Trail Blazers News: Deandre Ayton's Surprise Reaction to Donovan Clingan Draft Pick
The Portland Trail Blazers entered the offseason looking to build forward after a 21-61 finish last season. After trading away star guard Damian Lillard, Portland entered into a full rebuild and it helped them land a top pick in the NBA Draft last week.
When the Portland Trail Blazers selected center Donovan Clingan with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, the first player on the mind of general manager Joe Cronin was Deandre Ayton. Cronin said that he felt the need to tell Ayton that they were selecting another center.
Ayton was a true professional about it all and was very understanding. In fact, Cronin said that he was supportive. Jason Quick of The Athletic reported on the conversation.
“He was like, ‘OK, where can we take this?’” Cronin said. “(He asked) How can he help me? How can I help him? What can we do together?’ His attitude was great about the whole situation.”
This is great to hear from Ayton as he could have been angry with the team for taking a center. Ayton wants to be a mentor for Clingan and they could form a lethal frontcourt duo for the Trail Blazers next season.
If Portland is to be more competitive, having Ayton bought in will be a huge piece of everything. This is an encouraging start for the team and seems like the two should be able to get along rather nicely.
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MATT LEVINE
Matt earned a Master of Science degree in Sport Management from Louisiana State University in 2021. He was born and raised in the Los Angeles area, covering all Southern California sports in his career.