Jerzy Robinson has arrived on campus. What to know about USC’s five-star freshman
Five-star guard Jerzy Robinson arrived to South Carolina’s campus on June 13, signaling the start of her career with Dawn Staley and the Gamecock women’s basketball team. Robinson is one of the top recruits in the Class of 2026 and picked South Carolina after a recruiting process that stretched back to her early teens.
“Jerzy is an all-level scorer who can shoot it from outside, get to her spots and be physical in the paint,” Staley said in an April news release. “Beyond that, she has a winning mentality that she brings to every possession and every matchup she faces. Her competitive spirit and confidence will elevate our program.”
Here’s what to know about Robinson:
- Robinson said her bond with Staley dates back to a nervous first phone call when she was 14 or 15, and that connection ultimately drove her to commit because she felt appreciated and loved by the program.
- The 6-foot guard from Sierra Canyon in California announced her commitment live on ESPN’s “NBA Today” on Dec. 23, 2025, becoming the last top-10 recruit in the ESPN Class of 2026 to pick a school. Robinson is ranked No. 6 nationally by ESPN.
- South Carolina beat out blue-blood programs including LSU, UConn, UCLA, Southern Cal, Iowa and Notre Dame for Robinson’s talents.
- Gamecock legend A’ja Wilson sent a video message welcoming Robinson to the Gamecock family after the announcement.
- She was a star at Sierra Canyon High School in California. She passed JuJu Watkins as Sierra Canyon’s all-time leading scorer her senior year.
- Robinson was named to the 2026 McDonald’s All-American Girls West roster. She’s the 30th McDonald’s All-American coached by Staley.
- Sierra Canyon head coach Alicia Komaki describes Robinson as a “complete, all-around basketball player” who can guard one through five positions, telling The State that her defense is what the high school team misses most when she’s out.
- Robinson has won three gold medals with Team USA — at the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup, 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup and 2023 FIBA Americas U16 Championship — and earned MVP honors in both 2024 and 2023.
- ESPN’s Shane Laflin believes Robinson has the best odds of South Carolina’s 2026 signees to make an immediate impact as a freshman.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.
This story was originally published June 18, 2026 at 8:31 AM.