Chloe Kitts has been South Carolina’s brightest star to start this season. She is nearly averaging a double-double, and her 14.0 points and 9.8 rebounds both lead the Gamecocks.
It has been a remarkable evolution for Kitts. She was a starter for much of last season but was occasionally replaced later in the year and frequently drew the ire of fans. The evolution didn’t happen by chance. It is the product of an intense summer of hard work.
Kitts, Dawn Staley, and Molly Binetti have talked about the journey.
Originally a member of the 2023 signing class, Kitts instead enrolled early and joined the Gamecocks in December 2022. She began her career as a skinny 6-2 guard in an attempt to take advantage of her shooting ability.
That half-season was often disappointing as Kitts wasn’t physically ready for college. In the offseason, she gained almost 15 pounds of muscle and earned the starting forward job. Kitts averaged 9.1 points and 5.9 rebounds, highlighted by a double-double in the national championship game.
But Kitts was affectionately referred to as a baby giraffe by some fans for her tendency to flail around, and by her own admission, “Last year I was falling every possession.”
And when she lost all the weight she had worked so hard to gain, Kitts realized she needed to modify her approach.
“Last year, after the season, I lost like 18 pounds. I was trying to figure out what I could do because that was my full season (gains),” Kitts said. “Me and her were talking about it and I was like, maybe I should lift before because that’s what NBA people do. Maybe it would be beneficial for me. I go in there with her. A lot of people don’t give credit to Jeremy (Ford), our dietician. Molly’s part of it, but Jeremy’s – what you fill your body with is the most important part. He deserves more credit, and I really appreciate him.”
That doesn’t mean Kitts stopped lifting. In a social media post, Binetti, the team’s performance coach, said Kitts “beat down my door.”
“The way I approach my job is to form a partnership,” Binetti wrote in the post. “My ultimate goal is for our players to take ownership of their own development. I’m a guide to help along the way. The players who see the best results are the ones who embrace that. Chloe has beat down my door all year – off-day lifts, 2-a-day lifts, game day lifts. We plan out what we do together, but she’s the driving force. She deserves all the credit- consistent work pays off. Proud of her!”
The hard work led to more confidence.
“I just feel more confident day by day,” Kitts said. “The offseason for me was staying in the weight room. I spend more time in the weight room than I do getting up extra work because I realized that was more beneficial for me. I don’t need to be in the gym every day after practice. I need to be in the weight room. Every day. Even lifting before – I lift every game day. That’s the biggest thing that’s helped me, and I will continue to do that.”
The confidence led to a stellar debut against Michigan when Kitts had 19 points and tied her career-high with 14 rebounds. The success increased her confidence still more.
“When you put it to work, and you actually see her work displayed in actual games, it gives you a confidence boost,” Dawn Staley said. “She increased her range – like, the three is much more fluid and comfortable. She knows how to pick and choose her spots, and she knows how to force the issue. And she’s rebounding the basketball. She’s just playing at a really high level, and it’s really good to see because this is really the start of our fourth semester, which is nothing – she’s a sophomore, really.”
Kitts had to serve a one-game academic suspension against NC State, but when she returned, she scored another 19 points against Coppin State. She had 14 points against ECU and four against Clemson. She’s now at the top of opponents’ scouting reports.
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“She’s got the target on her back as far as the scouting report,” Staley said. “I think once she sees how they are guarding her after that first possession, she probably needs to just kind of make them forget about it a little bit and then come back. Sometimes, it does a defense good to think that you’re not gonna be as aggressive as you’ve been, especially when you miss. I think she missed two layups at the beginning of the game. I think she started pressing a little bit. She’ll adjust. I’m not worried about Chloe.”
Although she only scored four points against Clemson, Kitts still grabbed eight rebounds. She didn’t let the lack of points change how hard she played the game.
That matters for a team still in search of its identity this season. One of the few certainties is that Kitts will play hard from the opening tip, whether she wins it or not. And she’s still going to fall down, although she says gotten it down to “a little bit.”
