South Carolina Basketball: Gamecock big man leaves through transfer gateway.
South Carolina basketball coach Lamont Paris and the Gamecocks lost a rotation element on Saturday as 7’0 center Josh Gray entered the transfer portal. The former part-time starter was a vital contributor off the bench for the 26-8 USC squad this past season.
Gray averaged just 3.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in the 2023-2024 season, but those stats are skewed a bit by his poor use during out-of-conference play. However, far bigger than his numbers, Gray will be missed on the floor in Columbia because of his size. At 7’0″ and 260 pounds, he was the only player on the squad who could contend with large, athletic post men.
With Gray’s departure, Coach Paris and his staff will most likely need to bring in two bigs through the transfer portal this offseason.
Nick Pringle (Alabama Crimson Tide) has been a top target for Carolina since entering the transfer portal last week. Pringle, a starter for Alabama this year, provides size, length, agility, and aggressiveness on both ends of the court. The South Carolina native would be an ideal match for the Gamecocks if starting power forward Collin Murray-Boyles begins to shoot during his second season.
Another Palmetto State native, 7’0″
enter Jordan Butler, entered the transfer portal on Friday when he opted to depart the Missouri Tigers program after just one season. Butler’s mother played for the women’s South Carolina basketball team, and his father is the head coach at Christ Church Episcopal School in Greenville. Butler averaged nearly a block per game as a true freshman at Mizzou, playing 11 minutes per game this season.
The Gamecocks have been linked with several other transfer portal post players this offseason, but Pringle and Butler seem to be the two names that make the most sense for Carolina at this moment, especially in light of Josh Gray’s transfer portal defection.
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