WALTHAM, Mass. — Cliff Alexander is just looking for a second chance.
A 6-foot-8 forward out of Kansas, Alexander was considered one of the nation’s top recruits before he began his career with the Jayhawks last fall. He even beat out a fellow Chicago native, Duke’s Jahlil Okafor, for the title of Mr. Basketball USA.
Okafor, now a surefire top-five pick, lived up to the hype. Alexander did not.
The 19-year-old’s one season in Lawrence was a tumultuous one, both on the court and off it. Alexander averaged 7.1 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Jayhawks, notched just six starts and sat out his team’s final eight games — including two in the national tournament — after allegations arose of his family receiving impermissible benefits.
Alexander, facing possible NCAA sanctions, declared for the NBA draft. Now, he’s out to prove he’s not the player he’s been.
“I’m just trying to redeem myself,” Alexander said Thursday after completing a pre-draft workout with the Boston Celtics. “People didn’t see what I could do in the last couple of games of the season. I’m just trying to redeem myself.”
The controversy, it later was reported, involved Alexander’s mother receiving money from a Florida company that provides loans to athletes — a violation of NCAA rules.
Celtics director of player personnel Austin Ainge indicated Thursday that the team does not view the infraction as any sort of serious character flaw.
“I think we all know what happened,” Ainge said. “It’s certainly not the end of the world — I don’t think it reflects everything that Cliff is about. But I’ll let you guys ask him about that. He’s got a story about it that makes some sense when he tells it.”
Alexander shared that story a short while later.
“My mom got tricked into something she didn’t know what she was doing,” he said. “She never went through this process before. We needed money at the time.”
Regardless of the poor stats and missed time, most draft experts peg Alexander as an early second-round pick. By midnight on June 25, he’ll almost certainly be the property of an NBA team.
That a long drop from where Alexander was a year ago, though — a fact that’ll be driven home when he hears Okafor’s name called hours before his.
“(Okafor) deserved it,” Alexander said. “He had a great season; I had an up-and-down season. When I sat out, that kind of hurt me. His team won the national championship, so that was a boost for him. He’s a great player. We’ve been battling since high school, since we were younger, so right now I’m just playing with a chip on my shoulder. Just trying to get back and redeem myself.”
Thumbnail photo via John Rieger/USA TODAY Sports Images
