Tom's piece on Anthony Clemmons in case you missed it.
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The locker room of the losing team after a game that ends the season is always a quiet place.
For the Iowa Hawkeyes after their loss in the NCAA Tournament two years ago to Tennessee, it was particularly quiet. A once promising season had fallen apart down the stretch, as the Hawkeyes lost seven of their last eight games.
It was also a particularly tough season for Anthony Clemmons. There are sophomore slumps and then there's what Clemmons experienced, which might have been worse.
After starting 13 games in his freshman year, averaging 4.3 points per game, Clemmons saw his game go south and his minutes disappear during his second season with the Hawkeyes. His points per game were down to just over two, his minutes were dwindling and by season's end, he barely got off the bench.
There was Clemmons in the locker room following the loss to the Volunteers, head down and doing the soul searching that had probably been going on for quite some time. At that point, rumors were flying that this would be the last time we would see Clemmons in an Iowa uniform. Frankly most players in his position would head out the door and look for a fresh start.
Not Clemmons.
Many players speaking to the media would have pointed fingers and blamed others.
Not Clemmons.
Instead, he blamed himself.
Instead of leaving Iowa, he committed to staying.
Instead of sulking, he went back to his roots and got back to work.
"I hear all the rumors and all that stuff and I can't let other people break me or let one season break me," Clemmons said after the game. "People say I can't do this or I can't do that or that I'm not the right fit and I should go somewhere else. I can't listen to that. All I can do is get back and in the gym. I blame myself for how the season went and the downfall that I had."
Back to work for Clemmons meant returning to his roots. He headed back to Lansing, Michigan once the semester concluded and got back in the gym with his high school coach and mentor, former Michigan State standout Carlton Valentine, and his son's Drew and Denzel, who plays for the Spartans.
"At the end of my sophomore season I had a reality check about the player I am and who I was," Clemmons said. "When I went thru my slump, I wasn't working as hard. When I went back home and got in the gym with those guys and really pushed myself and it really brought me back."
Carlton Valentine has known Clemmons since he was eight years old. He coached him at nearly every level in a variety of sports. He was his coach at Sexton High School in Lansing when Clemmons wrapped up his senior year by winning a state title. Early on, he instilled in him and every player he coached that there would be no excuses on his watch and that's why when a disappointing sophomore season came to an end, the finger Clemmons pointed was at himself.
"It shows you his character," Valentine said. "I have known him since he was 8 years old and coached him thru high school and one of the things we talked about all the time is we don't finger point make excuses because that's what losers do. I think he really took it to heart. He's not a guy that's a blamer."
But, before the return of Anthony Clemmons could start his road to recovering his game, Valentine said his long time pupil would have to sit down with Head Coach Fran McCaffery and figure out what his future with the Hawkeyes would look like.
"He knew he needed to have a heart to heart with his head coach. We talked after his sophomore year and I told him he needed to sit down with Coach McCaffery and make sure he understands you and you understand him because no one else can help you figure that out except him. He and Coach McCaffery had a legendary conversation and he came out of it feeling a lot better and I think Coach McCaffery did too," Valentine said.
From there, Clemmons returned home to Lansing and the work began. This was his comfort zone and the perfect place to find his game once again. He worked out two, three, and sometimes four times a day while he was home. He worked the Valentine and his son, who made themselves available to him any place, any time.
One morning, Valentine showed up to work at the Michigan Athletic Club around 5:30 a.m. The facility opens at 5:00 a.m. each day and Valentine went into the sauna to warm up before his own workout and found Clemmons already in there and had been there since the doors opened that day.
"He kept telling me he was going to get himself right," Valentine said. "He said that over and over and he did the work. I know he likes to credit others, but he's the one that deserves the credit because he showed up, got back to the basics, and did the work."
The fact that he did the work wasn't a surprise to Valentine Clemmons has always been the underdog, going back to the summer before his senior year of high school when he was on the AAU circuit with the Michigan Mustangs. Clemmons went into the final evaluation period in July with no Division One scholarships. Then one night in Las Vegas that all began to change.
"We were playing out in Las Vegas and he came off a high screen roll and jumped up and dunked over two guys. I was sitting there and my phone started to buzz. It was crazy. By the time we left Las Vegas, he had seven offers," he said.
Clemmons fought back and returned to Iowa City a different player. A better version of the player who had a very solid as a freshman. His turnaround season ended up averaging five points per game and shooting 37% from three point range.
As he heads into the start of his senior season, Clemmons is brimming with confidence and promises a strong final season in an Iowa uniform.
"I haven't put a full season together. Everyone has seen flashes," Clemmons said at Big Ten Media Day in Chicago. "I am going to put a full season together. I have the confidence. I know what I am going to do this year and it's going to be a big story."
It would be a big story if Clemmons has a strong senior campaign and given the path he has traveled during his Iowa career, it would be a good one too.
