NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of South Carolina of last decade

7. D. J. Burns – Winthrop

A mid-major star to this point in his career, Burns is a 6’9 forward from Rock Hill who has certainly gotten his college career going strong. He joined Pat Kelsey’s Winthrop squad back in 2019 and has been a focal point for the Eagles across the last three seasons, including this past year under new coach Mark Prosser.

Burns was already putting up impressive numbers as a freshman, averaging 11.9 points and 4.1 rebounds a game in limited minutes. He’s started a majority of the games in his first three collegiate seasons, leading the Eagles to Big South Tournament titles in both his freshman and sophomore seasons. He had 22 points in the conference title game as a sophomore. This past season, he averaged 15.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, playing additional minutes and becoming one of the most efficient players in the conference.

Twice the conference’s leader in field goal percentage, Burns was Big South Rookie of the Year as a freshman and Player of the Year as a junior, winning All-Big South honors in each season as well. The analytics show him as one of the most-utilized players in the nation. This might change moving forward, as Burns will suit up at NC State this upcoming season. He’ll likely play an important role for the Wolfpack, but not be leaned on quite as heavily.