South Carolina HC Lamont Paris claims SEC rival offered $2.5M to poach Collin Murray-Boyles

South Carolina coach Lamont Paris revealed that a contending SEC team fished for Collin Murray-Boyles while speaking to Peter Burns of "SEC This Morning" on Sunday. Although he didn't provide the team or the representative's name, he said that the sophomore was offered $2.5 million by a team playing in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

"There's a school in the SEC that was in the tournament that offered Collin Murray-Boyles $2.5M to play for them next year," he said.

An NCAA Tournament-record 14 Southeastern Conference teams participated in the 2025 March Madness, leaving only the Gamecocks and the LSU Tigers out.

Ideally, a situation like this falls into tampering. A program coach, booster or staff member cannot discuss transfer with a player until the player enters the portal.

An athlete needs to initiate his/her transfer on their own, without outside influence. When caught, all the involved entities can face repercussions, which can result in recruiting restrictions, loss of scholarships, etc.

However, Lamont Paris said that there is no hard evidence of the revealed incident around Murray-Boyles:

"I think, one, is there any teeth to any potential repercussions for doing that? Probably not," Paris said. "Is it provable? Would we have to subpoena records to say, "The phone call happened at this time.' – I don’t think it’s enforceable."

Collin Murray-Boyles is eligible to enter the 2025 NBA draft

Collin Murray-Boyles, who has been with the Gamecocks for the last two years, has become a pivotal piece in the team's culture. He averaged 16.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks this season while shooting 58.6%.

By Lamont Paris' revelation of Murray-Boyles' potential poaching, it seems like the forward will not join the SEC contenders next season. However, it is also a possibility that the sophomore does not return to college basketball.

Collin Murray-Boyles is eligible for the 2025 draft, with notable outlets taking notice of his candidacy. The NBA's two-round mock puts him with the Dallas Mavericks as a second-round No. 13. ESPN sees the forward as a No. 16 pick landing with the San Antonio Spurs (via the Hawks).