Former Bruin eliminated from NBA exhibition game

The UCLA Bruins have always had a large presence in the NBA, represented by several basketball legends such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Reggie Miller, Bill Walton, Russell Westbrook and Jrue Holiday.

Now it appears another Bruin is making his presence known.

In an exhibition game on Thursday, October 17, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Jaylen Clark recorded 11 points, four rebounds, four steals and one assist over 21 minutes in a 132-126 loss to the Denver Nuggets.

This is a return to form for the talented guard after he tore his Achilles tendon during his final season at UCLA.

Early in his basketball career, Clark developed into a two-way threat, excelling equally on defense and offense. In high school, he led Etiwanda High in Rancho Cucamonga to the CIF Southern Section Open Division regional finals, averaging 18.5 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.

Clark joined UCLA Basketball in 2020 and served as a reserve guard his freshman year. In 31 games, he averaged nine minutes with 2.5 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.

In the 2021–2022 season, Clark missed six games due to concussions and played most of the games on the bench. In 29 games, he averaged 18.1 minutes with 6.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, one assist and 1.1 steals per game. He was named to the 2022 Pac-12 All-Defensive Team.

Clark really showed his skills in his junior year. As an official starter, Clark played an average of 30.5 minutes with 13 points, six total rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. He also led the Pac-12 Conference with 2.6 steals per game.

Clark received numerous awards his junior year, including Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, National Association of Basketball Coaches Defensive Player of the Year and Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year.

Unfortunately, Clark’s season ended abruptly when he tore his Achilles tendon in UCLA’s final regular season game against Arizona. This would rule him out of both the 2023 Pac-12 Tournament and the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

Nevertheless, Clark declared for the 2023 NBA Draft and was selected by the Timberwolves with the 53rd overall pick in the second round. On July 7, 2023, he signed a two-way contract with the organization.

On March 28, 2024, Clark was traded to the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League for rehab.

Now it looks like Clark will be accepted into the NBA proper. Hopefully he will become an integral part of Minnesota’s already dynamic defense.

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