South Carolina MBB losing second assistant. Here are the details
South Carolina men’s basketball coach Lamont Paris will be in search of a second assistant coach.
Assistant coach Will Bailey won’t return to the Gamecocks next season, The State confirmed on Saturday. The BigSpur was the first to report the coaching change.
Bailey joins Eddie Shannon, who announced earlier this month that he wouldn’t be back with the program. It is believed it was Bailey’s decision to not return to USC and that he might return to Loyola-Chicago, where was before he came back to the Gamecocks.
Bailey had two stints with South Carolina under two different coaches. He was an assistant coach under Frank Martin from 2020-22. Then, Bailey rejoined the program before the 2024-25 season.
Bailey has more than 20 years of experience as an assistant coach. Other coaching stops include East Tennessee State, Maine, Chicago State and UAB. He finished his playing career at UAB, where he was named the school’s defensive player of the year in 1997.
USC went 13-19 this season and 4-14 in the SEC, finishing 14th in the conference rankings. The Gamecocks lost, 86-74, to Oklahoma in the first round of the SEC Tournament in Nashville.
Four Gamecocks players are expected to transfer when the portal opens next month — center Jordan Butler, forward EJ Walker, guard Eli Ellis and forward Elijah Strong.
South Carolina men’s basketball offseason depatures
Coaching staff
- Eddie Shannon, assistant coach
- Will Bailey, assistant coach
Players
- Jordan Butler, F (transfer portal)
- Eli Ellis, G (transfer portal)
- Meechie Johnson, G (out of eligibilty)
- Nordin Kapic, F (out of eligibility)
- Kobe Knox, G (out of eligibility)
- Mike Sharavjamts, G (out of eligibilty)
- Eli Sparkman, G (out of eligibility)
- Elijah Strong, F (transfer portal)
- Myles Stute, G (out of eligibility)
- EJ Walker (transfer portal)
This story was originally published March 28, 2026 at 5:23 PM.
