Arden Conyers commits to dream school in South Carolina, talks decision
Arden Conyers still remembers going to a South Carolina men’s basketball game when he was younger and getting a picture with Cocky.
The local kid grew up wanting to play for the Gamecocks, and Monday night he made that a reality.
“Emotionally, it’s starstruck,” he told GamecockCentral. “It’s crazy how everything works. I put in a lot of work. Emotionally, I’m just very excited to get to work.”
Conyers committed to South Carolina, becoming the program’s second commitment in as many days.
“South Carolina got in the mix and it got hard. When they started offering me, contacting me and getting me on the campus it was hard,” Conyers told GamecockCentral. “It was hard to turn that down. I talked a lot and it was stressful. I talked with my parents, but I had to follow my heart and choose South Carolina.”
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Conyers, who also plays locally at Westwood High School, picked the Gamecocks over schools like Georgia State, Winthrop and Furman.
The recruitment started once Lamont Paris took over and continued over the summer. South Carolina officially offered the 6-foot-6 wing last week and it culminated in his commitment Monday night.
“Just the way coach Paris was talking to me the excitement he has in his eyes. I can feel how excited he was to talk to me,” he said. “When I saw the practice facility, the training and the strength coaches. I was looking at the staff and said, ‘I want to be here.’
South Carolina’s staff scouted him plenty over the course of June and July, watching him play with both his high school team and on the grassroots circuit.
Conyers impressed the Gamecocks, he said, with his ability to shoot the ball and versatility on the floor.
On3 does not have Conyers ranked yet.
“Coach Paris emphasized I’m very versatile. I can play a lot of positions. There might be a stretch where I can be a spot-up shooter and there might be a stretch where I come off ball screens and going downhill,” he said.
“There can be a situation where I play the four. There’s a lot of versatility. Freshman year, I want to make a point to coach Paris and want to establish my versatility. Everything he told me I can do I want to prove I can do it.”
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He’s AAU teammates with Collin Murray-Boyles, who committed to the Gamecocks publicly Sunday afternoon.
Both South Carolina assistants Eddie Shannon and Tanner Bronson were driving factors in both recruitments.
“It’s great. My and Collin, we’re great friends but I feel we’re even better teammates. We’re very good together,” Conyers said. “I feel like we mesh well on the court together. It really helps having two freshmen coming in together and we know each other.”
Conyers is heading into his senior season at Westwood where his goal is to improve in every aspect of his game, specifically his body.
“I feel like I have the skill but feel I need to build my body up but I want to work on some of my skills and my ball handling. I want to work on a lot of stuff but the main thing is my body,” he said. “Want to make sure I’m healthy, make sure I hit my goals for the school year.”
Now that he’s in the boat, though, attention turns now to helping Murray-Boyles recruit some of the Gamecocks’ other priority targets in the class like Jordan Butler.
“It’s great to stay home and be on the biggest stage. We’re in the SEC,” Conyers said of the pitch. “Coach Paris is going to push you and you’re going to like it. Why not stay home if you’re on the biggest stage.”
