‘He loves his home state’: Former players support BJ McKie to be new Gamecocks coach
Who is Melvin Watson pulling for in South Carolina’s basketball search? There’s no doubt.
Watson would like to see his former South Carolina backcourt mate BJ McKie get a shot to be the Gamecocks’ next head coach. USC fired Frank Martin on Monday and is in the process of finding the 33rd coach in school history.
Sean Miller and Dennis Gates, two potential USC candidates, have accepted or are close to landing other jobs. Miller was announced as Xavier’s coach Saturday, and reports say Gates is leaving Cleveland State for Missouri.
McKie’s name is getting traction in the coaching search, and On3Sports’ Jamie Shaw on Saturday described McKie as a serious candidate. McKie, a former Irmo standout and current assistant at Wake Forest, was supposed to interview Friday, a source with knowledge of the search told The State.
Wake Forest is still playing in the postseason and won a second-round NIT game Saturday.
“Since I have been playing with BJ and seeing him go in the coaching ranks, he understands what it takes to win games and he is a competitor,” Watson said Saturday after coaching in the S.C. Coaches North-South all-star high school basketball game. “He is homegrown …. and wants the University of South Carolina to be back where we once were and the Final Four standards as well. I think he would be a great candidate.”
Watson said he spoke with McKie earlier this week and plans to reach out again this weekend. The two talked about the USC opening.
“I reminded him that your body of work speaks for yourself,” he said. “He has worked hard and deserves it. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that he gets it.”
If McKie lands the job, it would be a popular one with many former Gamecock basketball players, much like the hiring of coach Shane Beamer was with former USC football players. During the football search, many former players made their voices known to USC athletics director Ray Tanner.
Watson said he and former USC teammates have a group chat with William Gallman, Antonio Grant, Ryan Stack and others, all talking about McKie getting the job. Watson even reached out to Tanner this week.
“I have texted my thoughts whether it was warranted or not,” Watson said. ”I know coach Tanner is going to do what is best for the University of South Carolina. He has done a great job with all the guys he has brought in at the school.”
McKie, Watson and Larry Davis made up the backcourt during the Gamecocks’ run in the 1990s under former coach Eddie Fogler, and all three have been elected into the University of South Carolina’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
South Carolina won the 1996-97 Southeastern Conference championship and made back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances in 1997 and 1998. The Gamecocks have made two tournament appearances since then, with one being the Final Four run in 2017 under Martin.
McKie was named the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year in 1995 out of Irmo High School and is the school’s all-time leading scorer. After his playing days ended, he got into coaching with his first job at Charleston Southern in 2011. He joined Steve Forbes’ staff at East Tennessee State in 2017 and went with Forbes when he got the Wake Forest job in 2020.
McKie has recruited the Carolinas during his time with Wake Forest and landed Robert McCray, who played at A.C. Flora in Columbia and is a freshman with the Demon Deacons.
“Off his resume and what he has done at Charleston Southern, East Tennessee State and now at Wake Forest, he does a great job in recruiting,” said Watson. who is head basketball coach with South Pointe in Rock Hill. “Guys who grew up with BJ and know BJ know what we are getting in that hire. You are going to get consistency, how to navigate through the transfer portal and get guys in there that fit his system. I know he loves his home state and we have to win the state.”
This story was originally published March 20, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
