2024 NBA DRAFT: DRAMA HEATS UP AS LATE CONTENDER EMERGES IN RACE FOR ATLANTA HAWK'S NO 1 PICK

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 We've entered smokescreen season with the NBA Draft just one week away, but there is a sliver of a sightline emerging for the No. 1 pick. And as has been the case several times in recent years, there's a final twist as we enter the homestretch. 

For weeks it has seemed like Alex Sarr and Zaccharie Risacher were battling to be taken by the Atlanta Hawks at the No. 1 spot. However, 7-footer Donovan Clingan may be elbowing his way into the discussion to make it a three-man race. ESPN reported Wednesday that Clingan appears to be Risacher's main rival at No. 1, citing his solid workout with the Hawks. The franchise hasn't yet been able to bring Sarr in for a private evaluation. Risacher remains the favorite at No. 1 -- as has been the case for over a week after leaping Sarr in my latest mock -- but this decision is far from made for Atlanta.

There also remains the possibility of Atlanta trading down to net further assets, which would add an interesting wrinkle.

For now, it's safe to say three options are most likely to be called No. 1 on draft night by NBA commissioner Adam Silver. I have listed them below from my most likely to least. (Betting odds are based on current DraftKings lines and subject to change.)

1. Zaccharie Risacher

No. 1 pick odds: +150 

The case: Risacher shot 35.2% from 3-point range this season with JL Bourg in Pro A competition. He rated in the 92nd percentile in transition and 81st percentile in catch-and-shoot situations, per Synergy data. He's a developmental prospect, but the frame and production profile are tantalizing, and safe, in a draft that has a lot of unknowns.

Risacher appears to be in the driver's seat for the No. 1 spot should Atlanta choose to stay at the top of the board. Team decision-makers have done their due diligence on the French forward and even made the trip overseas to scout him up close as he finished his season with JL Bourg on a high note this month. His combination of size, defensive versatility and an improved jumper make him an easy fit at the NBA level, though his ceiling remains up for debate. 

2. Donovan Clingan

No. 1 pick odds: +500

The case: It is simple: Clingan might be the top big -- and best overall player -- in the class. His block rate of 14.4% as a freshman would have been the best in college hoops had he qualified with enough games. He is coming off a dominant sophomore campaign where he served as a destructive interior force for the title-winning Huskies, consistently shutting down opposing offenses with blocks, deflections and his presence. 

If Clingan does not go No. 1, he could slip out of the top three. Washington is likely to select either Risacher or Sarr at No. 2 and Houston is eyeing Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard at No. 3. Clingan has a real case to be the No. 1 pick, though. We've been banging the drum on this since the Final Four, due to his dominant defensive skills and potential to develop into a more dynamic offensive weapon. He has an incredibly high floor as a future defensive anchor and starting center.

3. Alex Sarr

No. 1 pick odds: -130

The case: Sarr boasts a frame, moves like a gazelle, covers a ton of ground on defense and has guard-like skills on the perimeter. The risk of Sarr busting might be higher than Risacher and Clingan, but the chance he booms could launch him into All-Star air if things go right for him.

Sarr remains the betting favorite, but I'd handicap him as third-most likely to go No. 1. That could change in the coming week -- again, it's smokescreen season -- but he'll be mocked No. 2 to Washington in my Friday projections unless something changes. He has worked out for Washington, but not Atlanta yet. Based on scuttlebutt around the league, the Wizards have been enamored with both Sarr and Risacher since the lottery. 

- Kyle Boone

NO. 2 UCONN BEATS NO. 10 MARQUETTE 73-57 TO WIN FIRST BIG EAST TOURNAMENT SINCE 2011

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 NEW YORK (AP) — UConn coach Dan Hurley climbed the ladder with “New York, New York” playing in Madison Square Garden — or as he calls it, “Storrs South.”

The New Jersey native clipped the last piece of net off the rim, let out a “Wooooo!” as he whirled it over his head and then tapped the Big East sign on the backboard before making his way back down.

Hurley and his defending national champions have eyes on even bigger prizes this March, but make no mistake, winning the Big East Tournament was a big deal for the Huskies.

