NEW YORK – In the 2024 National Basketball Association Draft held Wednesday and Thursday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., the BIG EAST had eight players selected over the course of the draft, with four in the first round, including three Lottery Pick selections. It marks the 42
nd time in 45 years, the BIG EAST had at least one player selected in the first round.
It also marks the first time since the 2013 NBA Draft that three players were selected in the top-14, which is also the last time four players were selected in the opening round. The eight overall selections are tied for the most since 2010, with eight also selected during the 2012 draft.
The 2024 National Champions were the first BIG EAST team to have a player selected, as BIG EAST Freshman of the Year Stephon Castle of the Connecticut Huskies was selected fourth overall by the San Antonio Spurs. Castle became the 17
th NBA lottery pick in program history, and just the second true “one-and-done” player in UConn history to be selected in the lottery alongside Andre Drummond being picked ninth in 2012. Castle is the highest overall pick for UConn since Hasheem Thabeet went No. 2 overall in 2009 and is the sixth top-five pick in program history.
Three selections later, Castle’s sophomore teammate Donovan Clingan heard his name called by the Portland Trail Blazers with the No. 7 overall pick after a near-perfect two-year run in Storrs that culminated in back-to-back national championships. The 7-2 center ramped up his production as a sophomore as he moved into the starting role, making 33 starts in 35 appearances and averaging 13.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in 22.5 minutes per contest. His dominance throughout the NCAA Tournament saw him earn East Region Most Outstanding Player and a spot on the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team.
The 2024 BIG EAST Player of the Year was the next BIG EAST player to hear his name called as the Sacramento Kings used the No. 13 overall selection to draft Providence guard Devin Carter. Carter was just the second Friar to be named BIG EAST Player of the Year and the eighth PC player in program history to capture the league scoring title (21.4 ppg in 20 league contests). In two seasons at Providence, Carter scored 1,080 points (16.4 ppg) and grabbed 449 rebounds (6.8 rpg). He also added 117 steals and 67 blocks in 66 games. Overall, Carter is the third Friar selected in the NBA Draft Lottery since its inception in 1985 and the first Friar drafted since 2016.
Rounding out the first-round action, Creighton’s 6-7 forward Baylor Scheierman was drafted with the 30
th pick by the 2024 NBA Champions, Boston Celtics. Scheierman is the fifth Bluejay selected in the NBA Draft since 2014. After three standout seasons at South Dakota State, including 2022 Summit League Player of the Year honors, Scheierman dominated in two years at Creighton. The Aurora, Neb., native became the 11th men's player in NCAA history to score 1,000 points or more at multiple Division I schools.
Early in the second round, the New York Knicks moved up the board in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers to select 2023 BIG EAST Player of the Year Tyler Kolek of Marquette with the No. 34 pick. Kolek concluded his career second all-time at Marquette in assists (697) and led the nation in assists per game (7.7) in 2023-24. He helped lead Marquette to three-straight NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Sweet 16 last year.
With the No. 40 selection, the Portland Trail Blazers drafted Marquette’s Oso Ighodaro, a pick that will be traded to the Phoenix Suns. Ighodaro earned Second Team All-BIG EAST Conference accolades his final two seasons and was named the BIG EAST Scholar-Athletes of the Year and Academic All-America Second Team last year. He led the team in rebounding in each of his final two seasons and finished as the program's leader in career field goal percentage (62.4 percent).
Overall, Marquette had two players selected in the same draft for the first time since 2012 (Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom).
UConn rounded out the 2024 NBA Draft with two more selections.
A 2024 Bob Cousy Award winner as the nation’s top point guard, Tristen Newton was selected with the No. 49 overall pick by the Indiana Pacers. In two years at UConn, he averaged 12.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game, recording four triple-doubles to set the program career record. After leading the Huskies in scoring during the 2023 National Title game, Newton upped the ante and won Most Outstanding Player at the 2024 Final Four. He was also the BIG EAST Tournament MVP, Empire Classic MVP and was a unanimous First Team All-BIG EAST pick.
After a trade made by the Detroit Pistons with the No. 53 pick, Husky guard Cam Spencer will join the Memphis Grizzlies after one season at Connecticut, where the grad transfer scored 14.2 ppg, to go along with 4.9 rpg and 3.6 apg. He was top-10 in the country in both 3-point shooting (44.0 percent) and assist/turnover ratio (3.6), the only player in America on the top 10 of both lists.
The four overall UConn selections are the second most in program history, just behind the five selected in the 2006 draft. In addition, including a pair of first round selections in 2023, the six combined picks are tied for the most in UConn history over a two-year span.
BIG EAST Players in 2024 NBA Draft
Round (Overall) Player Team
1 (4) Stephon Castle, UConn, G San Antonio Spurs
1 (7) Donovan Clingan, UConn, C Portland Trail Blazers
1 (13) Devin Carter, Providence, G Sacramento Kings
1 (30) Baylor Scheierman, Creighton, F Boston Celtics
2 (34) Tyler Kolek, Marquette, G Portland Trail Blazers (Traded to New York Knicks)
2 (40) Oso Igodaro, Marquette, F Portland Trail Blazers (Traded to Phoenix Suns)
2 (49) Tristen Newton, UConn, G Indiana Pacers
2 (53) Cam Spencer, UConn, G Detroit Pistons (Traded to Memphis Grizzlies)