UConn Center Donovan Clingan ‘has fans among Hawks constituency at No. 1’

The Atlanta Hawks were on the clock the second they won the 2024 NBA Draft lottery and with less than five weeks until the draft, it appears the Hawks are settling on three players for the No. 1 pick. French prospects Alex Sarr and Zaccharie Risacher have been the most talked about for the top pick in recent weeks, but according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, UConn center Donovan Clingan is still in play:

“Clingan has momentum in June, as he made a strong impression during combine drills, private interviews and his pro day, where he left intriguing glimpses of perimeter shots that many recruiters said will be part of his game in the future – too distant future His measurements – 7-3 in shoes, 282 pounds with a 7-7 wingspan and an outrageous 9-7 standing reach are elite (as we know). already knew).

The draft lottery hasn’t done him too much favors, however, putting teams with established starters at the center position at Nos. 3, 4 and 5, which could drop him a little more than his big-board ranking l ‘noted. It wouldn’t be surprising to see teams like the Portland Trail Blazers or Memphis Grizzlies attempt to move up on draft night to land their starting center of the future. There are, however, rumors that Clingan has fans among the Hawks’ No. 1 constituency, meaning there’s still a lot to play for between now and June 26. »

Clingan is considered one of the top prospects in the draft, but the lottery may not have gone in his favor. Teams that could really use a player like him have fallen in the lottery and while it’s still possible he could go as high as No. 1, he could also fall out of the top five.

Defensively, there is no doubt that Clingan would be a huge boost for the Hawks at the center position. He appears to have All-Defensive Team potential with his ability to block shots, the questions will arise on the offensive end of the court. Clingan didn’t show enough floor spacing and three-point shooting ability at UConn and he’s not a good free throw shooter. Could he improve these areas? Sure, but if he doesn’t improve enough, he could get knocked off the field in some scenarios.

This isn’t the first time Clingan has been suggested to be in play with the No. 1 pick. In an episode of his podcast, ESPN Insider Adrian Wojnarowski was discussing prospects at the top of the draft with Givony and Wojnarowski suggested that Clingan is firmly in play for a top-three finish, which obviously means he’s in game for n°1. choose in Atlanta:

“I think with Clingan, there are elements to his game that you didn’t see at UConn that have been there and he’s someone who, since his high school days, has spent a lot of time behind the three-point line and develop that game. You’re going to watch him practice and you watch him practice and have him go all the way around the arc and go back and shoot the ball He didn’t. been a great free throw shooter, but there’s no reason to believe he won’t be a better free throw shooter, there’s nothing wrong with his shot and it feels like that. that’s a place he’s going to improve. His dominance for UConn, what he’s done, the improvement, the lateral quickness, his ability to recover and cover so much ground, you saw the tournament in the. NCAA, I mean Illinois literally couldn’t get near the basket with him on the floor, but you’ve seen it all year.

As teams meet with him and get their…they know what the information is about him, what kind of teammate he was, what kind of leader he was, what kind of empathy he has for his teammates , this is known. , but you just talk to the teams that started spending time with him and everyone around him knew that it would only improve his stock when they met him and I think he’ll just go pick teams and even spends more time in their organization, it will certainly only help him become No. 1, No. 2 with Washington, or maybe even No. 3 with the Rockets.

Here’s the scouting report on Clingan, courtesy of Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor:

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While anything could happen between now and June 26, it appears the focus is on Sarr, Risacher and Clingan to be selected No. 1. The Hawks front office needs to make the right decision for the franchise with this pick. .