"The guy's an athlete": UConn HC Dan Hurley breaks down Donovan Clingan's strengths ahead of the 2024 NBA Draft

Donovan Clingan had a brilliant two-year college career at UConn, where he led the Huskies to the national championship in both seasons. The center is set to transition onto the professional stage, and there is a lot of hype around him after the kind of performances he had in college.

UConn coach Dan Hurley appeared on a recent episode of “The Ryen Russillo Podcast” and discussed the prospect of the talented center ahead of the NBA Draft. The coach, who recently turned down the opportunity to move to the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers, had high praise for the 7-foot-2 Clingan.

“He's shown a lot of different things he can do as a passer, as a five-out center in the dribble handoff game, where he could be an off-the-dribble pass cutter,” Hurley said.

“I think he's shown great passing ability and a feel for that as a rim runner, as a lob guy and as a roller. As a short roll guy that can catch it and find cutters or spray it out to the 3-point line and then obviously cover the entire court. The guy is an athlete.”

Donovan Clingan's draft projection

Following his two-season tenure in college basketball with UConn, Donovan Clingan’s talent on the basketball court is undoubted. He played a crucial role in ensuring coach Dan Hurley's team became a dominant force in the college basketball landscape in the last two years.

Ahead of what many analysts have tagged a weak draft, the No. 1 spot is still up for grabs, as no prospect is considered locked for it. Clingan is the latest player projected as the first overall pick to the Atlanta Hawks in the draft, and the momentum has been building in the last couple of days.

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic unveiled his latest mock draft on Friday, projecting the Hawks to select Donovan Clingan with the No. 1 pick. This has further boosted the UConn center's momentum of going first overall, and Vecenie noted that he fills a few objectives for the Hawks.

Donovan Clingan's college career at UConn

Donovan Clingan's career with the Huskies is obviously something to write about. The center arrived in Storrs as a backup to Adama Sanogo in his freshman season and earned the Big East All-Freshman honor, playing a crucial role in the program's national championship success.

He became a starter in his sophomore season at UConn following the exit of Sanogo and continued his fine form with the team. He led the program to another national title, earning the AP Honorable Mention All-American honor before declaring for the 2024 NBA draft.