REACTION: Ta'Lon Cooper Provides The Gamecocks Much-Needed Playmaking
South Carolina fans woke up to good news Wednesday morning when On3's Joe Tipton reported that former Minnesota Golden Gopher Ta'Lon Cooper is transferring to South Carolina. The 6-4 guard was a highly coveted prospect in the portal because of his elite ability to facilitate the Golden Gophers' offense last season.
This past season, Cooper dished 6.3 assists a game, the seventh-highest mark in college basketball. Cooper averaged 2.7 turnovers a game, which is solid considering his usage rates. Cooper's advanced ball security and ability to command an offense will be a welcome sight for the Gamecocks, who averaged 13.2 turnovers a game this past season.
The Roebuck, South Carolina native's ball-handling skills also make him very difficult to guard in one-on-one situations, with his highlight reel boasting multiple filthy ankle-breakers this past season.
In addition to being an excellent ball handler, Cooper might be one of the best floor generals in the country. Sometimes high assist numbers can be inflated for many reasons, but make no mistake. Cooper's advanced court vision allows him to find the open man more often than not.
Meechie Johnson had been the Gamecocks' primary ball-handler and distributor this past season. While Johnson is more than capable of running Lamont Paris' offense, Cooper's addition provides the offense with much more fluidity, allowing Johnson to be the more traditional scorer he can be.
Though Cooper's primarily known for his playmaking abilities, he's also an underrated scorer. He averaged 9.8 points per game with a 37.8% three-point percentage. After losing Chico Carter to the transfer portal, Cooper will partly help fill South Carolina's three-point shooting void.
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