Lamont Paris and the South Carolina men’s basketball team secured their first commitment from the transfer portal on Saturday. Christ Essandoko, a 7-foot center from Providence, announced his commitment to the Gamecocks on social media. He visited USC with his family over the weekend. Essandoko will be transferring to his third college, having previously played at St. Joseph’s and then Providence.
A native of France, Essandoko has two years of eligibility remaining. He appeared in 22 games for the Friars this past season, making seven starts, and averaged 4.3 points and 3.9 rebounds. Essandoko spent his final two years of high school basketball at Winston-Salem Christian Academy in North Carolina, where he averaged 15 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks per game as a senior.
Essandoko was one of four transfer players who visited South Carolina this weekend. Christian May from Towson shared photos of his visit on Instagram. North Dakota guard Treysen Eaglestaff and South Florida’s Kobe Knox are also expected to visit, according to GamecockCentral and TheBigSpur.
Eaglestaff, one of the most highly sought-after guards in the portal, was an all-Summit League selection this season, averaging 18.3 points per game. He scored a career-high 51 points against South Dakota State in the Summit League tournament earlier this month.
South Carolina has already lost four players to the transfer portal and will lose four more to graduation. The men’s basketball transfer portal opened on March 24 and will remain open until April 22.
