South Carolina coach Dawn Staley has helped former players seeking new teams through the transfer portal. She has also served as a bridge for coaches interested in players seeking a fresh start or looking to join a new team that will fully utilize their potential.
She believes it’s fine to help players who are shy about talking to interested teams. However, she wants the NCAA to set restrictions. Staley is concerned about players who place their names in the transfer portal after just one season with a program, simply to continue their collegiate careers elsewhere.
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Staley, who led South Carolina to three women’s college basketball national championships in 2017, 2022, and 2024, guested alongside UCLA’s Cori Close and Texas’s Vic Schaefer on the “All The Smoke” podcast, hosted by NBA veterans Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, which was posted on YouTube on Friday.
Jackson asked the Gamecocks coach about how she handled the transfer of former guard MiLaysia Fulwiley to rival LSU. Staley didn’t directly address what went through Fulwiley’s process. Still, she indicated that it is usually a matter of dealing with several individuals who are aware of one player’s plan to transfer to another school.
“We deal with a whole slew of people that make this decision to say, ‘Hey, this this isn’t a place for you’ for whatever reason, I’m okay like I really am okay (with that),” Staley said. “I want Lay to be great, right? Even if it’s not with us, go where you’re happy. I’ve always said that to our players. Be where your mind is, go where you’re happy, and don’t look back.”
With this in mind, the former Olympic gold medalist noted that the transfer portal is getting out of control, as some players apparently abuse the process by transferring from one school to another season after season. Staley wanted the NCAA to place restrictions, such as requiring players to sit out for one season after transferring for the second or third time.
“You have to be committed to the game. And then for us, we don’t lose a lot of recruits. We don’t lose a lot of players off of our roster (if it pushes through),” she said.
Former Dawn Staley-Coached Players MiLaysia Fulwiley and Talaysia Cooper Are Shining
Sometimes, transferring to other schools for a change of scenery and added exposure works for players who feel they are under-utilized, or the system doesn’t fit their playing style.
MiLaysia Fulwiley played two seasons with South Carolina, and most of the time she came off the bench to provide the spark for the team. The 5’10” guard acts as the one who sustains the Gamecocks’ attack, which makes the team almost impossible to beat.
However, cracks started to creep in last season when she was immediately benched in South Carolina’s loss to UCLA due to her erratic performance. Though Fulwiley was able to bounce back in the team’s following assignments, the guard, who is tabbed as one of the up-and-coming women’s basketball stars, receives the ire of Staley, typically due to her errors and apparent boneheaded plays.
She eventually transferred to LSU and has averaged 17.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 4.8 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game in six outings for the Lady Tigers, who have passed the 100-point mark in all six games they played this season.
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Another player who transferred from South Carolina is Talaysia Cooper. The 6’0″ guard initially played for the Gamecocks in the 2022-23 season but sat out the following season as a redshirt after opting to transfer after the portal window had closed.
She played for Tennessee in the 2024-25 season and was a vital part of Kim Caldwell’s offense. In 40 games with the Lady Vols, Cooper has averaged 16.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 3.2 steals per game.
Although Dawn Staley has benefited from the transfer portal in the past, with players like Kamilla Cardoso and Te-Hina Paopao helping the Gamecocks claim national titles, she has also allowed some players the freedom to leave the team if they so desired.