AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — It appears Clemson will be without one of its star players next year.

The Tigers were hopeful guard Jaeden Zackery, who had a shot at playing another season, could return to Littlejohn Coliseum next year, but with each passing day that seems more and more unlikely.

Clemson men’s head basketball coach Brad Brownell told The Clemson Insider on Tuesday Zackery’s college basketball career is likely done.  

“I think it is unlikely anything is going to happen there,” Brownell said Tuesday from Day 2 of the ACC’s Spring Meetings on Amelia Island.

Zackery, and former basketball teammate Ian Schieffelin, had placed their names in the transfer portal on April 21. Although they don’t have any eligibility remaining, Schieffelin and Zackery entered the portal, in case the NCAA were to grant a fifth year of eligibility.

That’s something the NCAA has been considering, pending other litigation. By entering the transfer portal, it extended their window and timeline to explore options for an additional year of eligibility.

Due to these loopholes, any graduating four-year senior or JUCO player can use this to extend the eligibility until the ruling has come down.

Schieffelin has since moved on to playing football at Clemson. It appears Zackery has moved on, too.  

“We have not had any news on any of the waiver type stuff. I think he has finally moved his mind to other things, as well,” Brownell said.

On March 11, 16 national coaches’ associations wrote to the NCAA Division I Board of Governors in support of the NJCAA’s effort to change decades-long eligibility requirements for junior college athletes.

Last December, the NCAA granted another year of eligibility for those who attended non-NCAA institutions and whose eligibility is supposed to finish in the 2024-2025 academic year.

However, in March, it was announced by the NCAA that student-athletes who competed in the NJCAA in the 2020-’21 academic year are not eligible to participate next season. Zackery’s eligibility fell under that rule.

Zackery, who averaged 11.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists in Clemson’s run to a second-place finish in the ACC last year, was waiting for several waiver rulings from the NCAA.