Donovan Clingan had 22 points and a career-best 16 rebounds, Jaylin Stewart gave No. 2 UConn an unexpected boost with three second-half 3-pointers during a decisive surge and the Huskies beat No. 10 Marquette 73-57 on Saturday night to win the tournament for the first time since rejoining the conference four years ago.

“MSG, Big East Tournament, there's nothing like it,” Hurley said. “There's just no comparison anywhere to what this place is like.”

Tournament MVP Tristen Newton added 13 points and 10 assists as the top-seeded Huskies won their eighth title, matching Georgetown for the most in conference history. It was their first since 2011, when Kemba Walker led UConn to five wins in five days at The Garden — and then a national title.

Stewart, a freshman who was averaging 2.4 points off the bench, scored nine in about four minutes as UConn (31-3) pulled away from a gritty Marquette team playing without injured star Tyler Kolek (oblique) for a sixth straight game.

Kam Jones led the third-seeded Golden Eagles (25-9), the defending tournament champions, with 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

On a night when the Huskies struggled from the perimeter, they relied on the 7-foot-2 Clingan inside. The Connecticut native was 7 for 12 from the field and, as the final seconds ticked off the clock, the sophomore big man waved on hyped-up Huskies fans who packed the Midtown Manhattan arena.

“It means everything," Clingan said. "This was one of our goals at the beginning of the season, so to complete it means a lot.”

Two years after UConn's last Big East Tournament title the league broke up and the Huskies went with the football schools to form the American Athletic Conference, where they won another national championship in 2014 — and then fell off.

UConn returned to the Big East in 2020-21 and to national prominence. The Huskies won their fifth NCAA title last year, but the conference tournament championship had eluded Hurley's team. UConn hadn't even reached the final in its first three seasons back in the Big East.

Hurley rattled off all his team has accomplished in the last year as he accepted the trophy Saturday night and told the crowd: “But we ain't done yet.”

UConn improved to 8-3 in Big East finals, and 7-0 at MSG this season.

As usual, UConn fans packed The Garden and for the second straight night Marquette faced a road-game environment. The Golden Eagles overcame a raucous Providence crowd in a rugged semifinal Friday night.

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“Today was rough for sure," said David Joplin, who had 12 points and six rebounds in the Golden Eagles' lowest-scoring game of the season by 12 points. “We’ve got a great team, and we’ve got a great chance to play well in the (NCAA) Tournament, and that’s all you need is a chance.”

Two of the country's best teams played one of the ugliest nine minutes of basketball imaginable to start the game.

At the second media timeout, the score was tied at 4 and the Golden Eagles and Huskies were a combined 3 for 22 from the floor. The defense was aggressive and physical, but it was also hard to keep track of just how many point-blank shots rolled off the rim.

Things picked up from there, and Newton swished a 3-pointer with three seconds left in the first half to give UConn a 26-24 lead at the break.

The shots started falling in the second half for both teams and UConn began asserting itself with about 10 minutes left, led by Stewart.

The Huskies went on a 19-5 run and led 60-44 with 5:54 remaining when Hassan Diarra made a corner 3.

“I thought we ran out of steam there probably in the last 10 minutes,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said. “Donovan Clingan was the biggest difference.”

Stewart keyed UConn's surge with his long-range shooting. He came into the game just 6 for 30 from 3-point range on the season.

“Biggest shots of my life,” Stewart said. “It was electric in there.”

NO. 5 UCONN NEVER TRAILS, ROUTES NO. 10 GONZAGA

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Donovan Clingan led all players with 21 points and eight rebounds as No. 5 UConn never trailed in defeating No. 10 Gonzaga 76-63 Friday night in the p Tip-Off.

Cam Spencer scored 15 points for the Huskies (10-1) in a rematch of last season's NCAA Tournament West Regional final, which UConn won 82-54 in Las Vegas. Alex Karaban added 11 points and Tristen Newton and Hassan Diarra scored nine apiece in a balanced attack. Newton dished out a game-high five assists, the same total as the entire Gonzaga team.

It was the second loss to a team nicknamed the Huskies in Seattle in less than a week for the Bulldogs (8-3), who dropped a 78-73 decision on Dec. 9 at Washington.