points. But mark my words if you get the GT Davis you will severely miss and appreciate Dozier. If by chance you are seated anywhere (allow for at least 150 feet) near Davis's mother start working on getting new seats like today!

Meh. Maybe.. but Dozier was an offensive liability if there ever was one. She never shoots... you know it's bad when you're wide open and you still refuse to shoot, the crowd is screaming at you to shoot it, but instead you pass it to triple coverage in the paint. I appreciate the demeanor and sense of calm she brought to the court... but her actual gameplay will probably be the last thing I miss about her.

I hope teams leave Davis and Gray open just as much as they left Sessions and Dozier open.

 

[JColes]

Let's not forget that Columbia is a BEAUTIFUL campus, and an excellent University. It is in the SEC (SEC Football!) with an incredible stadium, the weather is FAB...South Carolina has a LOT going for it.

One of these days Coach Staley will figure out how to win the big games, and how to get the most out of her players. Just be glad that Jeff Walz doesn't have her recruiting prowess (yet).

Not really a beautiful campus. I was just in Columbia today. Just a bunch of buildings, stores, government buildings, banks, bars, convenience stores situated around city streets. Really nothing scenic at all.

 

[CocoHusky]

Meh. Maybe.. but Dozier was an offensive liability if there ever was one. She never shoots... you know it's bad when you're wide open and you still refuse to shoot, the crowd is screaming at you to shoot it, but instead you pass it to triple coverage in the paint. I appreciate the demeanor and sense of calm she brought to the court... but her actual gameplay will probably be the last thing I miss about her.

I hope teams leave Davis and Gray open just as much as they left Sessions and Dozier open.

Was really disappointed & surprised with Dozier's college career. Not sure what happened to her. In HS she was mostly a point guard and that girl was anything but tentative. My daughter's team ran into her HS team a couple of years @ BB classic in Myrtle Beach. They held X in check mostly, but Dozier nip then at the end.

 

[UConnCat]

I think between Tyasha Harris and Patrick and Bradshaw, you might see a more complete PG emerge.

I don't know much about Harris or Patrick but Bradshaw will struggle to make shots. She's limited offensively.

 

[UConnCat]

I hope teams leave Davis and Gray open just as much as they left Sessions and Dozier open.

I believe teams will leave Davis open on the perimeter until she proves she can make shots at a better % than she made them at Georgia Tech. As a soph, she shot 36% overall and 29% on 3s. Her shooting %s were slightly better as a freshman but still under 40% overall.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I don't know much about Harris or Patrick but Bradshaw will struggle to make shots. She's limited offensively.

She is actually the one I am least excited about so that fits.

 

[SCGamecock]

Was really disappointed & surprised with Dozier's college career. Not sure what happened to her. In HS she was mostly a point guard and that girl was anything but tentative. My daughter's team ran into her HS team a couple of years @ BB classic in Myrtle Beach. They held X in check mostly, but Dozier nip then at the end.

Exactly. She was Miss Basketball in the state of SC... and was lighting scoreboards up. Unfortunately her offensive game never translated to college.

 

[SCGamecock]

I don't know much about Harris or Patrick but Bradshaw will struggle to make shots. She's limited offensively.

Bombing from three isn't Bradshaw's game... she gets to the rim. She's fast and strong and has the upper body to physically take you up with her. As far as style of play, she reminds me of Ogunbowale at ND. Victoria Patrick is all finesse and smooth offensively and she's actually known for her long range shooting prowess. She gives us midrange jumpers, floaters and consistent 3 point range.
Tyasha Harris is just a great all around combo guard, she can do some of everything but I'm most excited about her midrange game, which is very good.

Harris has the most upside but each of them bring something needed to the team.

 

[uconnfan68]

No extremes in weather? It snows in APRIL for Christ sakes.. I know this because I live in Connecticut now and it snowed like a week ago..

SC weather is no picnic either, if you can stand brutally humid 5 month summers (it gets hot in CT too) then the rest of the year is a breeze relatively speaking...

Connecticut has a humid continental climate which is literally the definition of extremes; hot summers/cold winters.

South Carolina has a humid subtropical climate; hot summers/mild winters.

Take your pick, there's a flavor for everyone!

Past year was 1 week hot and 1 week cold, and rest was reasonable.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Not really a beautiful campus. I was just in Columbia today. Just a bunch of buildings, stores, government buildings, banks, bars, convenience stores situated around city streets. Really nothing scenic at all.

You obviously didn't partake in the Horseshoe or Gibbes Green.

 

[Blueconn]

Depends on the type of release - if it is a limited release than typically the old school takes a list of schools from the player and contacts the ones they are OK with releasing the player to. I believe Uconn specifically contacted KY for Walker, though they were granting an unlimited release.
There is paperwork that has to be completed and contacting a player before all the ducks are in a row is a very bad thing subject to NCAA rules. The idea that coaches 'actively recruit' transfers is I think generally mistaken. Getting word out that they would be interested by contacting a player's 'people' (former coaches, trainers, etc.) that they are interested is probably the extent of 'active recruitment' that goes on, until a player themselves actually makes the first contact.

It is not dissimilar to hiring assistant coaches/head coaches from other programs - a delicate matter that involves getting in touch with the program before approaching the specific coach and getting permission - but assistant/head coaches are not covered by NCAA regulations in the way that scholarship athletes are.

Thank you.