In the moments after Oliver Purnell told his players he was leaving Clemson for DePaul University in Chicago, Demontez Stitt called for a players’ only meeting.
Former Clemson standout Tanner Smith remembers that night pretty well. There was a lot of tension on the team. The returning players from the Tigers’ NCAA Tournament squad were upset that Purnell had left them just when it seemed the program was where it needed to be.
Clemson had just finished another successful season under Purnell, who took the Tigers to their third straight NCAA Tournament and their fourth straight 20-win season.