South Carolina head coach Frank Martin has provided an update on suspended guard Rakym Felder.
Martin told SportTalk’s Phil Kornblut on Thursday that a meeting with Felder is in the works and will likely take place next week.
Frank Martin said he is going to New York December 21st or 22nd and will meet point guard Rakym Felder on one of those days about his possible return to the university and the program.
— SportsTalk (@sportstalksc) December 14, 2017
Felder was suspended from the team and university in August after a July arrest, but the charges were later dropped.
He played 14.6 minutes per game last season and had a key role in helping the Gamecocks earn their first Final Four in school history.
Lovell’s Analysis
Losing Felder was a big reason why I ranked South Carolina as low as I did in my preseason power rankings.
While his numbers weren’t off the charts, he played big minutes for the Gamecocks in the NCAA Tournament and had a standout performance in the second round victory over Duke.
Coming into the season, it felt like he was the team’s best playmaker in the backcourt, and not having him on the court had led to inconsistencies within South Carolina’s guard play.
Obviously, it’s way too early to know if or when Felder could rejoin the team.
However, should the Gamecocks get his services back this season, it would go a long way toward fixing some of the scoring issues and make South Carolina a bigger threat in the SEC.