South Carolina women's basketball: Player comparisons for the Gamecock freshmen

What can South Carolina expect from its highly-touted freshman class? To get an idea, we find a player comparison for each of the freshmen.

Oliviyah Edwards
Forward, 6-3
Player comparison: Ashlyn Watkins/Candace Parker hybrid

Edwards’ athleticism and size put her in rare company. There just aren’t that many 6-3/6-4 players who can run and jump like these three.

Physically, Edwards resembles Watkins: strong and physical. Parker was a more fluid athlete with an incredibly versatile offensive game. Edwards has a bit of that fluidity and versatility – more than Watkins – but definitely not as much as Parker. If Edwards is committed to improving, Parker might be her ceiling down the road.

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Jerzy Robinson
Guard, 6-2
Player comparison: JuJu Watkins

Robinson doesn’t just remind me of Watkins because she broke her career scoring record at Sierra Canyon. They have a similar size and an NBA-style offensive game. 

Both are three-level scorers who are especially effective posting up, and they rely more on strength, angles, and footwork than speed, and are so skilled that they look like they are moving in slow motion while everyone else is rushing.

Watkins set the NCAA freshman scoring record and was the national player of the year as a sophomore, so no pressure, Jerzy. They’ll meet on November 15 in Greenville. Should be fun.

Kaeli Wynn
Wing, 6-2
Player comparison: Kayla Thornton

Thornton hung around on WNBA rosters because she was a defensive grinder. Last season, Golden State finally gave her a chance to be a scorer, too, and Thornton was an All-Star. 

Wynn is probably a little bit better shooter and not quite as strong on defense as Thornton, but otherwise they are fairly similar. The most important comparison is that both play winning basketball.

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Kelsi Andrews
Forward, 6-3
Player comparison: Jump-shooting Kiah Stokes

It was hard to find a good comparison for Andrews because injuries have had such an effect on her career that it’s not easy to project what kind of player she could be if she’s healthy for more than a year. 

Right now, she reminds me of Stokes – a 6-3, defensive-minded forward (remember how A’ja Wilson insisted her second Defensive Player of the Year Award be shared with Stokes?) who rebounds well. Andrews already has a better jumper than Stokes, and her offensive potential is probably higher.

Justine Loubens
Wing, 6-1
Player comparison: European Joe Ingles

Loubens is a lefty who has a distinctly European feel to her game. I couldn’t think of another lefty European, but Ingles is a lefty Australian. 

Ingles, who played most of his NBA career for the Utah Jazz, is a 6-8 small forward with a lightning-quick release and a knack for getting to the rim despite not being particularly athletic. Loubens is a 6-1 wing with a lightning-quick release and a knack for getting to the rim despite not being particularly athletic. Sounds familiar.

They get to the rim in different ways. Ingles usually did it off the bounce, while Loubens does a great job cutting without the ball. But they both finish surprisingly well.

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