COLUMBIA — South Carolina women's basketball star forward Chloe Kitts hasn't played since April 2025, and the program gave a look at where she's at in her recovery.
Kitts is expected to return for coach Dawn Staley by the season opener, which is Nov. 2 against Maryland in Paris, France. The 6-foot-2 forward tore her ACL in October and missed the entire season, which ended with a loss to UCLA in the national championship April 5.
On April 27, the program posted photos on social media where Kitts was seen participating in a drill with a brace on her knee. It's not confirmed when the photos were taken.
Across the season and into the NCAA Tournament, small portions of practice were occasionally open to media, and during those times, Kitts wasn't seen participating in drills. While she may have recently started ramping up, it is unclear how much she did when media wasn't present.
Y'all didn't think we hadn't been working, right? pic.twitter.com/OajIQw5Jyq
— South Carolina Women's Basketball (@GamecockWBB) April 27, 2026
Kitts had surgery not long after the injury occurred but didn't miss a road trip or practice.
She told The Greenville News in March that she had no fear of getting back on the court, even though her injury occurred during a "freak landing" on a rebound in practice.
"I was running the other day, and I'm not scared. I could go get on that court right now, I wouldn't be scared at all," Kitts said during the SEC Tournament.
Staley joked Jan. 2 that Kitts' rehab was probably going "too fast" because of how well she's done. Kitts' father, Jason Kitts, said March 7 that she's "well on her way to 100% full recovery."
Kitts averaged 10.2 points and a team-high 7.7 rebounds in 2024-25. She won the 2025 SEC Tournament MVP award before averaging 10.7 points in the NCAA Tournament. Kitts was projected as a high WNBA Draft pick in 2026 before her injury.
She graduated high school early, joining Staley's program in December 2022.
Lulu Kesin covers South Carolina athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email her at LKesin@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X@Lulukesin and Bluesky@bylulukesin.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Chloe Kitts injury update, latest on star's South Carolina offseason