Think about what it takes to assemble a recruiting class so loaded that four players crack the national top 30, two of them sit inside the top five, and a fifth arrives having already played professional basketball in Europe — and still not be considered the best class in the country. That is the reality of South Carolina’s 2026 recruiting haul, which ESPN women’s basketball recruiting analyst Shane Laflin ranked No. 2 nationally, and which by almost any reasonable measure represents one of the finest collections of incoming talent Dawn Staley has ever brought to Columbia.
“Dawn doesn’t bring in untalented classes,” Laflin told The State. “But, I mean, this is two top-five talents, right? And then two others that had been injured and very well could have been higher than that. It’s just kind of how the chips fell for them. This class stacks up there. Four kids in the top 30, two of them essentially top-five players in that range. It’s got to be up there.”
That framing is worth sitting with. The class’s ceiling — absent the injury setbacks that affected two of its members — may have been even higher than where it landed in the final rankings. What Staley ultimately signed is a group that combines elite athleticism, positional versatility, professional experience, and a level of basketball IQ that has analysts reaching for unusual comparisons. Let’s examine what each piece brings and why the whole adds up to something genuinely special.
Kelsi Andrews | Four-Star Forward | 6-3 | No. 30 ESPN
Andrews was the first domino to fall, committing on October 7 and signing November 12 out of IMG Academy. Her ranking took a hit after she suffered a torn meniscus in late October, but the pre-injury scouting reports painted a picture of a forward whose skill set runs far deeper than a typical big.
Laflin described her as a “five player” — the basketball term for a true center who can anchor a team’s interior — but her game isn’t confined to the paint. Her high school coach, Frank Oliver Jr., went a step further, likening Andrews’ skill set to three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic. That is a bold comparison, but there is a structural logic to it: both players combine interior finishing, two-handed touch around the rim, glass work, and the ability to function as a passer out of the post.
“Andrews is a formidable post presence,” Laflin wrote for ESPN. “She works the offensive glass, can finish with either hand around the rim and can stretch the floor. She is also a quality high-low passer, making her a valuable addition to a program like the Gamecocks, who use their bigs.”
For a South Carolina program that has built its identity around intelligent, versatile post play, Andrews is a natural fit — assuming she can return to full health and recapture the form that made her one of the most coveted forwards in the cycle.
Kaeli Wynn | Five-Star Forward | 6-2 | No. 19 ESPN
Wynn committed November 11 and signed the following day, becoming the first five-star prospect in the class. The Mater Dei product brings a profile that Laflin compared to current Gamecock standout Chloe Kitts — a multifaceted forward whose value extends well beyond raw physical tools.
“Kaeli Wynn [is] a multifaceted forward kind of in that same mold as Chloe Kitts, in that they’re feisty, and versatile, and they understand the game,” Laflin said. “Something that’s always been really cool about Kaeli to me is, she’s like a coach on the floor. Her parents are coaches. I joked with her before she got injured about being maybe the first player-coach at McDonald’s All-American just because she’s that active, talking on the floor, on the bench, and those things.”
That last observation matters more than it might seem. Vocal, communicative defenders who understand team schemes and can organize a defense in real time are extraordinarily valuable at the college level — and disproportionately rare among freshmen. Wynn’s injury complicated her senior season, but her basketball intelligence doesn’t require recovery time. That part of her game will be available from day one.
Jerzy Robinson | Five-Star Guard | 6-0 | No. 6 ESPN
Robinson is the player Laflin believes has the clearest path to immediate impact, and her résumé makes the case compellingly. She committed December 23 and signed April 15, arriving in Columbia as the No. 3 guard in the entire class nationally. At Sierra Canyon in California, she surpassed USC star JuJu Watkins to become the program’s all-time leading scorer — a school with a recruiting pedigree that makes that achievement genuinely meaningful.
“[Robinson’s] one of the more physical guards, if not the most physical perimeter player in the class,” Laflin said. “Very determined, very confident. In my opinion, played the best basketball of her career at times during her senior year.”
What gives Robinson’s profile added dimension — and what Laflin flagged as underappreciated — is her demonstrated ability to run a team at the point guard position when needed. In USA Basketball and Hoop Summit settings, she has shown she can function as a primary facilitator without sacrificing her scoring identity.
“I think an underrated part of Jerzy’s game is that I’ve seen her slide into that [point guard] spot and do that on multiple occasions, whether it was USA basketball or Hoop Summit,” Laflin said. “So I think there’s an opportunity for her there.”
For a program that will need someone to share ball-handling responsibilities, that versatility is a meaningful asset beyond her scoring ceiling.
Oliviyah Edwards | Five-Star Forward | 6-3 | No. 3 ESPN
Edwards is the crown jewel of the class — and her recruitment story alone deserves attention. Originally committed to Tennessee, she was granted a release in April, quickly visited South Carolina, and committed to the Gamecocks on April 23 before signing just four days later. The speed of that process was not accidental; it reflected just how decisive the fit felt for both sides.
Laflin was unambiguous about what her addition meant for the class’s national standing.
“It shoots them up into the discussion of the best class in terms of talent,” he said. “Adding Oliviyah late certainly shoots them into that conversation that they were not in before adding Oliviyah.”
He described her as a “massive outlier of a talent” in the mold of current Gamecock Joyce Edwards, and his written scouting report backs that up without hesitation. “She’s a skilled and multifaceted 6-3 forward who creates constant matchup problems,” Laflin wrote for ESPN. “She stretches the floor as a face-up shooter, can attack off the bounce and has the dexterity to finish with either hand at the rim.”
A 6-3 forward who can shoot off the face-up, attack off the dribble, and finish ambidextrously at the rim is an alignment nightmare for opposing defenses at any level. That she fell into South Carolina’s lap in April is the kind of roster-building fortune that programs spend years trying to manufacture.
Justine Loubens | Four-Star Wing | 6-1 | Unranked (International)
Loubens is the wild card of the class — and potentially its most intriguing long-term piece. She signed April 29 as a late addition, arriving not from a high school program but from La Roche Vendée, a club competing in France’s top professional women’s league. In 24 games at that level, she averaged 6.5 points and 2.5 rebounds while shooting a remarkable 63.9% from the field.
That efficiency number from a professional league is not a small thing. It suggests a player who doesn’t force shots, understands positioning, and operates within structure — exactly the kind of habits that translate smoothly into Dawn Staley’s system. Loubens also brings a prior connection to the program through current forward Alicia Tournebize, with whom she shared a French National Team roster in 2024, providing a built-in bridge for the cultural transition.
“Loubens, from France, understands spacing and can play all over the floor,” Laflin wrote. “A lefty forward, she can knock down the corner 3 or the straight line drive. She moves well without the basketball and is skilled at reading spacing and knowing when to get into position for an easy bucket.”
Floor spacing, off-ball movement, and positional intelligence — three qualities that complement rather than compete with the dominant interior presences South Carolina already has. Loubens doesn’t need to be a star to be a perfect fit.
Viewed as a whole, what Staley has assembled for 2026 is a class that covers nearly every positional need with above-average or elite talent. Two of the nation’s top five players. A proven interior passer who draws NBA comparisons. A guard who has already demonstrated she can run a team at the point. A wing who thinks like a coach. And a professional import who shot nearly 64% in France’s top league.
The No. 2 ranking, in that context, isn’t a slight. It is a reminder of just how extraordinary the standard has become for a program that has redefined what excellence looks like in women’s college basketball.
