Frank Martin lands top 30 prospect, Sindarius Thornwell

July 13, 2012;Alexandria, VA USA;USA West guard Sindarius Thornwell (9) lays the ball up against USA Midwest forward Nick King (10) during the Nike Global Challenge at Episcopal High School. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-US PRESSWIRE

If you want to know how elated Frank Martin must be after landing top 30 (CBS Sports) prospect, Sindarius Thornwell, just take a look at the schools SC’s new coach was recruiting against.

NC State, Missouri, Florida State, Cincinnati, Georgia Tech, Clemson, Memphis, Louisville and Ohio State (just to name a few).

The 6’5″ 180 prospect is the best player South Carolina has signed, depending on where you look, since either Anthony Gill last year (who’s no longer a Gamecock) or DeMontre Harris in 2010.

He is the 13th ranked shooting guard according to ESPN.com, and according to Scout.com, he’s a five star prospect, and the fourth best SG in the nation.

Here’s a video of Thornwell showing off his talent while he was still playing with Lancaster High School in SC (He’s since moved on to Oak Hill Academy).

Thornwell announced his decision on Facebook, and it didn’t take long for the news to spread all over Columbia, and even the nation on websites like ESPN.com, and CBS Sports.

From what I can gather on the three big recruiting websites (Scout, Rivals, ESPN.com), Thornwell is an excellent shooter, a very strong kid, and an above-average passer.

His flaws, according to most of those websites, include lapses in competitiveness, average defensive ability and a tendency to force shots.