South Carolina Basketball: Gamecocks make top-6 for big-time transfer guard

South Carolina basketball coach Lamont Paris has done a good job in the transfer portal during his time as the Gamecocks head coach. In his two years in Columbia, he has brought in impact players like Meechie Johnson, Ta'Lon Cooper, BJ Mack, and Myles Stute.

So far, in the 2024 portal class, USC doesn't have any commitments, but the Gamecocks are in the conversation for several players.

With both Meechie Johnson (transfer portal) and Ta'Lon Cooper (graduation) gone from the program, the South Carolina basketball needs at least one impact guard in this year's transfer cycle. Elite transfer portal players like Jordan Sears (UT-Martin) and JP Pegues (Furman) have already named the Gamecocks as one of their favorite potential destinations.

On Thursday morning, another big-time guard announced that the Gamecocks were heavily on his radar as Mount St. Mary's transfer Dakota Leffew announced his list of top schools.

Leffew named the South Carolina Gamecocks, Georgia Bulldogs, Xavier Minutemen, Syracuse Orange, Pittsburgh Panthers, and Villanova Wildcats as his top-6 schools. Considered a 4-star transfer portal player, Leffew's offer list reinforces the fact that the graduate transfer would make a really nice addition to any team that brought him in this offseason.

At 6'5", Leffew provides length to the guard position, and because of that size, he could even play on the wing in select lineups. He has played point guard some during his career with the Mountaineers and averaged almost 4 assists per game in the 2023-2024 season, but he is a high turnover player, indicating he may be best in a secondary creator role as a 2-guard.

His best trait is his ability to put the ball in the basket. Leffew scored over 17 points per game this past season, and he has shot better than 37% combined in the last two years.

With the ball in his hands, Leffew loves to pull up for jumpers, often a tough step-back. He is capable of making those difficult shots. Without the ball, he is a really good cutter, and he is a good player off the catch, as well, as a good 3-point shooter and a good pump-and-drive player. He has a lot of range as an outside shooter and enjoys running the floor in transition.

If he were to join the South Carolina basketball team, he would be able to play with almost any other player on the roster, as long as another ballhandler/playmaker was also on the floor.

Leffew was a 1st team All-MAAC player this season.

You can watch some of his film here.