In the view of some analysts, the departures of Sindarius Thornwell, Duane Notice and P.J. Dozier leaves a Grand Canyon-size void at guard for South Carolina next season.
Enter Kory Holden.
The Delaware transfer could be the ‘X’ factor for the Gamecocks in 2017-18 after sitting out this past season due to NCAA rules.
In fact, don’t be surprised if the Gamecocks are Holden’s team when November rolls around and the Gamecocks set out to prove that their stunning Final Four run wasn’t a fluke.
Frank Martin would be the least one surprised if the point guard from Salisbury, Md. made his presence felt immediately.
As in, right now.
“Kory is a special young man,” Martin said Tuesday during his post-season wrapup press conference at Colonial Life Arena. “He is unbelievably talented, mentally and physically. He is a lot of fun to be around. Very prideful young man.
“He has been confined (because of the transfer, but he is not confined anymore. Now his voice, his energy and who he is can start becoming more relevant in the locker room. The first game is a long ways away, but his voice and personality can become stronger now that he has seen how a winning locker room operates.”
Holden scored 892 points in two seasons for Delaware, averaging 17.7 points and 4.2 assists during the 2015-16 season when he earned Second-Team All-Colonial Athletic Conference honors.
As a freshman in 2014-15, Holden was named to the CAA All-Rookie Team. His individual success with the Blue Hens was a major reason ESPN labeled Holden the No. 2 available transfer at the time of his commitment to the Gamecocks.
“He had great stats, but unfortunately his team didn’t win,” Martin said. “Redshirting (sitting out a season after a transfer) is hard. It’s the hardest thing these kids ever go through. But going through it this past season and learning what it takes to have a winning team and being in a locker room where guys cared about winning was very good for him. It helped him grow.”
Holden is already revealing the traits of a leader. Martin says he called recently to get the phone numbers of the incoming freshmen so he could call and start talking to them before they arrived on campus.
“He wanted to talk to them so when they got on campus, they were ready to go,” Martin said. “I’d rather have that than a guy who is so consumed with myself that he doesn’t care about the incoming players.”
While expectations are high for Holden, he won’t be a one-man guard corps. Hassani Gravette and Rakym Felder, one of the post-season’s major surprises, both return to the fold.
Neither of the pair’s statistics are overwhelming, but they demonstrated the fearlessness last season Martin craves in players.
“I felt pretty comfortable (playing them) when we were playing Duke, so I don’t see why I would be uncomfortable (playing them more extensively in 2017-18),” Martin said. “The season was on the line and I felt comfortable with those guys. Those guys didn’t have sexy statistics, but they were a big reason why the team won.
“We’re about winning. Everything about the culture and everything about building a winner is in place in the locker room. (Rakym) and Hassani are a big part of that. They will grow as players. When the challenges get in front of them next year they’ll be ready to go to take whatever role they have to become to help our team.”
