There are reasons Terrence Clarke should return to UK, though he probably won’t
A five-star prospect we got to see all of seven games, Terrence Clarke’s one and possibly solo college season is done, UK Coach John Calipari all but announced on his Monday radio show, breaking the news that doctors had determined the Kentucky guard needs four more weeks for his injured ankle to completely heal.
Four more weeks would flip the calendar book forward into a postseason that probably won’t include the Cats, given their current 5-12 record. And considering that Clarke was considered a potential first-round NBA Draft pick coming out of high school, those seven games at the beginning of the season are probably the only glimpse we’ll see of the Boston native in a Kentucky uniform.
Or is it? The 6-foot-7 wing finds himself facing an interesting question. Assuming his injured wheel returns to 100 percent, does Clarke go ahead and make the expected leap of faith to the professional ranks, banking that his prep bona fides will override the injury problem that derailed his collegiate start? Or does he come back to Kentucky for a second season, to prove to the scouts that (a) his ankle is problem-free and (b) he is the player people expected him to be coming out of high school?
I’ve seen many make the Jarred Vanderbilt comparison. The 6-foot-9 Vanderbilt was a ridiculously talented prospect who battled ankle and foot problems throughout the 2017-18 season, his only year at UK. He ended up playing in just 14 games, averaging 5.9 points and a boisterous 7.9 rebounds in 17 minutes per game. He didn’t make his Kentucky debut until Jan. 16, then proceeded to produce five games of double-digit rebounds, only to return to the shelf with a foot injury after the regular-season finale and miss the postseason.
Vanderbilt opted to take the money when he could. Taken in the second round (41st pick) of the 2018 NBA Draft by Orlando, he was dealt to Denver, where he played 17 games his rookie season. Traded to Minnesota last year, he has played in 22 games this season, seven of them starts, and is currently averaging 6.4 points and 6.1 boards per contest for the Timberwolves. Vanderbilt, 21, is in the third year of a three-year rookie contract totaling $3,919,177, according to SpoTrac.com.
Clarke’s case study is a bit different. He exited the prep circuit as a long, lean, playmaker with no physical problems but who perhaps needed a bit more maturity as well as a clear answer to where he fit on the floor. In fact, with his team struggling early at point guard, Calipari voiced the desire to put Clarke at that position, saying he liked what he saw in practice when the rookie had the ball in his hands. The thought was perhaps Clarke could do for the Cats what the 6-foot-6 Tyreke Evans did for Calipari at Memphis.
Alas, the experiment barely made it into the lab. Clarke flashed brilliance a few times, most notably a 22-point effort in UK’s loss at Georgia Tech on Jan. 6. But he was held to just six points with three turnovers and no assists in 25 minutes against North Carolina on Jan. 19, then tried to play on a gimpy ankle at Louisville, failing to score in 16 minutes, and was gone again.
Never to return, it turned out. Hopes that Clarke might be ready were always rebuffed. You might have even forgotten Clarke was on the team until Calipari talked the fans into confusion and himself into controversy after UK’s loss at Missouri on Feb. 3.
In a Zoom call with the media after the Cats’ 75-70 defeat, Calipari said he had left Clarke and assistant Joel Justus back in Lexington to see if the freshman could practice without pain in hopes of being ready for that Saturday’s game against Tennessee. On the postgame radio show, however, Calipari insinuated that there was nothing wrong with Clarke’s ankle. Cal later said his words were taken the wrong way.
Between then and Monday, however, the diagnosis changed. Word is a problem was finally pinpointed, one that would sideline Clarke for the season, or for what’s left of Kentucky’s season. On to the next step.
As far as the NBA mock draft boards are concerned, out of sight has meant out of mind. The 19-year-old Clarke is missing in inaction as far as the scouts are concerned. So now he has a choice: Take the jump in hopes an NBA team will deem him worth the health risk, or return to college to rebuild his resume?
Terrence Clarke will probably do the former, but in the long run he might be better off choosing the latter.
This story was originally published February 9, 2021 at 10:59 AM.
