While Brad Brownell is still recruiting the transfer portal for some final additions to Clemson’s men’s basketball roster for next season, the Tigers are hoping to see another step taken by some of their younger players already in the fold.

Clemson signed four high school players last year, most of whom got their feet wet as freshmen this past season. The exception was guard Chauncey Gibson, who has entered the transfer portal after redshirting.

Dillon Hunter, R.J. Godfrey and Chauncey Wiggins are sticking around. And with the likes of Hunter Tyson and Brevin Galloway on the way out among others, Brownell said the trio is embarking on a crucial stage of their development as they vie for larger roles next season.

“I think it’s a really big offseason for those guys,” Brownell said during a recent appearance on Clemson’s annual Prowl & Growl tour. “Really one of the first times they kind of know what to expect and then can kind of attack it.”

Hunter, Godfrey and Wiggins made varying degrees of impact in their first season with the Tigers.

Hunter, a former four-star recruit, got the most playing time of the bunch, emerging as the backup point to his older brother, veteran guard Chase Hunter, over the course of the season. The younger Hunter played in 33 games with three starts, averaging 1.4 points and just more than one assist per game. 

No newcomer was more productive with his minutes than Godfrey, a 6-foot-7, 230-pound forward who was one of the Tigers’ first frontcourt options off the bench by the end of the season. He averaged just 9.4 minutes in the 33 games he played but scored 3.2 points and grabbed 2.4 boards each time out. Meanwhile, Wiggins averaged 8.9 minutes in 27 games, providing Clemson with a 6-9 wing that didn’t give the team much off a dropoff in the shooting department went Tyson went to the bench. Wiggins shot 40% from 3-point range, the third-highest mark on the team among players with at least 35 attempts.

Brownell said he wouldn’t be surprised to see all three of them take their game to another level between their freshman and sophomore seasons, which is often a prime developmental window for young players.

“Some of it is strength. Some of it is speed,” Brownell said. “Some of it is just the knowledge of the system and getting comfortable with the pace and how fast things go. But I think all three can be really good players.”

With Tyson having exhausted his eligibility after five seasons in the program, Wiggins may have the biggest opportunity to increase his role next season. Hunter, a combo guard, is capable of playing off the ball, which could present him with an opportunity to take some of the minutes that Galloway is leaving behind. Godfrey and rising senior Ian Schieffelin are returning at the power forward spot, though they could find themselves on the floor at the same time when star center PJ Hall needs a blow.

The competition for minutes, though, is still heated. Clemson has already signed two transfers in former Air Force guard Jake Heidbreder and former NC State wing Jack Clark, experienced players that Clemson isn’t bringing in with the expectation of coming off the bench. The Tigers are after others, too, including former Syracuse sharpshooter Joe Girard, who visited Clemson over the weekend.

But Hunter, Godfrey and Wiggins also have a little seasoning to them now, which puts them in a better position to compete.

“They’ve got a competitiveness to them and quiet confidence about them that I like,” Brownell said. “I think they can all do really good things, and a lot of it will be determined by how healthy they stay and what they get done this offseason.”

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