In what has been an eventful offseason for Duke, another departure is now official.
Associate head coach Winston Gandy has resigned from his post with the Blue Devils. A team spokesperson confirmed the move Thursday morning but declined to comment further.
On Friday morning, Gandy was announced as the newest addition to Dawn Staley's staff at South Carolina, confirming a Thursday report by the News and Observer’s Steve Wiseman. Gandy replaces Gamecock assistant coach Fred Chmiel, who accepted the head coaching job at Bowling Green earlier this month.
“I’m so grateful for the opportunity to join Dawn and the South Carolina family, which has been the standard of excellence in women’s basketball for quite some time,” Gandy said in South Carolina's Friday announcement. “Dawn is among the best coaches in the country, a phenomenal leader and an incredible mentor to young women. I look forward to getting to Columbia and becoming part of what makes South Carolina a great place for the best to come and play.”
The news comes one day after senior guard Celeste Taylor entered the transfer portal. Taylor had initially announced March 27 that she would return to Duke for her final year of eligibility.
Gandy was hired as Duke’s assistant coach in July 2020 and was promoted to associate head coach in July 2022. Prior to his time with the Blue Devils, Gandy was an assistant at Rice after spending time in the NBA as an assistant and player development coordinator.
Earlier in the 2022-23 season, head coach Kara Lawson described how Gandy worked closely with the Duke guards. Notably, both members of the starting backcourt, Shayeann Day-Wilson and Taylor, are transferring from the program.
“Winston is exactly the type of person we love having in our program because of the way he develops true connections with young people,” Staley said. “He is a highly sought after young talent in our game, and I’m so happy he is bringing his great basketball mind and his ability to recruit and develop talent to Columbia.”
Associate head coach Tia Jackson and assistant coach Karen Lange are the remaining members on Lawson’s staff.
This article was updated Friday morning to include Gandy's official announcement at South Carolina.
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Ranjan Jindal is a Trinity sophomore and sports editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.