Donovan Clingan walks across the stage after being selected by the Portland Trail Blazers as the seventh pick during the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
PORTLAND, Ore. (June 26, 2024) – The Portland Trail Blazers have selected center Donovan Clingan (Daa-nuh-vuhn Kling-uhn) with the seventh overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft.
In two seasons at UConn, Clingan, 20, averaged 9.8 points (64.5% FG), 6.4 rebounds, 2.1 blocks and 1.0 assists in 17.6 minutes per game. Clingan (7-2, 280) won back-to-back national championships with the Huskies in 2024 and 2023. He was named the 2024 NCAA East Region Most Outstanding Player in addition to being a 2024 NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team selection.
The Bristol, Connecticut, native ranked eighth in the country in blocks per game (2.46) and field goal percentage (63.9) as a sophomore. As a freshman, he recorded UConn’s third-highest field goal percentage for a single season (65.5) and received Big East All-Freshman Team honors.