Joe Arruda Hartford Courant (TNS)
NEW YORK — The Bristol Boy is off the board.
With the No. 7 overall pick in the NBA draft, former Bristol Central and UConn star Donovan Clingan was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.
Clingan heard his name called three picks after celebrating teammate Stephon Castle, who went to the San Antonio Spurs with the fourth overall pick.
Clingan is coach Dan Hurley’s fourth lottery pick at UConn, joining Castle, James Bouknight and former teammate Jordan Hawkins.
He averaged 6.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 13.1 minutes per game as a freshman playing behind Adama Sanogo, one of the most impactful freshmen on either side of the ball in his role as a reserve. Opting to turn down the 2023 draft, where he could’ve been selected in the first round, Clingan decided to come back for a year to mature and lead UConn as its anchor down low.
Once he fully recovered from a pair of foot injuries, got his conditioning up to speed, Clingan’s dominance proved itself on the Big East and NCAA Tournament stages.
He was the first player since Patrick Ewing (1984) to post at least 20 points and 15 rebounds in the tournament title game, finishing with 22 and 16 on his way to an All-Tournament selection. Clingan was devastating for opponents during the NCAA Tournament as well, averaging 15.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game to earn a spot on the All-Tournament team. He was also named the Most Outstanding Player of the East Region after shutting down Illinois’ game plan with five blocks (that were credited, there were more) to go with his 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Inspired by his late mother, former University of Maine women’s player Stacey Porrini Clingan, the 7-foot-2 center changed the way he looked at basketball when she died of breast cancer in 2018, just as he was finishing up his eighth grade year.
Honoring his mother by staying in Bristol, where she has been inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame, Clingan turned down a number of prep schools that went after him. He dominated lesser competition in Connecticut, won two state titles with coach Tim Barrette and was named Gatorade Player of the Year in Connecticut twice as well, averaging 30.3 points, 18.4 rebounds and 6.2 blocks in his undefeated senior season.
As far as his draft night style, Clingan sported a classy back suit with a bow tie. On the inside of his jacket, he had photos of himself with his family and others who helped him get to this point on the right. The left side had photos of just him and his mother.
Clingan chose to remain loyal and local to his roots as he weighed a number of Division I offers, opting to continue his education and pursuit of this NBA draft moment under the guidance of Hurley’s staff.
The winning never stopped.
At UConn, Clingan was part of 63 wins and only 11 losses as he collected a pair of national titles. UConn won a program record 37 of 40 games, including a Big East record 18 in the conference, on its way to the 2024 national title.
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