Cam Scott, EJ Walker both plan to redshirt this season. Lamont Paris shares why

As South Carolina opened its season with a 91-72 win over North Carolina A&T on Tuesday, two players were spotted not in uniform.

Sophomore guard Cam Scott and freshman forward EJ Walker both donned black jumpsuits for the night and didn’t see any action on the court. Head coach Lamont Paris explained that the plan for both of them is to redshirt this season.

“I’ve had conversations with both of them, and they have talked with their families and their inner circles, and they’ve conveyed that to me,” Paris said. “Certainly, at any point, if someone wants to pull the redshirt off, that’s the thing that we can do. Honestly, I think it’s a demonstration of commitment to what you believe about the future of those players.”

Scott, a former four-star recruit coming out of high school, played in 26 games for the Gamecocks last season. He averaged 2.5 points and 1.3 rebounds per game.

Scott played three minutes in the team’s exhibition game on Oct. 26 against NC State. He didn’t score any points and had one rebound. Walker, meanwhile, didn’t see any action in that game.

“He’s got some things that he wants to attack during this season that are easier done while you’re in a redshirt situation,” Paris said.

Paris said Scott wants to improve certain parts of his game while redshirting, including from a physicality standpoint. He’ll also be getting plenty of work in with the scout team throughout the year to help with those goals.

“I told him, I said, ‘You’ve got to take that team over,'” Paris said. “Like they’re going to be some days you’re going to be a guy that assists like crazy. Other days are going to be a guy that drives to the basket. Other days, you’re going to be a guy that’s just a catch-and-shoot guy. And so all those things help a guy develop his game. So I think it could be really good for him.”

Walker, a 6-foot-7, 253-pound freshman from Florence, Kentucky, was a three-star prospect and the No. 2 player in the state of Kentucky, according to On3.

“EJ is one of the most improved players from the day that we got here to right now,” Paris said. “As you can see in the frontcourt, we’ve got a lot of guys that have performed well.”

Walker played five seasons of varsity basketball at Lloyd Memorial High School, where he averaged 13.7 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. He’s the school’s all-time leader in career points with 1,922.

The Gamecocks will be back at home again on Sunday, Nov. 9, as they will host Southern Miss. Tip-off is at 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network.

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