Jaylen Clark, the nation’s top defender in men’s college basketball last season, will forego his final two years of eligibility and remain in the NBA draft.
In an Instagram post Wednesday, Clark thanked UCLA and athletic director Martin Jarmond commented, “Go be great! It’s in you.”
Bruins head coach Mick Cronin expressed his support for Clark in a statement.
“Jaylen has been a winning player at UCLA for three years, and we are a better program because he chose to be a Bruin,” Cronin said. “Jaylen is a classic case that player evaluation and a player’s intangibles matter. He has had three great years in Westwood. We will miss him but we wish him all the best. Jaylen will always be a Bruin and hopefully one of the more than 120-plus Bruins who were NBA draft picks before him.”
Clark, who moved into the starting lineup last season, had a breakout junior campaign with averages of 13.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists while shooting 48.1 percent from the field.
But it was on defense where Clark made the biggest impact, leading the conference and ranking fourth nationally with 2.6 steals per game. He earned Pac-12 Conference defensive player of the year honors to go with the Naismith award, often leading the team in deflections.
Clark’s 78 total steals are tied for third with Darren Collison (2006-07) on the program’s single-season list.
Clark, who started 29 of 30 games, had his season cut short in the regular-season finale March 4 after an Achilles injury in the second half against Arizona.
The Bruins were without Clark in the postseason, losing to Gonzaga in the NCAA West Regional semifinal in Las Vegas.
He is not expected to be available for on-court activities until early 2024. In April, Clark said rehabilitation would be between 8 to 10 months.
His decision leaves the Bruins without four of their five starters and the top five scorers from last year’s team. Adem Bona, last season’s Pac-12 freshman of the year, is the lone returning starter and one of just four returning scholarship players after announcing earlier Wednesday his decision to withdraw from the draft and return to Westwood.
UCLA’s offseason roster overhaul includes international guards Jan Vide (Slovenia) and Ilane Fibleuil (France), who are part of a five-man recruiting class to go with combo guard Sebastian Mack and forwards Devin Williams and Brandon Williams.
In addition, the Bruins added Utah transfer guard Lazar Stefanovic while redshirt freshman forward/center Mac Etienne and freshman wing Abramo Canka both decided to transfer out.
Cronin’s roster transformation may not be done, either. Aday Mara, a 7-foot-3 center, asked Spanish professional club Casademont Zaragoza for his contract to be terminated early Wednesday. Mara has been linked to the Bruins this offseason.
