Clemson basketball: Tigers still in good shape without Zion Williamson

Clemson fans were in agony as top recruit Zion Williamson chose ACC foe Duke instead of them. But even without him, this program’s in good shape.

The Tigers have never been the kind of program to get a heralded recruit. In fact, top 25 recruits have never gone to Clemson since recruiting sites have been tracking and ranking prospects. But Saturday was supposed to be a huge day for the program with local phenom prospect Zion Williamson making his decision.

There were six teams in play. The two local schools in Clemson and South Carolina, along with the “Blue Bloods” persisting of North Carolina, Duke, Kansas, and Kentucky. At some point, recruiting experts literally had each of these teams the perceived favorite in the process, due to Williamson and his camp keeping things very close to the vest.

However, as the process has started to wind down, Clemson all of a sudden became the overwhelming favorite to sign him. The idea of playing for his “hometown” school and elevating a mid-tier program to historical levels was a tempting opportunity, but he decided to go elsewhere.

Choosing Duke is the proverbial slap in the face for Clemson fans. Not only do a conference rival get another top prospect, but Williamson will be facing the Tigers 2-3 times next season and could play a big part in hurting them in 2018-19.

While it’s a crushing blow at this moment, Brad Brownell and Clemson are still in position to be a very good team in the ACC. Right now, this team is 16-3 (5-2) and have been ranked as high as No. 18 in the past decade. They’re led by a starting group of upperclassmen, that are a mix of transfers and players who took time to develop.

There are currently four seniors on the roster, including a pair of reserves off the bench. The two key players are forward Donte Graham (14.2 ppg and 6.9 rpg) and wing Gabe DeVoe (11.7 ppg and 4.7 rpg), who both will graduate this season. But the Tigers will return three upcoming seniors (barring transfers or other circumstances), including leading scorer Marcquise Reed.

He, along with Shelton Mitchell, will form one of the best backcourts in the conference next season. Add one of the better rebounders in the game in Elijah Thomas, and Clemson has a solid core coming back next season. And there’s a good chance a quality grad transfer could be coming into the fold as well.

And even without Williamson, the coaching staff has already secured three commitments for the 2018 class. All of them are ranked above 150, but coach Brownell has shown a good ability to develop players well above their expected ceilings.

Next: Where Clemson is placed in this week's ACC rankings

This is a hard moment for Clemson basketball fans, as Williamson could’ve been a key to the program’s first-ever Final Four run. However, even without him, the Tigers can and should be going back to the NCAA tournament.