Analyst Exposes Glaring Problem for UConn Huskies Legend

Donovan Clingan certainly enjoyed one heck of a career with the UConn Huskies, winning national championships in each of his two seasons with the team before heading to the NBA Draft.

Clingan was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the seventh overall pick last June and proceeded to enjoy an impressive rookie campaign, averaging 6.5 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.6 blocks over 19.8 minutes per game while shooting 53.9 percent from the floor.

The 21-year-old played in 67 games and made 37 starts, doing a rather nice job of auditioning for hte role of Blazers center of the future.

However, the UConn product exhibited one clear issue this past season, and Reese Kunz of Rip City Project has zeroed in on the problem: conditioning.

"Donovan Clingan is well on track to take over as the Portland Trail Blazers' long-term starting center. However, Clingan must improve his conditioning to increase his minutes and become a more dominant player," Kunz wrote. "... His elite per-36 numbers suggest that Clingan could eventually become one of the league's best rebounders and rim protectors. But for Chauncey Billups to give him more run, Clingan must prove he can play for extended stretches and maintain that level of effectiveness."

Kunz points out that Clingan only played 22.5 minutes a night during his final season with the Huskies. He still managed to be dominant when he was on the floor, but it would definitely be nice to see the 7-foot-2 behemoth display better endurance.

It should be noted that Clingan's playing time definitely saw an uptick in the last two months of his debut campaign in Portland, as he logged 25.2 and 27.9 minutes per game, respectively, in March and April. He also registered 10.3 points and 11.7 boards per contest in the latter month.

Perhaps we will see the Bristol, Ct. native playing heavier minutes next season.