Dawn Staley declares Joyce Edwards will one day be the best player in college basketball

South Carolina freshman Joyce Edwards has lived up to the hype and then some thus far in her college career after being ranked as one of the top women’s basketball players in the country in the class of 2024.

The Camden, South Carolina native leads the Gamecocks in scoring this season at 12.2 points per game. She’s also pulling down 4.8 rebounds per game.

Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley made a bold prediction about Joyce Edwards after South Carolina beat LSU on Friday, declaring that she will be the best player in the country at some point during her college career.

“Joyce is, I’m going to put it out there, Joyce is going to be the best player in college basketball one day,” Dawn Staley said. “I say that only because of her work ethic and her intellect and her want. She’s highly motivated.”

Joyce Edwards was the Gatorade National Player of the Year prior to signing with South Carolina after averaging 31.3 points, 13.3 rebounds, 4.5 steals and 3.3 blocks per game as a senior.

This season she is averaging 12.2 points, despite coming off the bench and playing only 20.3 minutes per game. On Friday against LSU, Edwards scored 14 points and had 4 rebounds in 19 minutes.

Dawn Staley compared Joyce Edwards to a former Gamecock who won the National Player of the Year during her time at South Carolina in Aliyah Boston.

“She’s very Aliyah-like when it comes to what she pours into her game,” Staley said. “So a lot of times basketball will repay you in such a way that you become the best player in the country.”

Joyce Edwards helped the South Carolina bench outscore LSU’s 31-2 on Friday, which was a huge difference in the top-5 showdown.

Later on in her career, Edwards is sure to move into a starting role, but for now she is excelling off the bench as South Carolina chases another national title.

“Joyce injects what we need. She has the physical presence to guard. She has the moxie to guard. She plays with huge bravado on both sides of the basketball,” Staley said. “She believes if she’s got a smaller person on her, or a bigger person, she’s going to score.

“She defends. Like she’s unafraid. So, I mean what she can keep giving us is what she’s given un. And she plays the right way. She makes good basketball decisions. And that’s why she’s able to be as efficient as she’s been over the past couple of games.”