Frank Martin, Gamecocks back to work after brief break

Vacation’s been a premium in Frank Martin’s household over the past three years.

He had to get he and his family moved from Manhattan, Kan., to Columbia. He had to coach international ball. There hasn’t been a time where he and wife Anya could really get away and relax.

Even with having to re-construct his team during the spring, Martin found time to leave basketball alone for a spell. The sunburned legs proved it.

But now that he’s back in town, it’s time to get to work.

“Now here in the summer, I’m engaged again on the floor with individuals,” Martin said on Friday. “It’s been kind of business as usual.”

The Gamecocks are almost all on campus for the summer and most will compete in July’s S.C. Pro-Am. Freshmen Eric Cobb and Raymond Doby are set to report in July, and could be joined by Jamall Gregory, provided he completes one final class. Depending on the date he finishes, he could be enrolled in July, but if not, he’ll be in for August.

“The assistants are always recruiting guys, but then I had to engage in recruiting at the 11^th hour,” Martin said. “To change some mindsets and to help the assistants open up some doors to some guys we needed to sign.”

Martin replaced his five losses with five freshmen, addressing needed height and bulk and bringing in prized talent with P.J. Dozier and Chris Silva. Now it’s keeping it all together and healthy – injuries are a part of the game, but USC seemed to have its share and half the SEC’s last season – until team practice begins.

Brian Steele, who re-injured the same knee he hurt before last year, is 100 percent. Sindarius Thornwell, who had a procedure to alleviate tendonitis in each knee, is also doing well, although he won’t play in the Pro-Am.

“We’re still easing Sindarius back into things,” Martin said. “There’s no reason to overload him right now. He’s doing all kinds of lifting, he has no limitations in the weight room, he’s got no limitations in running our offensive patterns. He just doesn’t do any offense-on-defense stuff.”

TeMarcus Blanton, who suffered a hip injury before last season that was compared to Bo Jackson’s, is also doing well. Martin said that Blanton is two months ahead of schedule in his rehab, is doing everything Thornwell is doing (and not doing), but also won’t play in the Pro-Am. The hope is that he’ll be able to return to the court and play – eventually.

“The plan was for what he’s doing now, to do in August,” Martin said. “He’s doing it now. There’s no pain, no discomfort. But we’re holding him out of live competition.”

This story was originally published June 26, 2015 at 8:52 PM with the headline "Frank Martin, Gamecocks back to work after brief break."