South Carolina Basketball: Damontre Harris Seeks Transfer; Could Return to USC

Big things were expected from Damontre Harris and Anthony Gill. 

Both players have showcased plenty of talent during their young careers at South Carolina and were expected to step up for new coach Frank Martin in 2012-2013. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, Gill and Harris elected to seek transfer to another school and the Gamecocks' roster took a hit. 

Gill has decided to transfer to Virginia but Damontre Harris appears to be having some second thoughts after being granted his release to transfer to another school. 

The initial request from Harris was a bit of a surprise. He had been attending workouts with the Gamecocks after Frank Martin was hired at South Carolina a few short weeks ago. Everything appeared set for Harris to make his return to Columbia for his junior season. 

Something changed for Harris, and thus the request for the release to transfer was asked for and then granted by USC. 

Harris has set up official visits to the University of Florida and Kansas. Two dominant basketball programs of recent years; losing a player who could play at either of those schools would be a big loss for the Gamecocks. This is where there is a bit of hope for South Carolina. 

Carey Rich of 560 The Team mentioned on Twitter that Harris was having second thoughts about his decision to transfer. He was reportedly getting the push from an old high school coach to explore options outside of South Carolina. This has left Harris conflicted in his decision. He even attended an awards banquet for student-athletes at USC this past weekend in Columbia. 

South Carolina does have two open scholarships available so Frank Martin has the option of allowing Harris to remain a part of the Gamecock basketball team. 

It definitely sounds plausible that Harris could return to South Carolina. He could just as easily transfer to another school. This one appears to be up in the air and time will tell if Harris is a Gamecock next season.