With back-to-back NCAA Division 1 championships under their belt, UConn’s Stephon Castle and Donovan Clingan are cutting college short and fast tracking to the NBA.
Castle, a 6-foot-6 guard, from Covington, Georgia, was selected fourth by the San Antonio Spurs. Clingan, a 7-foot-2 center, was taken seventh overall by the Portland Trailblazers.
“They’re obviously getting a winner,” Castle said of the Trailblazers on night one of the ESPN NBA Draft broadcast. “You know, I learned how to win last year, so I’m coming in with that kind of mindset. Just to have a teammate like that next year (Victor Wembanyama)… I feel like it opens up the floor so much for growing and expanding your game. So I just kind of wait to get out there.”
CBS Prospect Rankings project Castle to have a high ceiling heading into the NBA.
“(He) never plays hurriedly,” an excerpt from the CBS mock draft on Castle said. “(He) has a great feel for the game and (is) cerebral enough to make adjustments in games. If his offense was needed, he recognized (that); if his defense was most required, he locked in and took a backseat on offense.”
Donning the Big East Freshman of the Year honor isn’t the only achievement the five-star recruit will pocket following an electric first year of competitive Division 1 basketball.
The 19-year-old was widely hailed for his selflessness and sacrifice throughout the 2024 Huskies championship-winning campaign, during which Castle committed to his position as an “overqualified role player” and put up 11.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.9 apg, 47.2% FG, 26.7% 3PT, 75.5% FT.
During their two years at Connecticut, Clingan and Castle won 68 games and lost only 11 under Coach Dan Hurley’s guidance.
“The Spurs value winning, they value workers, they value championships,” Hurley said on the broadcast. “This is just the perfect player for them to draft for what they do with that organization. This guy is just scratching the surface.
“I feel like everyone, including myself, showed that we can win,” Clingan told Matthew Robinson of GQ Sports leading up to the draft. “(The UConn basketball program) work(s) at an extremely high level. We’re very coachable. If you can play for Coach [Dan] Hurley and someone who pushes you as hard as he does, you can play for anyone.”
Clingan didn’t have to wait much longer to hear his name called. He was taken three picks after Castle.
“He can block shots without even leaving his feet,” Kevin O’Connor said in the Ringer’s 2024 NBA Draft guide. “Opponents avoid him when he’s lurking near the paint, not just because he’s imposing but also because he tends to be in the right position.”
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A worker on the glass, his intimidating height, 7-foot-7 wingspan, 13.0 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.5 bpg, 63.9% FG, 58.3% FT, and freakish rim protecting skills will surely cause chaos for any NBA foe.
Clingan, who began his freshman year on the bench and worked his way toward a starers’ role in year two, wears the No. 32 to honor his late mother, Stacey, who passed in 2018 from breast cancer. She was a Bristol Central high school three-sport, all-conference athlete, who turned into a University of Maine basketball legend. Clingan’s mother was unwavering source of inspiration for her son growing up.
“I know she’s super proud of me. I know she’s smiling down,” Clingan said during ESPN’s broadcast. “This is everything I’ve worked for my entire life and just to hear my name called…it doesn’t feel real. I’ve got my mom over here at my side at all times. She’s looking down on me, she’s smiling. I know she’s proud.”
