South Carolina Basketball: The biggest (early) questions for Dawn Staley’s team for the 2023-2024 season

5 Questions around South Carolina Basketball for the 2023-2024 season:
What should be reasonably expected from the newcomers?

With 8 players from last season’s squad no longer with the team, the 2023-2024 version of the Gamecocks will be very different from last year’s group. Add to the roster turnover the fact that several of those exiting the program were award winners (Aliyah Boston won tons of awards, Zia Cooke was the Ann Myers Drysdale award winner, and Brea Beal was an All-American), and expectations for their replacements need to be tempered a bit.

Beal and fellow class of 2019 5-star Laeticia Amihere were unsung defensive heroes for the Gamecocks. Who replaces their efforts is still to be determined. Returning players Bree Hall and Ashlyn Watkins have the athletic ability to do it, but there is much more to dominant defense than just being athletic.

The freshman class is led by ball-dominant guard Milaysia Fulwiley who can really score, but the rest of the class is highly-touted, as well. Sahnya Jah will become the only player on the roster who can join Hall in attempting to fill Brea Beal’s role as a bigger, versatile wing who can defend. Tessa Johnson will be a good scorer and defender on the perimeter in time, but year one might be too soon to expect that type of production from her.

Junior college standout Sakima Walker will be counted on to deliver big-time production as both a scorer and rebounder, something she has only really done at the JuCo ranks.

The Gamecocks can still add to their roster as there are three available scholarships spots. Dawn Staley tweeted out her customary “A birdie just flew in the nest” message to indicate a commitment occurred behind the scenes, but the identity (and recruiting class) of that commitment is still not known. If/when Dawn Staley brings in another player or two for next year’s team, perhaps some of these questions will be easier to answer.