South Carolina Basketball: How Myles Stute could be the key to the 2023-2024 season

South Carolina basketball coach Lamont Paris brought in one of the most underrated transfer portal classes in the country this offseason. Big men BJ Mack and Stephen Clark were All-So Con players at Wofford and The Citadel before making their way to Columbia, and point guard Ta’Lon Cooper was in the top-10 nationally in assists.

However, it’s the other transfer addition that could be the key to the Gamecocks making a move up the SEC hierarchy this season.

Combo forward Myles Stute was a multi-year starter at Vanderbilt and flashed some elite traits for the modern game. As a sophomore at Vandy, Stute hit over 43% of his 3-point shots (while taking five outside shots per game). He has also displayed elite defensive potential as a player who can guard any position on the floor and can impact the game with steals or blocked shots.

Primarily playing a stretch-four role for the Commodores, Stute could play anywhere from the shooting guard spot to the power forward position for the South Carolina basketball team this season. In fact, illustrating Lamont Paris’ plan to play Stute at multiple positions, the 6’7″ and 210-pound athlete is listed as a guard on the Gamecock roster.

Stute fills several needs from last year’s roster. The Gamecocks struggled to shoot the ball consistently from outside after Chico Carter got hurt (he has since transferred to DePaul), and the wing defense was abysmal. Stute will play a big role in fixing both of those issues.

His versatility allows him to play in almost any lineup that Coach Paris wants to utilize, as well.

He is long enough to play the power forward spot next to a more grounded big like BJ Mack, and he is strong enough to play down low next to skinny shot-blocker Stephen Clark. His skill set as a stretch-4 compliments mauling center Josh Gray and effort big Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk.

He can (and will) play as a wing a lot for the Gamecocks. With Ta’Lon Cooper as the primary point guard, Carolina also has shooting guards like Meechie Johnson and Jacobi Wright who have point guard experience. This means that Stute will not be required to be a big-time ball-handler and can focus on getting open for catch-and-shoot opportunities and providing “gravity” that opens things up a bit for the other players on the floor.

Sophomore Zachary Davis and redshirt senior Ebrima Dibba are extremely versatile, as well, and if Stute shares the floor with those guys, defenses will not have the luxury of playing a standard look against three 6’6″ skilled players.

The only question for Myles Stute is consistency. That was one of his only issues while playing at Vanderbilt, but this offseason, Stute has argued that some of his struggles stemmed from positional misuse as a primary power forward in Nashville. Playing a more versatile role at practice with the Gamecocks, he is as comfortable as he has ever been on the court.

South Carolina basketball fans can be confident they will see a nice year from #10. Oh, yeah: he has two years of eligibility remaining, as well, so Gamecock fans could get to see his talents at Colonial Life Arena for two years.