South Carolina seniors ready to make their mark in the WNBA

“It’s been amazing. I’m glad I came up here and could do this presser because I’m just not as upset as you would think I would be,” Hall told media. “I’m so appreciative of everything that this program has done for me. Coach has put me in a great position. I’ve won two national championships. It’s upsetting, of course, to lose and you’re right there. But, I mean, I can’t express how appreciative I am of this program. I just had such a great experience here.”

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The loss marked the end of the college careers of Te-Hina Paopao, Sania Feagin, Sakima Walker and Hall.

Hall’s demeanor was perhaps illustrative of the kind of consummate professionals that head coach Dawn Staley develops.

“They are the epitome of who we need to be successful — their approach to practice, their approach to life,” Staley said praising some of the intangibles of her graduating seniors.

Raven Johnson, originally expected to graduate this year, has a year of eligibility left and indicated that while she wasn’t ready to make an official announcement yet, “I might come back, so that probably wasn’t the end.” Walker played limited minutes in her two years at South Carolina, even more limited this past season due to injury, but she still played a role on the 2024 National Championship winning squad. She is not expected to get drafted or go pro. Paopao, Feagin and Hall are expected to be drafted into the WNBA.

Staley’s opening statement both thanked the seniors for their contributions to the program and expressed her confidence in their ability to succeed in the WNBA.

“I have to say goodbye to a senior class that had a historical impact on our game and our program and our conference and our city and our state,” Staley said. “Although they won’t be in our huddle anymore, I’m sure they’ll find their way in another huddle at the next level. And I just want to show my gratitude, my appreciation for all they’ve done for our program because they elevated us and took us to a place where we could only imagine.”

Staley is known for recruiting incredibly talented teams and developing players in a way that prioritizes what will help them succeed at the professional level, regardless of their role or how long it takes them to earn a starting spot.

There are some key characteristics that Staley feels are present in all of her seniors and are strong reasons they should succeed as professionals.

“They’re winners, number one,” Staley said. “Two, they’ve been coached up. So any situation they’ll be able to handle, any role they’ll be able to handle. … They defend. They’ll have a really good understanding of how to defend. And they are young people that are good people, good to be around, can handle any role and will be an asset to any franchise.”

Looking at their individual strengths, each of the graduating gamecocks has shown significant development in different areas of their game in their time with Staley.

For the most in-depth explanation of player profiles, roles, scouting reports, player comparisons and why Paopao, Feagin and Hall should be drafted into the WNBA on April 14 check out The Next’s 2025 WNBA Draft Board, V2.0. Here are just some abbreviated summaries of each players’ potential strengths as professionals:

The Next’s Draft Board panel considers Paopao an early first round prospect. Paopao was great when she transferred from Oregon after her junior season, but over two seasons at South Carolina she went from “a clear negative defensively” to “a more-than-capable defender.”

The 5’9 guard is also “one of the best shooters in the country.” Over her five-year college career, Paopao shot an impressive 40% from behind the arc while also having a strong midrange game and developing a better floater in recent years. She can add a lot of value as a secondary ball handler and elite shooter while not being exposed defensively.

Feagin and Hall spent their entire college careers in South Carolina and were part of the elite group to win two national championships, in 2022 and 2024. As freshmen, they averaged 4.3 and 9.3 minutes played per game respectively on the way to their first national title. As juniors, and established key contributors, they won their second national championship. As seniors, they averaged 19.8 and 23.5 minutes per game as starters for the national runners-up.

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Both developed immensely over four years, improving their game while often sitting on the bench, waiting their turn behind players like Aliyah Boston and Zia Cooke.

“Obviously they’re one of the winningest classes that have been a part of the Gamecocks. But [they’re resilient],” freshman standout Joyce Edwards said explaining what she’d take away from the departing seniors. “Their worlds have changed over the years, and they could have transferred at any moment, especially earlier in the beginning when they may not have been playing as much. But you see how they’ve just grown into themselves and they stay resilient. And they just kept pushing and fighting and ended up winning.”

This is one of the keys to Staley’s development of professionals: She teaches players who were the stars on their high school teams to play a role and maximize their effect within their strengths. They do not demand high ball usage and will do what you need them to do. They are also remarkably coachable.

The Draft Board panel pointed out that the work put in to play up to their talent level instead of transferring indicates a “level of coachability and dedication that can be hard to find.” It is also possible that there is still more to Feagin’s game in particular now that she has reached this mental level. Staley knows how important this mindset is as a pro.

“I could have real conversations with them that maybe would probably hurt other people’s feelings, and they allow me to be me because they know I’m just coming to them from a place of wanting them to get better, wanting them to continue their winning ways and also preparing them for the next level,” Staley said. “Because when you go to the next level, it is sink or swim.

“It’s probably not going to be from a coach’s tongue, more so probably from a teammate, from somebody that is highly motivated, highly competitive and wants to win. Hopefully I’ve prepared them to be able to take in that and have some staying power at the next level.”

Feagin is not like the superstar centers that have come out of South Carolina like A’ja Wilson, Boston and Kamilla Cardoso but she is “a pro-ready center for a league of teams paying through the nose for post depth.” The 6’3 center has proven a “reliable complementary piece on multiple championship teams” both defensively and offensively. On an elite defensive team, Feagin has been a standout because of communication, footwork, coordination, positioning and ability to recover from hedges.

Offensively, she will never be a top scoring option but she is a very good, smart basketball player. She is a skilled passer from anywhere on the court, an improved screener and an efficient shooter (60.1% from the field during the 2024-25 season), particularly having improved her spot-up midrange shot. Feagin could “thrive as a lower-usage offensive option who can be efficient in a variety of spots, while taking on more defensive responsibility and making an impact as a role player on a contender.”

Hall is very similar story but in the backcourt. The 6’0 guard with a 6’5 wingspan was often tasked with the toughest defensive assignment and is the epitome of a 3-&-D player. Think Lexie Hull — a good spot-up shooter from behind the arc who earns their playing time with their calling-card defense. Hall has guarded the best guards in the country from Madison Booker and Mikaylah Williams to Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark. Her length is well-used to defend 3-point shooters, she has a high motor and sound footwork.

On the offensive end, Hall plays within her role brilliantly. She understands her weaknesses and does not force the issue, resulting in the kind of low usage rate and high-efficiency play you want from bench role players. Hall converted 38.3% of her shots from behind the 3-point line in 2024-25.

They may not be No. 1 overall picks like Boston and Wilson, but the graduating Gamecocks who hope to hear their name called at the 2025 WNBA Draft have seen immense success in college and been trained to succeed as professionals thanks to their time at South Carolina.

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