Way-too-early South Carolina WBB starting lineup, rotation projection for 2026-27
Last season, South Carolina women’s basketball was dealt with depth issues all year long.
One glance at next year’s roster, and it’s safe to say depth shouldn’t be a problem for Dawn Staley and the Gamecocks in 2026-27.
South Carolina added yet another McDonald’s All-American on Thursday after five-star forward Oliviyah Edwards announced her commitment to USC. Edwards is the No. 3 recruit in the Class of 2026 and the third five-star of the class for the Gamecocks.
Even though the 2025-26 season ended just three weeks ago, let’s take a look at the updated roster and put together a way-too-early projection of what Staley’s rotation may look like next season. The new year starts with a game in Paris this November.
Who is on the roster?
With the addition of Edwards, South Carolina’s 2026-27 roster is up to 14 players. And that bucks the trend of the amount of players Staley typically carries on a roster.
In her tenure at South Carolina, she’s averaged almost 13 players per season (the exact average is 12.75) and has rarely approached the maximum of 15 players. It’s not impossible to think Staley would add one more player out of the transfer portal, but history suggests she won’t.
South Carolina brings back nine players from last year’s squad. All nine have championship experience, and three have championship-winning experience.
The Gamecocks return seven players who played last year in Tessa Johnson, Adhel Tac, Joyce Edwards, Agot Makeer, Ayla McDowell, Maddy McDaniel, Alicia Tournebize and Adhel Tac. South Carolina is also returning Chloe Kitts and Ashlyn Watkins, who did not play last season.
South Carolina will add five newcomers, including incoming freshmen in Oliviyah Edwards, Jerzy Robinson, Kaeli Wynn and Kelsi Andrews. The fifth newcomer is Texas transfer Jordan Lee, who signed Thursday.
Here’s another look at the full roster broken down by position and their classifications for next year:
- Guards: senior Tessa Johnson, juniors Maddy McDaniel and Jordan Lee, sophomores Agot Makeer and Ayla McDowell, freshman Jerzy Robinson.
- Forwards: seniors Chloe Kitts and Ashlyn Watkins, juniors Joyce Edwards and Adhel Tac, sophomore Alicia Tournebize, freshmen Oliviyah Edwards, Kaeli Wynn and Kelsi Andrews.
Projecting the rotation
You can certainly make the argument it’s too soon to project what Staley’s rotation might look like in the 2026-27 season, but what fun would that be?
Sure, the entire team isn’t with each other on campus yet, and summer workouts and official training camp are still months away. But, it’s a fun exercise regardless of all that.
So here’s a way-too-early projected starting lineup for Staley and the Gamecocks next season:
Starting five
- G: Maddy McDaniel
- G: Jordan Lee
- G: Tessa Johnson
- F: Chloe Kitts
- F: Joyce Edwards
Johnson and Edwards are probably locks for the starting lineup. Edwards was an All-American last year and led the team in scoring last year (19.2 points per game). Johnson earned her first All-SEC honor in her junior campaign and is the second-highest returning scorer (12.8 ppg last season). In addition, both Johnson and Edwards started every game they played in last year.
McDaniel is the heir apparent at point guard to Raven Johnson. McDaniel has patiently waited her turn on the bench the last two years and she’ll have to prove she can fill the big shoes left on the court by Johnson. McDaniel is great at driving in the lane and did a good job conducting the second unit this past season. She’s scrappy on defense, but continued growth on offense would likely be welcomed by Staley and her staff.
There’s a shot Staley could give the point guard nod to someone else, but McDaniel seems like the likely choice right now.
Staley said she wanted to add “lead guard play” in the portal this offseason and did that by nabbing Lee from Texas. The transfer has a deep skill set and can impact the game on both sides of the ball, Staley said in a news release after she signed. Her defensive skills are a big plus. Lee averaged 13.2 points per game and is a career 36.2% shooter from 3-point range. Lee and Tessa Johnson could channel their inner Steph Curry and Klay Thompson and be South Carolina’s own “Splash Sisters” if everything goes right.
The final spot in the projected starting lineup goes to Kitts, who will be returning from an ACL injury that caused her to miss all of this past season. Kitts showed tremendous growth in her junior year, averaging career-highs with 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. She was the SEC Tournament MVP and earned NCAA Tournament All-Regional team honors. Kitts was expected to be a first-round pick in this year’s WNBA Draft before her injury. If she can get back to that level of production (and even go beyond it) the Gamecocks’ starting lineup will be scary for opponents.
