6-2 PG Jacobi Wright of Fort Mill and Legacy Charter in Greenville became the second public commitment for USC’s 2021 basketball class on Sunday afternoon. Wright had narrowed his decision to the Gamecocks, Winthrop and Charlotte. He did multiple Zoom meetings with the staffs from all three schools, and had other forms of contact with the recruiters. In his final evaluation, what USC had over the other two programs was that big-time, major conference feel, and that fit into Wright’s future plans.
“They just kind of fit what I was looking for,” Wright said. “A great coaching staff, great environment. I know some of the players there. Big arena and big conference, I get the exposure that I am looking for. It’s just somewhere where I feel comfortable.”
Wright has visited USC for practices and games and has gotten to see up close how Frank Martin runs his team. He knows Martin is a good bit different from most coaches, and he’s looking forward to learning under his style of coaching.
“I know he coaches his players hard,” Wright said. “I know he’s going to stay on his players but I feel like that’s a great asset to have when you are trying to get better as a player because you don’t want somebody to be easy on you and let you make mistakes and be OK with it. I feel like he just motivates his player to become as close to perfect as possible and make them the best players that they can be. I really like the way he coaches. He just prepares you for life as well.”
Wright said Martin showed another side of himself when he let him and his staff know that he was going to be a Gamecock.
‘It was a lot of excitement,” Wright said. “They were just excited as I was to tell them. It just made me feel good because it made me feel like they really wanted me. He says I’m the perfect fit for what he’s built in the program and what the team needs when I come in. They say I have a great feel for the game. They said I’m a good leader of my team and a real solid point guard who can do a little bit of everything. They said I could fit well in running the team and leading them to where we need to go.”
Wright also had offers from St. John’s, DePaul, Elon, Tennessee State, Tulsa, UNC-Wilmington and Rhode Island. He averaged 17 points and 5 assists per game last season. He joins 6-4 Devin Carter of Miami as commitments for the Gamecocks’ 2021 class.
