Chris Clemons (3) plans to be evaluated in the NBA draft process, as he did last year. (Dunn Area Sports Photo/Paul Burgett)
BUIES CREEK — Campbell guard Chris Clemons has filed with the NBA to enter the 2018 draft process. He has not hired professional representation which allows him the opportunity to go through the evaluation process and either stay in the draft or return for another season of basketball at CU.
“We had another great year as a team at Campbell and I felt like I improved a lot individually,” Clemons said. “I learned a great deal last year going through the draft process and I was able to take the feedback I received from NBA teams and apply it on the court to advance my game and help our team improve.
“My ultimate goal is to play in the NBA and this is another step in the process of fulfilling that goal.”
A junior from Raleigh, Clemons ranked fourth in the country and tops in the Big South Conference with a 24.9 scoring average. He was named to the Lou Henson All-America team by CollegeInsider.com and to the Big South All-Conference first team as well as all-district units from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA).
“Chris had another tremendous year and is an exceptional player,” said Campbell coach Kevin McGeehan. “The NCAA allows players to see where they stand with the NBA without jeopardizing their eligibility and we are excited that Chris is taking advantage of this opportunity. We look forward to getting feedback for and on Chris as he continues to improve and pursue his dream of being an NBA player.”
Clemons owns the nation’s longest double-figure scoring streak (82 games) among active Division I players. He became Campbell’s all-time leading scorer March 14 during Campbell’s first-round win over Miami (Ohio) in the College Basketball Invitational.
With 2,232 points in 97 career games, Clemons only trails Reggie Williams of VMI (2,557 from 2004-08) on the Big South Conference all-time scoring list.
In addition to ranking fourth in the country in scoring, Clemons also rates seventh in the nation in total free throws made (211) and eighth in total points scored (772) despite missing three games due to injury.
Clemons scored a season-high 42 points (10-14 threes) on Jan. 23 in a 94-85 win at Liberty when he and Marcus Burk (32 points) became the first teammates in NCAA Division I history to make 10 three-pointers each in the same game. Clemons hit game-winning buzzer beater threes vs. High Point (Jan. 12) and Radford (Jan. 21) and was named Big South player of the week three times during the regular season.
A three-time all-conference honoree out of Millbrook High School, Clemons has already set school career records for scoring average (23.0), as well as field goals made (720) and attempted (1,628). His 211 foul shots made in 2017-18 stand as a new school single-season record. Clemons’ 772 points in a season are second only to the school yearly mark of 904 he tallied in 2016-17.
He has scored at least 20 points in a game a school record 71 times, including a school standard of 16 games with at least 30 points.
Clemons and the Camels finished 18-16 overall and secured a second straight postseason berth in 2017-18. Over the last two years, Campbell has won 37 games, the most in back-to-back seasons in the program’s Division I era (since 1977-78).
(Campbell media services provided the basis for this report)
