Detroit Pistons Hosted Potential No. 1 Pick Before 2024 NBA Draft
The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft is set to take place on Wednesday night. Heading into the event, the Detroit Pistons hold the fifth-overall selection. While most mock draft seem to be under the belief that the Pistons could end up with NBA G League Ignite standout, Matas Buzelis, Detroit weighed all options as they prepared to put their big board together.
According to a report from The Athletic, the Pistons worked out Donovan Clingan at some point during the pre-draft process. The UConn standout is widely expected to go top ten. Lately, Clingan’s ceiling has been revealed to be as high as No. 1, according to several reports.
If the Atlanta Hawks took a chance on Clingan with the top pick, it would certainly shake up the draft. For months, it’s been speculated that Alex Sarr would come off the board right away, no matter who has the pick.
When the Pistons were predicted to win the 2024 draft lottery, they were expected to take a chance on Sarr if everything went in their favor. Instead, they landed at No. 5.
Even if Atlanta passes up on Sarr, the chances of the Perth center dropping as low as five are slim. Therefore, the Pistons are exploring every possible avenue before making their pick.
Clingan gained steamed in recent weeks after an impressive pre-draft process. Even before the combine and private workouts, Clingan’s college resume was already intriguing enough to land him in the top ten, and potentially top five conversations.
During his freshman effort at UConn, Clingan appeared in 39 games. As a bench player, he averaged seven points, six rebounds, and two blocks per game.
In his sophomore season, Clingan transitioned into a starter. With a minutes increase, he produced a career-high 13 points, seven rebounds, and three blocks per game. Throughout his college tenure, Clingan averaged 65 percent from the field and 56 percent from the charity stripe. He enters the NBA with two NCAA title wins to his name.
JUSTIN GRASSO