The regular season is rapidly approaching, and Clemson still does not have an answer when it comes to Dillon Hunter's eligibility case. While he could be eligible for the five-in-five ruling, Hunter and four other players' cases are in the midst of an appellate court stay in Georgia. This means they are not eligible to play right now. Meanwhile, Hunter continues to show up and make Brad Brownell so proud.
"I was hoping we were gonna find out some good news between now and then, but we haven't yet," Brownell said on Hunter's eligibility status. "He is still practicing every day. Dillon's been great. His attitude is tremendous. I've said it a million times, he's a carefree, fun guy. He comes into practice every day excited. That's not easy to do ... He doesn't even know if he is going to be playing."
Brownell would continue by saying he has been a great mentor to younger point guards on the team such as Ace Buckner and Harris Reynolds. Hunter has been an on-court coach at times for the Tigers during practice. While he is not eligible to play in any games, exhibition or not, Hunter has still shown great leadership to his teammates, regardless of if he is ever going to be able to play with them again.
Brad Brownell on Dillon Hunter’s eligibility, what he can and can’t do as he awaits a decision: pic.twitter.com/Emd0e8a148
— Jackson Castellano (@jaxacastellano) October 24, 2026
Dillon Hunter can be a huge asset for Brad Brownell as an on-court coach
With Clemson's backcourt in a state of flux, it may not have to be entirely up to Brownell to get his guards into the best position possible. While he is not getting Zac Foster back at any point this year, Brownell can lean on Hunter as a player-coach in some aspects for now. He can be a major asset in helping bring Buckner and Reynolds along. Both looked out of sorts versus Georgia on Friday night.
Clearly, Clemson's best pathway forward as a team from the jump is to win with its frontcourt, while the backcourt gets sorted out. Having Hunter back on the team in full capacity should make this Clemson offense more dynamic. However, it remains to be seen if he will be deemed eligible or not. Right now, Clemson cannot bank on Hunter returning. That being said, he can still offer his teachings.
The sooner Buckner and Reynolds get caught up to speed, the better off the Clemson offense will be. They do have Notre Dame transfer Cole Certa over at shooting guard, but he is not expected to be a primary ball-handler like Buckner and Reynolds are whenever they are on the floor. If it is only going to be them the rest of the way, then Hunter must show them the ropes before he rides out of town.
No doubt about it, this is a tricky situation for Clemson to navigate. The longer this goes on, the more likely it will be that Hunter will not be eligible to suit up for Clemson any longer. Regardless, Brownell came into this offseason not expecting to get him back. A new eligibility ruling by the NCAA may have afforded Hunter one last shot of playing for the Tigers. He may still get it, but it has to be next man up.
Hunter is not going to be around forever, so Clemson has to take advantage of his basketball savvy.
Add us as a preferred source on Google