Re: Question for you basketball fans that know more about our team

It depends on who we can keep out of the portal, and who can we get from the

back to normal next year

DougKingsmoreCrusade

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here's a repost of an outlook for next season I wrote about a month ago

Mar 31, 2024, 11:18 PM

The most obvious position of need will be center. You're almost certainly not going to be able to "replace" PJ Hall, but the team could probably benefit from getting a veteran center out of the portal. Hopefully a physical big who can do a good job of posting up and scoring in the paint. The depth at that position has been thin even this year, so that's a move I would expect to see Brad make in the offseason. With PJ and Bas both gone, that would leave the team without a true 5 on the roster.

Beyond that there's really no telling. Clark and Girard will also be big losses, of course, so who knows what guards or small forwards Brad might be able to pick up in the portal, if any, to help replace them. I would definitely expect more than one transfer to be added, but exactly how many and how good they'll be is hard to project at this point. There's also no telling exactly what positions they'll play or what their playstyles will be. A lot of it may depend on what players are available and who is willing to come to Clemson.

Chase still has the option to stay another year if he wants it, so that's probably going to be the biggest question of the offseason and will obviously make a huge difference in where the team stands. I'm also guessing that Hemenway will come back next year because he had to miss this entire season with injury. The thought was that he could medical redshirt this season and get a fresh year of eligibility for next year. So that could also potentially be a big help, but as we've all learned by now, counting on Alex to be available is a shaky proposition at best.

I think the best part of it all is the young core of returning players already on the roster. Of course, Ian Schieffelin should be back for his senior year. Josh Beadle, Dillon Hunter, RJ Godfrey, and Chauncey Wiggins will all presumably be returning for their junior seasons. All four of them have gotten significant playing time off the bench this season and have shown a lot of promise. The good thing about that quartet is that it is well balanced in terms of position, with 2 guards, 1 small forward, and 1 power forward, so they should offer plenty of versatility at the very least.

We also shouldn't forget about the two redshirts already on the roster. Asa Thomas and Jake Heidbreder should both be ready to play next year. Asa was a 3-star recruit, and Heidbreder was a third-team all-Mountain West player who averaged 15.1 points per game. That's no joke, because as we know, the Mountain West is a good enough conference in basketball to rival the power 6. The reports about how Jake has looked in practice have also been very good, so he in particular could make a massive impact.

And let's remember the recruits coming in for next season. Del Jones and Dallas Thomas are both 4-stars. To help put it in perspective, of players on the current roster who committed to Clemson out of high school, Dillon Hunter, Beadle, Godfrey, Wiggins, Schieffelin, and Hemenway were all 3-stars. Chase Hunter and PJ Hall were 4-stars. Now of course, recruiting rankings aren't everything, and as we know, recruits don't always pan out as expected. But Jones and Thomas should be the 2 most talented freshmen Clemson has gotten in 4 years. It may take them some time to develop at the college level, but they could still certainly have a big impact on the team right out of the gate.

It will be interesting to see how Brad decides to adjust the starting lineup. As previously discussed, center is the big unknown right now with no returning centers on the team, so it's likely we may see a transfer fill that role unless the staff decides to try playing Godfrey as a 5. You'd think Ian Schieffelin would be a lock to start at power forward with Godfrey as his backup. Small forward is a key question. Will Chauncey Wiggins be given the starting job at the 3 position, or will Brad try to find another Jack Clark type player in the portal for better defense and rebounding? I think a lot will depend on how much Wiggins can improve his defense in the offseason. It would certainly be nice if he could improve it enough to start, because his scoring potential is elite. But as we've seen this year, Clark's defense has been more valuable. So only time will tell as far as that's concerned.

It's anyone's guess what happens at guard. We don't know if Chase will come back; if he does, you'd figure he'd be one of the starters. That would leave Josh Beadle, Dillon Hunter, Jake Heidbreder, Alex Hemenway, and Del Jones as the options for the other guard spot. This raises a ton of questions. Would Chase still be the primary point guard, or does he get moved back to shooting guard? Or could he alternate between both? We know Josh Beadle and Dillon Hunter will probably be the other options at point guard, while Jake Heidbreder and Alex Hemenway will be the options at shooting guard.

Or will Brad find another elite shooting guard in the portal to replace Joe Girard? If that were the case, you'd figure Chase would then be the full-time point guard and everyone else would be relegated to bench roles. But we still don't even know if Chase is coming back. Could Del Jones be good enough to see immediate playing time? How might he factor into this equation? He's described as a combo guard who can play both the 1 and the 2, although he is primarily a point guard. If he gets significant playing time, will it be at point guard or at shooting guard? Or both? As you can see, the possibilities at guard are so wide open right now that it almost seems foolish to make any definite predictions.

So all in all, I think there's a lot to be excited about for the 2024-2025 men's basketball season between potential transfers, veteran returners, young returners, redshirts, and new freshmen. There will certainly be some big shoes to fill, but between the remaining talent already on the roster and the new additions, I believe this team should still be good next season and beyond.

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I'm expecting them to be better, especially at cutting down all of the mind

Question for you basketball fans that know more about our team

It depends on who we can keep out of the portal, and who can we get from the

back to normal next year