Second unit
- G: Jerzy Robinson
- G: Agot Makeer
- G: Ayla McDowell
- F: Alicia Tournebize
- F: Ashlyn Watkins
Watkins hasn’t played in a game since Jan. 5, 2025 when she tore her ACL in a game at Mississippi State and then took the next season off from basketball. That large gap in between games alone is good enough reason to bring her off the bench in 2026-27. If she can get back to being the All-SEC player she was in her sophomore year she’ll be a huge boost off the bench for the Gamecocks.
You can make an argument that Makeer belongs in the starting lineup. For now, we’re going to slot her in the second unit to start her sophomore campaign. Makeer showed she’s capable of impacting the game on both sides of the ball during her freshman year, especially during the NCAA Tournament. She has the makings of a budding star, but it might be best for her to captain the second unit and be South Carolina’s de facto sixth woman in 2026-27.
Tournebize is entering an important time in her development with her first college offseason coming up. The 6-foot-7 forward can space the floor and score on all three levels but needs to get a bit stronger to hang with the best in the paint in the SEC. If she can continue to develop, she and Watkins could be a lethal one-two punch in the second unit.
Robinson has the tools to be special for South Carolina. The five-star guard has no problem scoring the ball and will play a big role off the bench. It’s possible she is the main ball handler in the second unit, similar to what McDaniel did last season. She has the talent to go and get 10-plus points a night off the bench in her freshman season.
McDowell’s numbers from her freshman campaign didn’t jump off the page. She averaged 4.1 points and 1.4 rebounds in 13.9 minutes per game. That said, Staley praised her efforts on both ends of the floor, calling her “predicatable.” Tac has shown in spurts that she can help off the bench but hasn’t been able to stay fully healthy. She’s already a valued asset off the court — if she stays healthy, she can be a key player.
Of the incoming freshmen who make up the “bench role players” section, Oliviyah Edwards has the potential to slide into the second unit. Edwards comes in as a five-star forward and the No. 3 ranked recruit in the country. She’s another extremely talented player in a loaded post player group, so she might have to wait her turn this coming season. If she produces off the bench early, she could easily find a way to get more minutes from someone on the second unit.
Wynn and Andrews are both highly touted recruits but, like Edwards, are in a loaded position group. That doesn’t mean they won’t play at all in their respective freshman years, but it’s not a total stretch to say they won’t see much playing time.
Per usual, Staley has an embarrassment of riches on her roster. Most of the players on her bench could go anywhere else in the country and start. Yet, they’re all bought in and putting the team first at South Carolina. Plus, there isn’t really a set order in which players will see the floor.
There will still be ways for Gamecocks to impact the game regardless of when they play. Case in point: Joyce Edwards led the team in scoring her freshman year despite coming off the bench in all but one game.
Bonus lineup
There’s a world where Staley doesn’t go with the conventional three guard, two forward lineup and opts for the four guard lineup. Here’s what that could project to look like:
Four-guard lineup
- G: Maddy McDaniel
- G: Agot Makeer
- G: Jordan Lee
- G: Tessa Johnson
- F: Joyce Edwards
The four-guard lineup feels like the likely second-best option if Kitts and/or Watkins aren’t ready to begin the 2026-27 season in the starting five. If she wanted, Staley could run this lineup for a few games until Kitts/Watkins get their legs back and are back up to game speed.
Makeer was often the fourth guard on the floor last season when Staley went with this look, so it feels safe to slide her into this hypothetical starting five. She showed she is a future star during the NCAA Tournament and even got a few starts under her belt during the regular season.
Let’s get crazy...
Enough of the in-depth analysis, let’s have look at a potential wacky lineup to wrap things up.
Skyscraper Lineup
- F: Joyce Edwards
- F: Chloe Kitts
- F: Ashlyn Watkins
- F: Adhel Tac
- F: Alicia Tournebize
- Sixth woman: Oliviyah Edwards
The skyscraper lineup would just be fun to watch. Not a single player on the floor would be under 6-foot-3, and you’d have 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-7 players patrolling the paint in Tournebize and Tac. The best part of the skyscraper lineup is the potential for dunking. All three of Watkins, Tournebize and Edwards have dunked in a game before during their careers. Watkins is the only one who has dunked in a game for the Gamecocks.
Is there a shot Staley uses either of these lineups in a game? Probably not, but it’s fun to imagine.