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The locker room of the losing team after a game that ends the season is always a quiet place.
For the Iowa Hawkeyes after their loss in the NCAA Tournament two years ago to Tennessee, it was particularly quiet. A once promising season had fallen apart down the stretch, as the Hawkeyes lost seven of their last eight games.
It was also a particularly tough season for Anthony Clemmons. There are sophomore slumps and then there's what Clemmons experienced, which might have been worse.
After starting 13 games in his freshman year, averaging 4.3 points per game, Clemmons saw his game go south and his minutes disappear during his second season with the Hawkeyes. His points per game were down to just over two, his minutes were dwindling and by season's end, he barely got off the bench.
There was Clemmons in the locker room following the loss to the Volunteers, head down and doing the soul searching that had probably been going on for quite some time. At that point, rumors were flying that this would be the last time we would see Clemmons in an Iowa uniform. Frankly most players in his position would head out the door and look for a fresh start.
Not Clemmons.
Many players speaking to the media would have pointed fingers and blamed others.
Not Clemmons.
Instead, he blamed himself.
Instead of leaving Iowa, he committed to staying.
Instead of sulking, he went back to his roots and got back to work.
"I hear all the rumors and all that stuff and I can't let other people break me or let one season break me," Clemmons said after the game. "People say I can't do this or I can't do that or that I'm not the right fit and I should go somewhere else. I can't listen to that. All I can do is get back and in the gym. I blame myself for how the season went and the downfall that I had."
Back to work for Clemmons meant returning to his roots. He headed back to Lansing, Michigan once the semester concluded and got back in the gym with his high school coach and mentor, former Michigan State standout Carlton Valentine, and his son's Drew and Denzel, who plays for the Spartans.
"At the end of my sophomore season I had a reality check about the player I am and who I was," Clemmons said. "When I went thru my slump, I wasn't working as hard. When I went back home and got in the gym with those guys and really pushed myself and it really brought me back."
Carlton Valentine has known Clemmons since he was eight years old. He coached him at nearly every level in a variety of sports. He was his coach at Sexton High School in Lansing when Clemmons wrapped up his senior year by winning a state title. Early on, he instilled in him and every player he coached that there would be no excuses on his watch and that's why when a disappointing sophomore season came to an end, the finger Clemmons pointed was at himself.
"It shows you his character," Valentine said. "I have known him since he was 8 years old and coached him thru high school and one of the things we talked about all the time is we don't finger point make excuses because that's what losers do. I think he really took it to heart. He's not a guy that's a blamer."
But, before the return of Anthony Clemmons could start his road to recovering his game, Valentine said his long time pupil would have to sit down with Head Coach Fran McCaffery and figure out what his future with the Hawkeyes would look like.
"He knew he needed to have a heart to heart with his head coach. We talked after his sophomore year and I told him he needed to sit down with Coach McCaffery and make sure he understands you and you understand him because no one else can help you figure that out except him. He and Coach McCaffery had a legendary conversation and he came out of it feeling a lot better and I think Coach McCaffery did too," Valentine said.
From there, Clemmons returned home to Lansing and the work began. This was his comfort zone and the perfect place to find his game once again. He worked out two, three, and sometimes four times a day while he was home. He worked the Valentine and his son, who made themselves available to him any place, any time.
One morning, Valentine showed up to work at the Michigan Athletic Club around 5:30 a.m. The facility opens at 5:00 a.m. each day and Valentine went into the sauna to warm up before his own workout and found Clemmons already in there and had been there since the doors opened that day.
"He kept telling me he was going to get himself right," Valentine said. "He said that over and over and he did the work. I know he likes to credit others, but he's the one that deserves the credit because he showed up, got back to the basics, and did the work."
The fact that he did the work wasn't a surprise to Valentine Clemmons has always been the underdog, going back to the summer before his senior year of high school when he was on the AAU circuit with the Michigan Mustangs. Clemmons went into the final evaluation period in July with no Division One scholarships. Then one night in Las Vegas that all began to change.
"We were playing out in Las Vegas and he came off a high screen roll and jumped up and dunked over two guys. I was sitting there and my phone started to buzz. It was crazy. By the time we left Las Vegas, he had seven offers," he said.
Clemmons fought back and returned to Iowa City a different player. A better version of the player who had a very solid as a freshman. His turnaround season ended up averaging five points per game and shooting 37% from three point range.
As he heads into the start of his senior season, Clemmons is brimming with confidence and promises a strong final season in an Iowa uniform.
"I haven't put a full season together. Everyone has seen flashes," Clemmons said at Big Ten Media Day in Chicago. "I am going to put a full season together. I have the confidence. I know what I am going to do this year and it's going to be a big story."
It would be a big story if Clemmons has a strong senior campaign and given the path he has traveled during his Iowa career, it would be a good one too.
