Dan Hurley Shares 5-Word Message to Donovan Clingan and Stephon Castle as the UConn Duo Find New Home at the 2024 NBA Draft

It’s a celebration for the Huskies! As it’s Day 2 and round 2 of the NBA draft this season, the Huskies are already over the moon with two players enlisted in the top seven. While Stephon Castle is the No. 4 draft pick by the San Antonio Spurs, Donovan Clingan stands at No. 7 in the draft with the Portland Trail Blazers. As Day 1 turned out to be appreciative of Dan Hurley’s coaching excellence, it was time for the Huskies’ “best coach in college basketball” to chime in.

To share his thoughts, Dan Hurley took to their official X account and wrote, “Great night for the Champs!!” Coming up with a two-time national championship win, and making it to the top 7 NBA draft marks a double triumph. “Everybody won. We won championships, they won their dream,” Hurley shared his feelings on ESPN.

Notably, Hurley has been a game-changer for UConn since his arrival on the team back in 2018. Under his coaching guidance, the Huskies returned to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016. Appreciating the very coaching efforts of Hurley, Donovan Clingan said in a statement, “He’s producing players at a high level every single year.”

Since Hurley took over as Huskies head coach, he has led Huskies stars like James Bouknight (11th pick), Tyrese Martin (51st pick), Jordan Hawkins (14th pick), and Andre Jackson Jr. (36th pick) to the NBA. But this year is quite different as the duo of Clingan and Castle became the 22nd and 23rd first-round draft picks in UConn history since 1990. This year, the 2024 champions have pushed UConn into the top five all-time programs in lottery picks. But this isn’t the only feat Hurley’s champs have accomplished!

UConn stars poised for NBA success: Clingan & Castle

Stephon Castle is the highest overall draft pick for the Huskies in the last fifteen years and the sixth top-five pick in UConn’s history. What makes his selection even more intriguing is that he is a one-and-done player. Castle is among the rarest in NBA draft history as he is only the second person at Connecticut to go for the NBA lottery after Drummond in 2012. As of now, he has averaged 11.1 points and 2.9 assists per game in the last 34 contests as a freshman with the Huskies.

Moving on, Clingan has been a vital component in the Huskies’ national championship win since his arrival. Last year, he contributed four points and three rebounds to secure a 76-59 win for the Huskies. When asked about Clingan’s selection, Hurley grinned and said, “If we didn’t get him, my whole staff was getting fired.”

Even though Hurley met Castle this year, Clingan has been with him throughout. Last year, he was most likely to be selected in the 2023 NBA draft, but considering his bond with Hurley, he opted to continue with UConn as the starting center. Despite getting a knee injury in a matchup, he continued to ramp up his production as a sophomore.

As of now, he has made 33 starts in 35 games, averaging 13 points and 7.4 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game. Moving on, Clingan and Castle have been teammates until now. But, as they were selected by two different teams, what would their face-off look like? Let us know.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.