"It really means the world to me": Stephon Castle on Being Drafted Top 10 with UConn Teammate Donovan Clingan

Following a standout career at UConn, guard Stephon Castle was drafted fourth overall in the 2024 NBA Draft Wednesday night. He will join a San Antonio Spurs squad that is built around last year's number-one overall pick, Victor Wembanyama.

However, he brought up another teammate during his post-draft press conference.

"It really means to world to me, and I wouldn't trade this for anything," said Castle on being drafted alongside fellow UConn star Donovan Clingan.

Clingan was drafted seventh overall by the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday. This selection was a bit of a surprise, as it was rumored that Clingan would likely not make it out of the top five. However, this year's draft class is anything but usual, especially when compared to 2023's.

Coming off a season in which he earned many accolades, including Big East Freshman of the Year and being named to the Big East All-Freshman team (via a unanimous selection), Castle is certainly worthy of his lofty draft status. In fact, given the nature of his five-star rating out of high school, the top ten draft pick seemed like an eventual title he would, and he did achieve.

Stephon Castle and Donovan Clingan Helped Lead Huskies to National Championship

Coming off a star-making season in which their efforts were key in securing a second straight title for Dan Hurley's program, being drafted in the top ten of this year's NBA Draft is yet another accolade to put on the trophy shelf for Castle and Clingan.

The need for a point guard was number one on the board from many draft analysts, and Castle was arguably the best point guard in this year's class. Although many experts peg this year's crop of prospects as one of the weaker groups in recent memory, there is still a lot of talent to be had.

Castle and Clingan are clear examples of that, and they bristle at the fact that this year's class has been referred to as weak.

“I disagree with it, so I mean I really don’t think about it too much but I feel like that kind of brings a chip to everybody here," said Castle. (0:35)

The former Husky also discussed how much of a process these last few months have been, from winning the National Championship up to being selected tonight by San Antonio.

"I mean, everything is just happening really, really fast, so just being in the natty, you know, soaking up that moment with my teammates, that's a super big accomplishment," Castle stated during the press conference.

Hurley almost joined Castle and Clingan in the NBA, turning down one of the league's most prestigious teams, the Los Angeles Lakers, during their coaching search. This led to him getting a new deal to stay in Storrs for the long haul. The UConn coach joined his players for the draft and spoke about Castle.

Based on Castle's black metallic suit that he wore tonight, it was almost as if fate intervened and steered him to the Spurs. After all, he'll be wearing a lot more black and silver in the near future.

As for a team-up with the man they call Wemby? Well, Castle has plenty of practice playing with dynamic big men, thanks to Clingan.