Terrence Clarke tragically died prior to the NBA draft at the age of 19.
On last Thursday’s NBA draft, the league honored the late Terrence Clarke by selecting him posthumously as an honorary draftee. Terrence Clarke tragically died in a car crash on April 22nd at only 19 years of age. He was set to be drafted this year.
This gesture really stood out in the sports world, as it demonstrated an organization showing a level of class that the Montreal Canadiens failed to show when they selected Logan Mailloux with the 31st overall pick in last week’s NHL entry draft.
“Pure class. Montreal Canadiens, take notes” wrote one user on TSN’s Instagram post about the NBA’s gesture.
Mailloux was charged with distributing an inappropriate photo of a girl without her consent, and later released a statement telling every team in the NHL not to draft him as he needed time to mature. Habs GM Marc Bergevin, as well as the scouting team, chose to ignore this.
This topic kept making headlines as NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stated that he was stunned by the Habs’ selection, saying that “what was done was horrific”.
The NBA honoring Terrence Clarke shows how these organizations are about more than just sports, and the Habs needed to take into account the actions that Mailloux did, especially after asking to be renounced from the draft.
The Canadiens have consistently been one of the classiest sports organizations. Most recently, they honored late Blue Jackets goalie Matiss Kivlenieks who passed away after a firework accident. They showed their support by taking a moment of silence prior to game 4 against the Lightning. Them selecting Mailloux, however, was out of character and uncalled for.
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