Clingan, Castle discuss NBA Draft possibilities
In just three combined seasons at UConn, Donovan Clingan and Steph Castle made one hell of an impact. Clingan was a difference-maker off the bench for the 2023 champs before passing on the NBA Draft, where he would've likely been a first-round pick, to pursue the repeat, assert his dominance in a starting role, and raise his draft stock. Mission accomplished.
As a freshman, Castle overcame an early-season injury to quickly emerge as the best perimeter defender on the team. He started dazzling offensively later in the season, making a rapid adjustment from the high school level and a major impact in his only collegiate season.
Both of them are in New York City today, where they could end up being picked in the top five and Clingan has been getting buzz to be the No. 1 overall pick, which would be the highest a UConn Husky has ever been selected in the NBA Draft.
While draft analysts have said this year's class is not very deep, that isn't affecting UConn’s top prospects.
“I really don’t think our draft is weak,” Castle said. “We really don’t know how good a draft is until we see how their future pans out.”
For them, savoring this moment is more important than the conversation about star power within the draft pool.
“I’ve been thinking about this moment forever, as long as I can remember,” Castle said. “It’s a big deal for me and my family.”
He’s also excited to see where his teammates land.
“With everything (Donovan) has been through as a person and a player, he’s accomplished so much… (For Cam and Tristen) I know how hard they work, I know what kind of talent they have. Their portfolio speaks for itself…I just talked to Cam right before I came in here, we’re super-connected. We had a brotherhood there, that’s what made our team so good.”
“I really hope to hear everyone's name called,” Clingan said. “Just because of how hard we've all worked, all the winning we've done, and how talented everyone is, especially Tristen and Cam, they're very, very special players, special people, they’re gonna bring a lot of winning to an organization.”
Castle shared his message to GMs for what he brings as a player. “Versatile, composed, relentless…You’re getting a winner, a hard worker, a great person, and a great teammate.”
“That’s my guy, I love Steph. I met him on his recruiting visit, we’ve had a great relationship. He's a special dude, a special player,” Clingan said of Castle. “He's gonna go into an organization and have a big-time impact, just the way he came in as a freshman and handled everything and battled every single day in practice, it wasn't easy for him. The way he battled through the injury, was able to compete at a high level. He's a special player that’s got a bright future ahead of him.”
Castle and Clingan both addressed Dan Hurley’s flirtation with the LA Lakers coaching job, saying they were confident he would stay.
“I was chilling,” Castle said. “I didn’t think he was gonna go, It’s too hard to walk away from UConn right now, especially off back-to-back championships.”
“I knew he wasn't gonna leave,” Clingan said. “I know how much he loved UConn… obviously, he had to look at the opportunity, because it's a great opportunity for him... I know he'll never leave UConn to go to another college, UConn is home for him.”
Clingan shared that he worked out for five teams, including the Atlanta Hawks, who hold the first overall pick, but would not disclose the other teams.
“It was a good workout, I feel like I was able to show everything I can do offensively and defensively at a high level, athletic testing went very very well,” he said of his visit to Atlanta. “I shot the ball at a very high level… feel like the workout went well, we’ll see (on draft night).”
Clingan also expressed excitement for the competition he’s going to see at the next level.
“I’m a competitor... I wanna pay against Jokic, I wanna pay against Embiid, I wanna just play against the best of the best. That's how you get better. That's how you learn.”
He also addressed the possibility of joining the San Antonio Spurs, a well-respected organization led by head coach Greg Popovich that already has 7-footer Victor Wembanyama, last year's first overall pick, on the roster. They hold the No. 4 and No. 8 picks.
“That'd be crazy. On the offensive end, (Wembanyama) is such a well-rounded player, he can play one through five. So two seven-footers in ball screen would be pretty scary. On the defensive end, you’ve got two high-level rim protectors and two people who can move, I feel like it’s something that could really work out.”