The Portland Trail Blazers landed Donovan Clingan with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. Surprisingly, he was still available at that point, as the majority of teams and draft analysts seemed to have him as a top-five prospect on their draft boards. Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report even has a 'strong suspicion' that Clingan was the top prospect on the Blazers' rankings.
There were talks about teams, including Portland, potentially moving up to secure the UConn big man and back-to-back NCAA national champion. But the Blazers were able to stand pat and keep their assets while landing the player they wanted all along.
Part of what made Clingan such a coveted prospect was his combination of a high floor and ceiling. The 2024 NBA Draft class was considered weak and filled with uncertainty surrounding how their games would translate to the next level, but Clingan was one of the lone exceptions.
Predicting Donovan Clingan's floor
Clingan's floor: A bigger Jakob Poeltl
Clingan is two inches taller and 20 pounds heavier than the seven-foot, 260-pound Jakob Poeltl. More importantly, he possesses a skill set similar to Poeltl's, who is an underrated starting center. Last season with the Toronto Raptors, Poeltl averaged 11.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 blocks in 26.4 minutes per game.
His strengths of rebounding, rim protection, and passing are the same as Clingan's, as both centers are able to impact the game as role players who don't need to have the ball or plays drawn up for them constantly.
Clingan's floor comparison being a starting-level center may be high, but that was part of what made him such a coveted draft prospect and steal for the Blazers. You know precisely what you're going to set from Clingan from day one, and that's rebounding and rim protection, two of the most translatable skills to come by, especially considering his frame and physical tools.
Poeltl is a bit unpolished offensively. He lacks the ability to stretch the floor or singlehandedly win a game by scoring 20+ points on any given night, and he often relies on guards to provide him with easy opportunities to score. We know Clingan will be a defensive force, but his untapped offensive skillset will dictate whether or not he reaches his All-Star-level ceiling.