SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS BASKETBALL

Before the season started, Frank Martin couldn’t stop talking about how much he enjoyed his team but that statement always came with a caveat.

He’d always follow it up with warning things could change once the team started playing games, developing an identity and players settling into roles.

But, through two games, that excitement hasn’t subsided as Martin’s getting a clearer picture of what he and the rest of the coaching staff has.

“I’m liking the vibe we’re getting right now of how we’re playing,” Martin said. “I don’t know if we have a 35-minute a game guy on our team right now. we have a bunch of guys to where, if we can figure out a way to manage it, if we have a bunch of guys playing between 15-16 or 26-27 minutes, I think our team can be really, really, really good.”

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Through two games, the Gamecocks (2-0) have started the same lineup in both games with AJ Lawson, Jair Bolden, Justin Minaya, Maik Kotsar and Alanzo Frink but have mixed up lineups with over 20 different lineups in each game.

As the last week’s gone on, he’s beginning to figure out which guys he wants as sparks off the bench.

Those would be TJ Moss, who Martin called the team’s best on-ball defender against point guards and Jermaine Couisnard, who’s the toughest guard to screen on the team.

“I like guys who come off the bench and provide energy. Come in and forget the points. That’s awesome, but I like my kids to play really, really hard. When guys come off the bench, I want that energy to go up,” Martin said. “Jermaine and TJ, they’ve done that so far this year coming off the bench. I’m not going to sit here and tell you I’m completely committed to that right now, but that’s what my mind and my feelings are telling me.”

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Nothing is settled yet, and in reality the Gamecocks are just 80 minutes of basketball into their season, so there’s still a little bit of figuring out to do as they get into the teeth of the non-conference schedule and then into SEC play.

Martin mentioned getting Micaiah Henry more involved to try and utilize his ability to score in the low post.

The dynamic could also change as freshmen continue to develop because it’s really hard to peg where they are right now 10 days into their first season.

“The hard thing with roles is when it includes freshmen because you don’t know what you’re going to get day in and day out,” Martin said. “It’s too early in the year to have that feel. With them, I have to find the patience to make them understand when you’re out there this is what you’re doing so they can be at peace with everything. Then I need to find the patience to allow them to grow into the mindset we need them to have.”

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But, arguably the biggest change comes in few weeks with the return of Keyshawn Bryant, who’s coming off surgery on his knee.

“I have an interesting dynamic three or four weeks right now when we introduce Keyshawn to our team,” Martin said. “I have to figure out how I’m going to manage that moment when it gets here. But it’s my job to make those decisions. I’m kind of liking this dynamic right now.”

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