After a year where expectations were high and his struggles to meet them were evident, sophomore guard PJ Dozier hopes to turn the page on last season and be the player that everyone expected him to be as a five-star recruit out of high school.
Dozier’s struggles as a freshman are well-documented. His 90 turnovers led the team last season — a statistic that becomes even more staggering when recognizing that five other players saw more court time than him. Of the six players who played the most last season, Dozier’s field goal percentage was the worst.
Frank Martin was blunt on the struggles that Dozier experienced freshman year.
“He was, like, tired of treading water in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and had not seen land in six weeks," he said.
Yet Martin was quick to follow up his analogy of Dozier’s struggles with what the Columbia native has done to improve himself for this upcoming season, and what Martin has done to help his young guard along. Then in a nonchalant, almost matter of fact manner, he made a bold statement: “He’s got star written all over him.”
Dozier personally refers to last years' struggles as “lack of productivity," but accepts the blame for them. He was quick to shut down coach Martin being faulted for anything negative he experienced last season, and both of them shared how they believe that their relationship has grown due to the struggles of last season and that they expect everyone to be better off because of what they have since learned.
When reminded of the praise given to him by Martin just weeks prior, a small grin appeared on Dozier’s face.
“Well that’s great news to hear,” Dozier said very light-heartedly. “It’s always good to hear your head coach give you such a great compliment.”
Teammate John Ragin, who played against Dozier in practice all of last season, spoke to the changes he has seen in Dozier
“He’s definitely shooting the ball a lot better, and I think he’s taking more control, like a point guard should do, he’s taking more control of the game when he’s on the court," Ragin said.
Gamecock fans will look to see if the supposed future star of their team will finally live up to the hype that has surrounded him since his high school playing days. They hope to see the emergence of the PJ Dozier they expected to see last year, the player who came in as the No. 4 point guard in his class, and the No. 19 overall player. South Carolina fans hope that their star has arrived.