CLEMSON — Despite reaching the Elite Eight for the first time in 44 years, Clemson basketball's roster next season will look drastically different as junior forward RJ Godfrey entered the transfer portal Friday, according to a report from On3sports.

Godfrey's decision to enter the portal is the Tigers' biggest offseason surprise so far because he was presumed to take on a larger role next season with PJ Hall expected to go to the NBA Draft. He was a key contributor for the Tigers, playing in all 36 games off the bench and averaging 6.1 points on 59.4% shooting and 3.4 rebounds.

The junior provided crucial minutes during the final two months of the regular season when Hall and Ian Schieffelin battled attrition. In the NCAA Tournament second-round game against Baylor, he made two free throws in the final seconds to put the game out of reach, and he scored 12 points vs. Alabama in the Elite Eight.

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Godfrey is the third Tigers player to enter the portal this offseason, joining Joshua Beadle and Jack Clark.

On an appearance with "Road Rage with Walt Deptula" on April 4, Tigers coach Brad Brownell described the current landscape of college athletics as "shark-infested water" with other programs and coaches trying to lure players away from Clemson. With those three losses, he will have to use the transfer portal to fill those roster spots and may have to add more as the Tigers await decisions from Hall, Chase Hunter and Alex Hemenway to see if they will return for another season.

The portal is open until May 1 for undergraduate transfers, and there is no deadline for portal players to commit to a new program.

Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at dcarter@gannett.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson basketball key bench player RJ Godfrey enters transfer portal