Three Biggest Transfer Portal Position Targets For Clemson Basketball

This week will mark the first week of the offseason for Clemson basketball, and it will be pivotal for head coach Brad Brownell to help define the early look of the 2026-27 season.

With five players leaving the program this offseason, it means that the Tigers will take a deep dive into the transfer portal to fill needs at position groups, as well as limit the amount of departures that the team sees over the next several weeks.

🏀 It's Day 1 of the offseason for #Clemson basketball. Here's a look at the scholarship situation for the team.

Tigers have 4 open scholarships for next season. pic.twitter.com/czTfQMWF2X
— Drew Cagle (@_dcagle) March 21, 2026

From Clemson Tigers on SI’s Drew Cagle, four roster spots are open to fill this offseason, also welcoming in three freshmen in guards Harris Reynolds and Amare James, and forward Will Stevens. However, here are three positional targets that Clemson will additionally need ahead of next season.

Starting Center

The Tigers will be in dire need of a center through this transfer portal session, perhaps even two, due to the loss of Carter Welling.

Welling served as the team’s center this past season, leading the team in rebounds and blocks before tearing his ACL in the ACC Tournament. Usually, a 10-month process, more or less, means that the junior will be out until at least the new year. Not to mention, if he decides to hit the portal for his surgery year, it means that big men are necessary in Brownell’s new team.

In Clemson’s losses to Duke and Iowa, its final games of the season, the Tigers were collectively outrebounded 81-54. Brownell will need an anchor, perhaps two, to help limit that going into next season.

With Welling out, the Tigers' tallest player could end up being Stevens, a true freshman. That will need to change to help be better defensively.

Veteran Guard

It will be the first season since the 2019-20 season that a Hunter brother will not be in the mix for the Tigers. However, they leave it in great hands with redshirt Ace Buckner, potential redshirt Zac Foster and incoming threat Harris Reynolds.

Brownell should have an experienced leader to help lead that room, even if it’s a bench piece that leads the second shift.

And he’s done it before, getting guys like Jestin Porter this past season and adding the likes of Jaeden Zackery and Brevin Galloway in seasons past. Buckner and Foster should see an increase in production, and they could be breakout players for this team in 2026-27. However, getting a piece to lead the room, perhaps one from the ACC or a Power Four conference, could help lead through adversity that every season brings.

An experienced guard always pays off, after all, for Brownell.

Sharpshooting Wing

While the Tigers had a 34.1% shooting clip from beyond the arc this season, being 193rd in the country, an issue that Clemson saw over the course of this season was missed threes, being unable to hit from deep during contests that led to scoring droughts.

Forward Dallas Thomas and Chase Thompson both shot at over a 40% clip, but they only took 21 and 25 shots from deep, respectively, this season. Clemson’s top shooter after them was Butta Johnson, who sank 44 of 124 attempts for a 35.5% clip.

Previously, the Tigers had players like Chauncey Wiggins and Alex Hemenway who could hit a three from the corner to kickstart plays. Brownell didn’t have that in the 2025-26 season, and the team had more scoring droughts than the past three seasons.

If Thomas sees an elevated role, if he stays, he could be that sharpshooter from the corner. However, that production needs to come back, whether it is from a player in-house or one from an outside school that has proven it before.

Three Biggest Transfer Portal Position Targets For Clemson Basketball

Starting Center

Veteran Guard

Sharpshooting Wing

Players to Watch

Clemson Tigers on SI will keep this tracker updated as potential players catch our eye throughout the transfer portal session.