Former Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins says their team is to thank for Donovan Clingan's rise in draft stock
Former UConn Huskies center Donovan Clingan is viewed as a consensus top-5 selection after strong outings in the NCAA Tournament. One of his most notable performances came against the Illinois Fighting Illini, where he recorded 22 points, 10 rebounds, five blocks, and three steals on 9 of 13 shooting. Ex-Illini forward Coleman Hawkins believes he and the team are to thank for Clingan's rise in draft stock.
"Hey man, made him into a top-5 pick so he can thank us," Hawkins said on the Sleepers Media podcast.The Illini played well for most of the first half against the Huskies, and then they were on the receiving end of one of the most perfect stretches in tournament history. The Huskies went on a 30-0 run on the way to victory and eventually winning their second straight national title the following weekend.
Hawkins, who is now at Kansas State, says the team failed to make the proper adjustments once the run started. He feels things would have changed if that happened. "I'm at the five and the whole point of me being at the five is to create advantages offensively," Hawkins said. "We didn't create any advantages offensively. We were at 23 points or whatever at half. I was standing in the corner for a whole half. This is just me being real. I definitely would've switched up our gameplan somehow, some way."
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Report: Louisville Still Inquiring About Adding Illinois Transfer Coleman HawkinsThe former Illini big man officially withdrew from the NBA Draft process earlier this week.
Read more »
Report: Illinois Transfer Coleman Hawkins to Visit LouisvilleThe former Illini big man officially withdrew from the NBA Draft process last week.
Read more »
Report: Illinois Transfer Coleman Hawkins 'No Longer Expected' to Visit LouisvilleThe former Illini big man officially withdrew from the NBA Draft process last week.
Read more »
Former Illinois Player Coleman Hawkins Set To Visit Kansas State SoonFormer Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins was set to enter NBA Draft but withdrew and is now expected to visit Kansas State
Read more »
Former Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins is transferring to Kansas StateAfter withdrawing from the NBA draft, former Illinois forward Coleman Hawkins is transferring to Kansas State
Read more »
How Illinois transfer Coleman Hawkins scored $2M NIL deal from Kansas StateColeman Hawkins played it perfectly, testing the NBA Draft waters and then leveraging his transfer to land a record NIL deal from K-State.
Read more »