South Carolina basketball: Frank Martin updates future with Gamecocks

South Carolina basketball coach Frank Martin calls Columbia ‘home.’

The South Carolina basketball team struggled to find any momentum this season, dropping two of their first three contests before seeing five straight games canceled in the month of December. That time off the court forced the Gamecocks to miss practice time, and an opportunity to gel as a unit.

When the team did return to the floor, they played the first portion of the conference slate at less than full strength, and it ended with the program’s worst SEC showing since Martin’s first season in Columbia.

The Gamecocks finished the year at 6-14 (4-12), losing eight of their final nine games, including back-to-back 28-point losses to end the season.

Chatter has been swirling over the last few months surrounding Martin’s future with the program, with critics pointing to his lack of postseason appearances and recruiting success as the main talking points. One of the latest critics was Paul Finebaum, who spoke about the head coach on his show last week.

"“I don’t know all the details in terms of what it would cost. But I do vividly remember when he was hired, that was a big-time hire… It was like a coup. You can’t just scrape away the Final Four appearance. But if you do, he really has virtually nothing to show for it.”"

Martin has been with the program for nine seasons, but his teams have made just one NCAA Tournament appearance. That season ended in a Final Four, and saw the Gamecocks win their first tournament game since the 1970s. He’s also made an NIT and would’ve likely made another last season had the year not been cut short by COVID.

Martin took over a major rebuild. His first two or three seasons can’t really be held against him, as he was working with a shell of a team. In 2015-16, the Gamecocks won a program record 25 games. They broke that record with the amazing run the following year.

But fans wanted to see the program capitalize on that success, and instead, saw a mass exodus of players on the roster. The 2017-18 roster lost a handful of contributors due to disciplinary reasons, and rather than building momentum, the team fell back into another rebuild just one season removed from a Final Four.

That historic run can’t be wiped away, but it also can’t be the lone reason for keeping a coach on board, especially at $3 million per year.

The South Carolina staff then missed out on several talented in-state prospects on the recruiting trail (Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, Josaiah James, Aaron Nesmith, etc.) which further drew the ire from supporters of the program.

The team finally seemed to be getting back on track last season, winning 18 games, but this year was a disaster considering the Gamecocks were projected by many as an at-large bid to play in the postseason.

So where does Frank Martin see himself next season, and what are his expectations for the program moving forward?

On Tuesday, he answered some of those questions in a Zoom call with the media.

"“I’ve been here nine years… This is home. My family loves it here. I love it here… Now, where does the university stand? That’s not for me to answer… Anyone that wants to discredit what we’ve done, I’m willing to argue it. If I have to explain to people of our successes, then those are people who aren’t convinced I need to be the basketball coach here.”"

He also touched on his name being linked to other coaching jobs around the country. This year, Martin has been named as a candidate at schools like New Mexico and DePaul, according to Yahoo Sports writer Pete Thamel. He’s also been connected to jobs at Miami, Cincinnati, and UNLV over the last few years.

"“My name’s been involved in a job every single year I’ve been here… I’ve never talked to another school other than the one you know of, which is the university of Cincinnati. I asked or permission, I spoke and a day later I pulled out of the job… Everyone should know where I stand.”"

Martin is adamant on his position to stay with the South Carolina program, meaning that the ultimate decision will be left up to AD Ray Tanner and the athletic administration. Tanner defended Martin last month amid a late season skid, pointing to the team’s COVID issues as a major player in Gamecocks’ inability to mesh on the court, and seemingly noting that he’s leaning towards allowing the head coach to remain on the sidelines for at least one more year.

Should Martin be retained for the 2021-22 season, he will certainly have to prove himself once again to both the fanbase and administration, but he believes that he can turn this program once again, and quickly move past this minor hiccup. Time will tell on the athletic staff’s decision, a decision that will likely come after this week’s SEC Tournament, but one thing is for sure: Frank Martin wants to be the future of South Carolina basketball.

"“If I’m wanted, this is what I want to call home.”"