Clemson Basketball Loses Two Contributors to Transfer Portal

Since being eliminated by Rutgers in the Round of 64 on Friday, the Tigers have lost two players to the transfer portal. The first was guard John Newman. Newman just finished a disappointing junior campaign. After averaging 31.6 minutes and 9.5 points on 44% shooting as a sophomore, his numbers dropped to 15.6 minutes and 3.7 points on 34% shooting this past season. His offensive efficiency rating (82.9) was second lowest on the team. Offseason injuries may have played a role in his struggles. Nick Honor and Alex Hemenway both passed Newman in the rotation so his decision isn’t too surprising.

More recently, promising freshman Olivier-Maxence Propser announced his plans to transfer from the program. This news is more surprising and problematic. With both Aamir Simms and Jonathan Baehre just completing his senior seasons (they technically could return under the COVID-19 waiver, but it very unlikely both would), Prosper seemed well-positioned to earn significant playing time next season. Without him, the Tigers front court could be thin.

Prosper only averaged 2.5 minutes per night, but looked sharp in limited time. His offensive efficiency was a decent 94.4 and he was a good rebounder. Pairing him with fellow freshman forward PJ Hall seemed like a strong duo in the front court that would last several years. Now the Montreal-native will finish his career elsewhere.

On top of that, incoming recruit Lucas Taylor has decommitted. With just two players (Joshua Beadle and Ian Schieffelin) in the incoming class, it ranks 10th in the ACC and 56th nationally.

Hopefully the Tigers don’t lose any other players that were lined up to be long-term contributors. Expect some good news to come by way of incoming transfers.