UConn basketball big man Donovan Clingan is getting some good news. The center is strongly in consideration to be a top-three 2024 NBA Draft pick, per ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. If that holds, that means Clingan would go to either the Atlanta Hawks, Washington Wizards or Houston Rockets.
Clingan was a member of the UConn basketball team that won back-to-back national championships under Coach Dan Hurley. The center had a breakout year in 2023-24, averaging 13 points and 7 rebounds. The big man played two seasons at UConn.
Clingan's NBA Draft profile
Clingan is a truly unique player, as he is a center that can step out and shoot the three. Clingan is a 7-foot-2, 280 pound center who was instrumental in the school's run to two national championship games. In the NCAA tournament this past season, Clingan posted two double-doubles. In a game against Northwestern, the center had 14 points to go with 14 rebounds. He finished with a 15.3 scoring average in the postseason for UConn basketball.
The center continued to impress in the NBA Draft combine, per Forbes. Clingan participated in drills and also met with executives from multiple pro teams.
“It's been a good pre-draft process, just putting the work in, getting the shots up, getting the threes up,” Clingan said during the combine, per the Draft Express. “I am really just trying to expand my game in all aspects.”
The UConn basketball center was widely considered a NBA lottery pick heading into the combine, and it now looks like he could be even higher on the draft boards based on his recent performances. The Bleacher Report's NBA Draft analyst Jonathan Wasserman is comparing Clingan's size to a big man currently playing in the league.
“His measurements won't be far off from Rudy Gobert's. I wouldn't anticipate that level of impact, but Clingan has the right tools and movement to reach a high-end outcome for that archetype,” Wasserman stated, per Bleacher Report.
Teams with the top three picks
The Hawks, Wizards and Rockets have the top three picks in this year's draft. Atlanta is coming off of a difficult season that saw them lose a play-in NBA playoff game to the Chicago Bulls. The Hawks struggled on defense during the season, and matters were made worse when star guard Trae Young went down with an injury. Clingan's size will surely help on defense, if Atlanta decides to take a chance on him.
The Wizards had a pitiful season in 2023-24, finishing with only 15 victories. Washington has made only one playoff appearance in the last five years, and Clingan could surely help the team that is starving for a rebuild. The team's last postseason appearance was in 2021.
Houston had the best overall season of the three teams. The Rockets went 41-41 on the year. While Houston didn't quality for the NBA postseason, the Rockets are surely knocking on the door and would welcome Clingan to its roster.
It will certainly be exciting to see Clingan suiting up for any one of these three franchises. UConn basketball fans will no doubt miss their big man, but are wishing him well as he continues his career.
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