Clemson Season Preview

2022-23 Record: 23-11, 14-6 ACC (3rd)

Coach: Brad Brownell, 14th season

Departures: Hunter Tyson, F (Graduation)

Brevin Galloway, G (Graduation)

Ben Middlebrooks, F (Transfer)

Arrivals: Joe Girard III, G (Transfer from Syracuse)

Jake Heidbreder, G (Transfer from Air Force)

Jack Clark, F (Transfer from North Carolina State)

Bas Leyte, C (Transfer from UNC Greensboro)

Asa Thomas, F (Freshman)

Projected Starting Lineup

PG: Joe Girard III

SG: Chase Hunter

SF: Alex Hemenway

PF: Jack Clark

C: PJ Hall

Roster Breakdown

After flirting with the NBA Draft, PJ Hall returns to Clemson after leading the team in scoring last year with 15.3 points per game. For the uninitiated, Hall is a highly skilled big man who can do a little bit of everything on the offensive end of the floor. In addition to his 15.3 points, Hall averaged 5.7 rebounds, 1 asisst, shot 53.5% from the floor, including 39.8% from three, and Clemson ran a lot of their offense through the big man. Plus, he had over a block a game on the defensive end of the floor. Backing him up will be new transfer big man Bas Leyte. He's a much different player, far more of a traditional big who will clean the glass and put in some easy buckets close to the rim. He's sort of an ideal backup big man. Joining Hall starting in the front court will either be Jack Clark or Ian Schieffelin. Clark is the newcomer, joining from North Carolina State, where he put up 9 points and 7 rebounds a game last season, and can play on the wing a little bit as well. Meanwhile, Schieffelin is a rising junior that started 22 games for the Tigers last season, averaging 5.5 points and 4.1 rebounds, and actually had 1.9 assists as well. Either guy could start next to Hall, I lean towards Clark thanks to a little more versatility and experience, but they should each play a fairly large role in the front court. Keep an eye on RJ Godfrey and Chauncey Wiggins as well. Both are rising sophomores that are looking to take a step forward and play their way into more minutes, after each guy played about 9 a game in 2022-23. Freshman Asa Thomas probably won't find the court too much this year. In the backcourt, starters Chase Hunter returns. He's one of the more underrated players in the league, in my opinion, having averaged 13.8 points, 4.5 assists, 3 rebounds, and shot 35.6% from deep last year, in addition to being a great athlete. He's really good, and he'll have a new running partner in the backcourt with the addition of transfer Joe Girard from my Syracuse Orange. Clemson fans will be familiar with him from his four years starting in the ACC, but for those unfamiliar, he's averaged 13.2 points and 3.6 assists while shooting 36.3% from deep over those four seasons, plus being knockdown from the foul stripe making 86.3% of his attempts. Last year, he was a better scorer, putting up 16 points while making 38% of his threes. The third starting guard will be Alex Hemenway, who started 12 times for Clemson last year. He's a deadeye shooter, making 47.1% from deep last year, and is a 43% shooter from deep on his career. Providing depth in the backcourt are redshirt sophomore Josh Beadle and true sophomore Dillion Hunter. Beadle redshirted his freshman year after being a top 150 recruit, while Hunter was top 175 the year after. Both can play both point guard and off the ball, and will provide key depth minutes at the 1 and the 2. Finally, Air Force transfer Jake Heidbreder comes in as another prolific shooter. He led the Falcons with 15.1 PPG while shooting 40% from behind the arc, and will likely to be asked to shoulder much less of the scoring burden in the ACC, although he's missed time this offseason with an injury and may not be 100% to start the season. 

My Thoughts

I really like this Clemson team. Offensively, they'll be hard to stop. Hall, Hunter, and Girard can all really score, and do it from three levels. Add in Hemenway and the spacing will be elite. They also have some lineup versatility, with the ability to play Jack Clark as a bigger 3 man next to Ian Schieffelin and PJ Hall, or play with 3 guards. I also think that they have the ideal developmental system, where they can let guys like Beadle and Godfrey develop behind proven starters, and I wouldn't be shocked if we start to see the bench guys really come on this year. However, my biggest question is on the defensive end. I think Clark will help there, and Hunter is good on that end, but the other big transfer addition, Joe Girard, is a huge question mark. He was obviously playing in the zone at Syracuse so his man to man chops haven't been tested in a while, and he's not exactly a plus athlete. He could be someone teams hunt on that end of the court. The other big question comes on the sideline. Brad Brownell is perpetually on the hot seat, and there is a narrative out there that he isn't a great coach. This a year where they are set up to win, so there will not be any room for error this year if Brownell wants to be back in 2024-25. Still, I think the offense will hum and they'll be able to outscore teams even if the defense isn't elite, and I really wouldn't be shocked to see Clemson with a number next to their name sooner rather than later.