2024 NBA Draft: Could Donovan Clingan Fall in San Antonio's Lap?

With reported interest culminating from the Spurs toward UConn big Donovan Clingan of late, he could possibly make his way to San Antonio pending his availability in the No. 4 slot.

Connecticut Huskies center Donovan Clingan (32) shoots while being guarded by Purdue Boilermakers forward Caleb Furst (1) during the Men's NCAA national championship game at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on April 8, 2024. / Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY

Donovan Clingan has been a prospect who has floated around the top-five and just outside of that throughout mock drafts this spring, and many have pinned him to the Hawks, Wizards and Rockets.

But not many have humored the idea of his landing spot being a bit more unconventional, and that would be getting picked up by the San Antonio Spurs, pairing the 7-foot-2 workhorse to the 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyma. As the Spurs' new toy in Wembanyama is sure to take the league by a much bigger storm in coming years, Clingan's fit alongside him could be highly intriguing.

This isn't exceptionally farfetched outside of the top three teams possibly passing up on Clingan. And though greatly different, harping back on Gregg Popovich's big man tandem in Tim Duncan and LaMarcus Aldridge could demonstrate the type of dynamic he is able to lead -- just in a heightened modern play style.

Clingan's primary focus would be locking down the interior defensively and of course providing a source of rebounding, but also not limiting Wembanyama's paint threat on the offensive and spacing the floor adequately. He's not a cone, he can come up past the free throw line and not get completely blown by depending on the ball handler, but that's to say Clingan is certainly mobile for his height and size. Without the agility he holds, it'd be hard to see him meshing well with the versatility of Wembanyama -- but Clingan also is not your average 7-footer.

As the draft looms, organizations are preparing for each scenario that could occur. And one of those could be the former UConn Huskie falling into the Spurs' lap.

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