Donovan Clingan ready to leave CT and take on the basketball world

NEW YORK — Since the beginning, Donovan Clingan has been one of us. In Connecticut, he became like family, as if the entire state formed a village around him.

“Connecticut has given me a lot my whole life,” Clingan said Tuesday, while surrounded by reporters at the NBA Draft’s five-star hotel headquarters. “It’s given me great opportunities, blessed me with the great career I’ve had so far, given me a lot of support and a lot of love, and I just want to be able to give back one day. “

When Clingan’s name is called Wednesday evening, and everything indicates that the wait will not be long once the Draft begins in Brooklyn at 8 p.m., people at home will be able to smile at each other, greet each other, congratulate each other a job well done. Clingan, the 7-foot-2 center from Bristol, a two-time national champion at UConn, was born in Connecticut, made in Connecticut.

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And it will be an exclusive graduation party – only the immediate state is invited.

Clingan, 20, could be the first Connecticut native to be selected with the first pick in the draft. The No. 1 pick Hawks are one of five teams to bring Clingan for a workout during the whirlwind coast-to-coast pre-draft tour.

Hartford’s Marcus Camby, taken No. 2 by Toronto in 1996, Bridgeport’s Charles Smith, No. 3 by the 76ers in 1988, New London’s Kris Dunn, No. 5 by the Timberwolves in 2016, Monroe’s Mike Gminski, No. 7 to the Nets in 1980, are the top Connecticut-born picks in the draft to date. All had remarkable careers in the league.

Clingan’s journey from here to there was a little different. When he lost his mother, Stacey, to cancer in 2018, a city and ultimately a state rallied around and took him into its heart. He didn’t go to a prep school, as players of his potential are typically advised to do, he stayed in Bristol, played for Bristol Central High and went after his mother’s rebounding record. And he won a state championship there, and the state was thrilled for him.

He didn’t go to the Big Ten, or any of the other Blue Bloods, he stayed home, he went to UConn to help restore the Huskies to Blue Blood status. Clingan received standing ovations upon entering the games early on. Two seasons, two championships, two parades.

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He did it his way, in his place. He found everything he needed close to home, with his father, Bill, and his family by his side. Life was hit hard, the state supported him, and Clingan gave Connecticut quite a boost in return.

“It’s crazy,” he said. “A lot of people doubted me, said I wasn’t going to accomplish anything because I didn’t go somewhere else, I didn’t go to another school, I wasn’t going to do anything at UConn, and that motivated me, made me want to be a better player, a better person, to keep growing, to learn, to want to be able to shut everyone up.

He silenced all the criticism. Clingan’s family, including his extended family located between Greenwich and Putnam, has been loud and proud in his camp and isn’t going anywhere.

So now the people of Connecticut are going to leave the nest and take over the world. Could he be an Atlanta Hawk on Thursday morning? A Washington Wizard, a Houston Rocket, a San Antonio Spur or a Detroit Piston? Could another team pull off a trade and take him?

How about the Spurs, who pick fourth and eighth, rather than trade up, taking both Clingan and fellow Husky Stephon Castle, sitting at the next table on Tuesday?

“We haven’t really talked about it,” Clingan said. “But it’s something that I think could be really dangerous. … Anything can happen in the next 24 hours and whatever happens to me, I will be extremely blessed.

There’s no reason to believe Clingan won’t have a remarkable NBA career, at the very least. He has the size and athletic ability, the passion for the game that not all big men have, a winning pedigree. There will be tough times ahead, high expectations, somewhere from the mainstream media and fans skeptical of all the hype in Connecticut, who will expect instant results, even if the team that runs it selects will choose in the lottery. for a reason, that reason being that he’ll need more than just Clingan.

But nothing the world outside of Connecticut can throw at him is more difficult than the things Clingan has already had to deal with.

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“The last few years have been surreal,” Clingan said. “I put in a lot of work to get here, and it’s a credit to the people who helped me get here.”

The NBA Draft will see Clingan developed not only as a player, but also as someone ready to take on a challenge. It’s hard to imagine the 18-year-old DC, or the 19-year-old version, as mature and ready for this as he is now. For this, Connecticut can call on neighboring New Jersey’s Dan Hurley for help.

“UConn prepared me for everything,” Clingan said. “The way the coaches made us grown men, developed us as competitors, hard workers, the way they toughened us, made us understand that what we have done is not enough, we need to go further. I can’t be happy with where we’ve gone. This constant drive, wanting us to go.

It’s just a little different, this connection between Donovan Clingan and Connecticut, but it’s time to let go on both sides. No need to be sad that it’s over, just be happy that it happened. He is.

“I’m fortunate, blessed to have the opportunity to continue playing in Connecticut,” Clingan said, “but I’m ready to step away and start a new chapter. I’m grateful, I’m blessed…I’m just excited. I’m ready for the next step.