Justine Loubens: A Crafty French Wing Joins Dawn Staley’s Loaded South Carolina Roster
Justine Loubens is an 18-year-old 6-1 perimeter player from France. South Carolina listed her as a guard in its official signing announcement, but she was primarily viewed as a small forward in her home country. Given her size and skill set, she projects best as a wing.
The left-handed Loubens brings good positional size for the perimeter, a promising jump shot, and the ability to handle the ball and finish at the rim. It’s a cliché to describe lefties as “crafty,” but Loubens truly fits the description.
“She is a crafty scorer,” the original scouting breakdown notes.
Loubens is not an elite athlete in terms of raw speed or explosiveness, yet she compensates with intelligence and timing. She consistently finds ways to get open shots, particularly favoring the corner three. Her shooting motion is smooth, quick, and released with clear confidence.
Shooting Analysis and Inconsistency Concerns
The biggest question mark for Loubens is three-point consistency at the elite level. She struggled significantly from beyond the arc at the 2025 U18 EuroBasket, going just 2-for-16 (12.5%). However, two years earlier at the U17 World Cup, she showed much higher upside, shooting 13-for-25 from deep.
Inside the arc, she was far more reliable at EuroBasket, converting 22-of-33 attempts. In domestic play with La Roche Vendée in France’s top league, she posted strong efficiency, averaging 6.5 points per game while shooting 63.9% from the field overall.
Analysis: These numbers suggest Loubens has the mechanics and touch to become a reliable shooter, but she remains streaky against top international competition. Her development in Columbia will likely focus on improving shot selection, adding strength to handle physical SEC defenses, and translating her junior-level promise into consistent production. Dawn Staley has a strong track record of developing international talent, which bodes well for Loubens’ growth.
Defense and Overall Profile
Defensively, Loubens appears solid for her age. Junior-level tournaments make it difficult to fully evaluate defense due to varying competition levels and schemes, but she rarely gets beaten off the dribble or out of position. She doesn’t generate many highlight-reel impact plays (steals or blocks), yet her positioning and discipline help her avoid negative contributions.
At 6-1 with a lefty release and craftiness around the rim, Loubens has the tools to defend multiple perimeter positions while offering offensive versatility.
The French Connection and Recruiting Context
Loubens’ signing adds another international flavor to South Carolina’s roster. She has prior chemistry with fellow French player Alicia Tournebize (a 6-7 forward who joined the Gamecocks earlier), having played together on French junior national teams.
“It probably isn’t a coincidence that Loubens played with Alicia Tournebize on French junior national teams and the two are friends. I’m not sure if it carries over, but they played off each other well at the U18 EuroBasket last summer.”
Having multiple international players (technically three when including Canadian Agot Makeer) should ease the transition for both Loubens and Tournebize.
Former Arkansas head coach Mike Neighbors highlighted the importance of this approach during a past SEC Tipoff event:
“I learned if you’re going to have one, you’d better have two or three. Because (with) one, they tend to feel lonely. You’d better have two or three.”
The cultural support could help Loubens adjust to life in the United States and the physicality of the SEC. Practically, it also means South Carolina will bring two French players “home” when the Gamecocks open the upcoming season in Paris against Maryland.
Likely Role: Developmental Wing in a Stacked Roster
Whether described as a “project” or “developmental player,” that label fits Loubens well. She joins a South Carolina team that returns significant talent and depth across every position — and especially on the wing and in the frontcourt.
Analysis: In the short term, Loubens is unlikely to be a major rotation piece on a roster featuring high-level recruits and veterans. Instead, she should benefit from redshirt or limited minutes early on, focusing on strength training, refining her three-point consistency, and learning Staley’s defensive system. Over time, her combination of size, shooting potential, and craftiness could make her a valuable contributor — particularly as a stretch wing who can punish defenses from the corner or create off the dribble.
South Carolina’s ability to continue adding high-upside international prospects while maintaining a loaded domestic core speaks to the program’s global recruiting reach and development reputation under Dawn Staley.
Loubens represents another calculated addition: low-risk in terms of immediate expectations, but with intriguing long-term upside if her shooting touch stabilizes and her game matures in the SEC environment.
