Lamont Paris evaluates new signee Abu Yarmah: 'My kind of guy'
With one scholarship left to give (and currently being saved for Collin Murray-Boyles), South Carolina men’s basketball’s offseason roster rebuild is nearly complete.
Since the season ended, the Gamecocks have primarily focused on adding transfer portal talent to go along with the four high school players who were already signed.
But South Carolina did add one final prep prospect to its 2026 class recently when wing Abu Yarmah announced a somewhat surprising commitment to the Gamecocks.
The Gamecocks staff was already familiar with the 6-foot-7, 205-pounder from watching him play alongside signees Eli Ellis and Hayden Assemian at Moravian Prep and the YNG Dreamerz in Overtime Elite.
MORE: Insights on South Carolina men’s basketball’s three most recent signees
“I’m excited about this entire class, all the new faces, but Abu is, you know, it’s just an interesting process,” head coach Lamont Paris said this week at a Welcome Home Tour stop. “We had seen Abu a lot, just because he was teammates with Eli Ellis, and then in his last year, Hayden Assemian were all on the same team. And so Abu was already signed at High Point, and just got a chance to see him play a bunch. You know, obviously not thinking too much about it.”
The one-time High Point signee opened his recruitment after a coaching change there, which gave Paris and Co. an intriguing prospect to consider as a late addition.
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“But then, when they had a coaching change, and he decided that he was going to open his recruiting back up, and we had some availability and need for a guy who’s got good size and skill,” Paris continued. “He’s a tremendous young man and incredibly appreciative of the opportunity that he has in front of him. So, just my kind of guy.”
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Yarmah averaged 13.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game during the championship series in helping his squad win the OTE Championship this March. He had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds in the series-clinching win over City Reapers on March 14.
In his first OTE season in 2023-24, Yarmah averaged 10.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game.
“It seems as if every time I have watched Abu play, he has grown as a player,” Paris said in a recent statement. “He’s shooting the ball more consistently from the 3-point line, making more plays as a rebounder and defender and has continued to improve physically and athletically as well. He can make 3s at a high level and needs very little room to get his shot off. He has a very good frame for a young guy and has a great foundation that we look to help him build upon.”
