It’s never easy adjusting to a new town, a new environment and a new roster. But for the San José State men’s basketball team shooting guard Will McClendon, the expected culture shock has been handled as a seamless transition.
The Las Vegas native stands at 6 feet 2 inches, according to an ESPN webpage.
However, his game speaks great volumes. His impact on the Spartans has been evident since he first stepped on the floor with an SJSU uniform.
McClendon entered the transfer portal ahead of this season and decided to bring his talents to Silicon Valley. After playing during the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 seasons at UCLA, the guard played in 33 games and started in a total of four, according to the SJSU Athletics website.
The guard averaged 4.1 points per game along with grabbing 3.3 rebounds per game in the 2023-2024 season with UCLA and made the leap from a role player to a key piece in the puzzle of SJSU’s offense, according to the SJSU Athletics website.
His defensive tenacity and shooting gives him the ability to fit well into SJSU’s head coach Tim Miles’ run-and-gun system. This is when teams play at a fast pace and shoot a lot of shots. The newly dubbed Spartan is affecting the game in multiple ways this season.
“Will McClendon brings the type of character and talent we need at San José State,” Miles said in an interview with SJSU athletics. “He is a two-way guard that can make plays with the ball in his hand or off the ball. He has competed at a high level in high school and college.”
Shooting: C
McClendon shot decent numbers in his last season with UCLA before opting to join SJSU.
He shot a timid 33.9% from the field and a respectable 35.4% from beyond-the-arc, according to the same SJSU athletics web page.
It may seem odd that McClendon shot better on 3-pointers rather than inside scoring, but this was a result of his role with UCLA, where he wasn’t ball dominant and mostly was used as an on-the-ball defender or a catch-and-shoot player.
As clarification, McClendon shot a riveting percentage on 3-pointers coming from the corner and absolutely excelled at the catch-and-shoot game, according to the same source.
This comes to no surprise as McClendon’s shooting fundamentals are on point. The hot-shooting guard also has a quick, consistent release with good lift on his jump shot and a sound follow through.
His high release point allows him to get off shots, even with a defender in his space. Unfortunately, his mid-range game needs work and at this point in his basketball education, he needs to polish his pull-up jumper and become a multidimensional offensive threat.
Defense: A
A bright spot for McClendon that allows Miles to implement him quite seamlessly is his ability to get into a defensive stance and move his feet. McClendon has always been considered a defensive specialist, boding the physical tools and the lockdown mentality needed in order to be a defensive factor at the collegiate level of basketball.
Josh Gershon, a National Basketball Recruiting analyst, had been scouting McClendon since his high school days.
Gershon said McClendon is a tough, physical backcourt player and has good size and wingspan. He also said McClendon has great physical tools such as big hands and his defensive versatility allows him to guard multiple positions.
McClendon’s long arms are more than just to intimidate his competition. His big hands allow him to block and grip the ball; his physicality makes him a competitive matchup and his long arms and quick feet allow him to recover onto the player he is guarding.
In case someone does penetrate, McClendon can spread his wings, slide quickly laterally and recover into a defensive position.
“Defensively, Will has the ability to guard multiple positions and adds much needed flexibility in our backcourt,” Miles said in an interview with SJSU Athletics. “We are very excited to have Will on board.”
McClendon also tallied 19 steals this season, showing his nose for the ball adding to his resume in being able to affect the game on both ends of the floor, according to an SJSU Athletics page.
Gershon said McClendon in high school made major strides working on his overall skill level, but his competitive and physical nature is what made him a viable recruit and an alpha dog for the Spartans this season.
Winning mentality: A
McClendon started all 24 games he played in for the Spartans this season and his durability and accountability make him a reliable player.
The guard’s leadership for the Spartans this season has been remarkable to witness, especially because of the different ways he can impact the game in a winning way.
McClendon ranks No. 1 in the average number of minutes played for the Spartans this season with 32.1 minutes per game, according to an SJSU Athletics statistics page.
He also ranks No. 2 in points per game for the Spartans this season, notching 12.0 points per game, trailing only star senior guard Josh Uduje, according to the same source.
The redshirt junior played at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, where he led his team to the program’s ninth consecutive 2020 Nevada Class 4A Championship, according to a SJSU Athletics news page.
McClendon’s scrappy, hard-hat approach to the game may not make him a franchise player or an award candidate, but it shows how well he has fit into the system and has the Spartans reminiscing on a totally different style of basketball.
