By ADAM ZAGORIA
Canadian star A.J. Lawson is headed to South Carolina.
The 6-foot-7 Class of 2018 wing chose the Gamecocks over Creighton and Tulane on Tuesday. He also considered Oregon and SMU, but never visited them.
“I chose South Carolina because of the relationships I built with Coach Frank [Martin], and their coaching staff,” Lawson told ZAGSBLOG. “Also, its like a family feeling at South Carolina. My dad [Anthony Lawson]‘s family is from there and they made me feel welcomed.”
Lawson, an athletic wing who can get to the rim and shoot the three and is ranked by North Pole Hoops as the No. 4 player in the country, visited South Carolina in late May.
“It was amazing, to be honest,” he said of the visit. “My family was there, Coach Coop [GTA coach David Cooper], it was a great experience. My first official visit, so I was new to everything. It was just a good time, I had my family there. We all just jelled together and had a great time. It was a great visit.”
— Anthony Lawson ⚡ (@ItsAJLawson) January 7, 2018
Martin and assistant Chuck Martin watched Lawson throughout the recent FIBA U18 Americas Championship in St. Catharines, Ontario, where he averaged 14.8 points and 5.4 rebounds in the tournament in which Canada lost the gold-medal game to the U.S.
“When I go to South Carolina, I will be bringing my skill set of playing hard and intense defense, pushing the ball and making plays for myself and my teammates to succeed,” he said.
“I’m excited for him to get bigger and stronger and continue to work on his shot,” Cooper said. “That’s what’s really going to help take him to the next level.”
Lawson joins point guard T.J. Moss, shooting guard Jermaine Couisnard, small forward Keyshawn Bryant and power forward Alanzo Frink in South Carolina’s 2018 class.
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