What will Clemson’s men’s basketball roster look like for the 2025-26 season? That’s the question Tigers fans are looking for answers for after the team’s ugly performance in the NCAA Tournament first round and the several departures in the first few days of the transfer portal window.
It’s hard to have a true answer because we don’t know who will be joining the program, but let’s take a look at where things stand:
First, the departures (more could follow): Chauncey Wiggins, Del Jones, Asa Thomas and Jackson Roberts. There’s not much there in terms of losses. Thomas and Jones leaving was a surprise, Wiggins leaving was not, and Roberts was a walk-on, so we won’t worry about him too much.
Wiggins had a disappointing season, lost his spot in the starting lineup and generally regressed from last year. Thomas never got a shot with the program, so we’ll never know what he could have been. Was he really worse than Jake Heidbreder? If so, he can’t be considered a loss.
Then there’s Jones, who showed flashes during his freshman season (Who knew a freshman was allowed to play?). It’s disappointing to see Jones leave. There is potential there, and we don’t know why he jumped into the portal. We’ll leave the speculation for others.
So, who is returning?
Dillon Hunter looks like the leader of next year’s roster, and he can handle that role. But can he turn into a scorer next season and be “the guy?” That will be a big storyline for that team.
Heidbreder is supposed to be a talented shooter, but he didn’t fill that role this season and is a big-time liability on defense. Christian Reeves is a liability on offense, but he can rebound and play defense. Heidbreder and Reeves still could leave, too, but would they be considered losses?
And … that’s it.
It doesn’t sound very promising, does it?
Then there are the new faces: Dallas Thomas and Ace Buckner redshirted this season, and you have to wonder if they will get any meaningful minutes next year. It would be wise for the coaches to stop redshirting players if they’re not going to get them any minutes the following year and have them walk away. We saw this year how much depth is needed at the end of the season, especially when there’s a key injury.
Zac Foster, Chase Thompson and Trent Steinour make up a talented signing class, but again, you have to wonder if they actually will get any minutes. Maybe this is the group that changes that, and it really can have an immediate, big-time impact on the program. It would be nice to see these young players form the core of the program, but first, they have to get on the court.
With the new roster limits coming for men’s basketball (15 reportedly will be the number), Brad Brownell and his staff could look for as many as nine players to fill out the roster. That’s … a lot, especially in a coach’s 15th year with the program.
We’ll see where the staff turns and who it brings in, but this new group needs to be more athletic with better shooting than what we saw in the NCAA Tournament. If not, next year could be rough, and there will be a drop in the ACC standings with a longshot chance at getting back into March Madness.
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