Dawn Staley talks incoming and outgoing transfers, raves about Kierra Fletcher
Not only did the South Carolina women’s basketball team gain an experienced point guard this month, but the Richland County Sheriff’s Department added an intern.
On Thursday night during her Carolina Calls radio show, USC coach Dawn Staley talked about the team’s recent addition from the transfer portal, former Georgia Tech guard Kierra Fletcher. Part of what attracted Staley to Fletcher is the graduate student’s maturity and experience, and Staley said Thursday that Fletcher will intern with the Sheriff’s Department as she pursues a post-basketball career in law enforcement.
Of course, the Gamecocks will hope to get valuable production out of Fletcher on the court as well. Though she didn’t play in the 2021-22 season due to injury, Fletcher was a four-year starter with the Yellow Jackets who averaged 13 points per game in 2020-21.
With the Gamecocks losing starting point guard Destanni Henderson to the WNBA Draft following their national championship win over UConn, Fletcher could serves as a valuable backcourt piece.
“We’re very selective in who we bring into our family,” Staley said during Thursday’s show. “When we saw Kierra Fletcher in the portal, I immediately called to inquire about what she was thinking, what type of situation she wants to be in. And it didn’t take her long to realize that she wanted to win a national championship.
“Obviously, she wants to play. She wants to be on a team in which she can be utilized in a way that her experience is a premium. She’s a point guard. She can score. She’s a facilitator. She’s got a two-to-one assist to turnover ratio for her career.”
Though Staley is excited about the addition, the Gamecocks have lost players to the transfer portal as well. Most notably, former five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American Saniya Rivers entered her name in the portal. The Gamecocks also lost reserves Elysa Wesolek and Eniya Russell.
Staley didn’t go into specifics about those transfers during her show but did say she wasn’t surprised to see some of her players enter the portal.
“It was inevitable; we’re at a time when the transfer portal is so easily accessible,” Staley said. “And specifically with our team, I asked our team from the very beginning of this year to sacrifice to make this year special.
“Once we hit postseason, we just really had to hone in on the main thing. And once we win, if you’re dissatisfied with the impact that you thought you should have had on our team, I welcome you to jump to the transfer portal. I’ll help our players get to a place where they can find their happiness and their peace and their ability to impact it and get closer to their ultimate goal, which is to play professional basketball.”
Staley said the team will “continue to try to get better” during the offseason and didn’t rule out making more additions through the portal.
This story was originally published April 23, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
