Former University of Miami guard Jack McClinton was selected as the 51st pick in the 2009 NBA Draft by The San Antonio Spurs Thursday evening. McClinton becomes the 17th Hurricane overall and the fourth since 2002 to be selected in the NBA Draft. The last Miami Hurricane to be selected in the NBA was Guillermo Diaz back in 2006 by the Los Angeles Clippers.
McClinton had this to say at a press conference “I feel very blessed to have this opportunity to play for a great organization like San Antonio”, said McClinton. “I’ve worked for this my whole life and appreciate all the support from my family, coaches and former teammates. I am very excited for this next chapter and look forward to playing for Coach Popovich and the Spurs.”
McClinton was Miami’s first two-time ALL-ACC First Team selection, He led the Hurricanes in scoring for three straight seasons- including 19.3 points per game as a senior in 2008-2009. He was Acc’s most proficient three-point shooter, converting a league-best 44.0 percent throughout his career, while averaging 3.01 treys per game – the fifth-highest average in conference history.
He was the winner of the three-point contest at the 21st Annual College Slam Dunk and Three Point Championships in April, scored a career-high 38 points in the 2008 NCAA Tournament first round win over St. Mary’s (Calif.) and posted three-straight 30-point games as a senior versus Wake Forest (32), Duke (34) and North Carolina (35), becoming the first Hurricane to finish with 30-plus points in three-straight games in 20 years. McClinton worked out for almost half of the NBA Teams including The Miami Heat, many hopefulls wished to land McClinton but unfortunately she lipped to the Spurs.
I personally got to see him play at many games and let me tell you this guy was fierce not scared to take the last shot, not intimated by the defender’s height he was an all around playmaker and lets not even talk about his shooting skills, the man was the hoop. I remember watching him one game where everyshot he practically would take was in and from every spot on the court. I’m a huge fan of basketball and love to report hometown heroes it’s a blessing to have witnessed him play and be around at shootaround.
We wish McClinton the best in his career and will be updating you with his situation as his career develops.
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