South Carolina basketball coach Lamon Paris on the bench.
© Denny Medley-Imagn Images
Collin Murray-Boyles was the best player on the South Carolina basketball roster this past season. The forward drastically boosted his NBA stock with a solid sophomore campaign.
At the moment, he’s projected as a Top 15 pick in most mock drafts. Many think he’ll take the money and move onto the next level. That hasn’t stopped rivals from trying to change his mind, according to Gamecocks head coach Lamont Paris.
He sat down with SEC This Morning earlier in the week to speak on the current state of college basketball. NIL and the transfer portal were a topic of conversation.
Paris addressed some changes he’d like to see made regarding player recruitment. He exposed a tampering conference rival’s attempt to steal his top player in the process.
“Collin Murray-Boyles, who has no interest in going anywhere, got an offer for $2.5M from someone in our conference who was playing in the NCAA Tournament,” he said. The coach stopped shy of naming the suitor, which didn’t provide much help in uncovering the team given the league’s March Madness participation this season.
Fourteen of the SEC’s 16 teams made the field. South Carolina was one of the two teams to not play in the postseason. Lamont Paris has been busy on the recruiting trail while others continued their seasons. He’s already landed a number of highly touted transfers in the portal.
He’ll hope to keep his biggest fish put, though it may will be a tough task. Collin Murray-Boyles is projected to be the 11th player off the board in Bleacher Report’s most recent mock draft. He averaged career-highs in every major statistical category, racking up 16.8 points, 8.3 boards, and 2.4 assists per game as a sophomore.
Still, there is hope thanks to NIL. South Carolina can try to keep him put with a hefty cash offer.
Murray-Boyles is a native of Columbia, SC. His girlfriend is a member of the South Carolina women’s basketball team currently playing in the Final Four. Lamont Paris insists that he’s not going anywhere, at least as it pertains to a potential transfer.
The forward is NOT in the portal. Still, conference rivals are throwing money his way in hopes of poaching.