Clemson senior guard Cliff Hammonds exemplifies what it means to be a student-athlete in the ACC. Hammonds is in the midst of trying to become just the sixth player in Tiger history to average in double figures in scoring all four years, including a current 10.4 ppg clip. He was one of only 15 juniors in school history to reach the 1,000-point mark. Hammonds is consistently recognized as one of the most hard-working players on and off the court. In the classroom, Hammonds holds over a 3.0 GPA in the architecture program.
When did you first start playing basketball?
I've been playing ever since I was two. My dad was a big athlete back in his day. He played high school ball and says he had a couple of offers here and there. But he had to support his family and went into the military. I have two older brothers who played high school ball. My brother Mike played NAIA ball and my brother Micalvin played at Mercer and graduated last year. I guess it just runs in the family.
How about competitive basketball?
(laughs) Competitive ball started with me playing against my brothers in the backyard. Going one-on-one or playing two-on-two with my dad. That got the competitive juices flowing.
I really started playing city league ball when my dad was stationed in San Francisco. I played with a Boys and Girls Club team called the San Francisco Rebels. We traveled around. We went to (Las) Vegas and other places to play in some major tournaments. That is when I started to feel that I really could be good at this - winning MVP of different tournaments and making all-tournament teams and just having people look to me as a basketball player.
 | | Cliff Hammonds takes a shot over NC State's Marques Johnson. Hammonds drained 14 points in the game. |
What was your experience like playing in the Jones Cup last summer for Athletes in Action?
It was a great experience for me... both from a basketball standpoint and from a view of the world. We got to play against some of the best players from all over Asia. Two of the teams we played were two of the top five teams in Asia. They have been playing together for years. We got to play against top notch competition over there. The trip was with Athletes in Action so it was a mission... to spread the word of Christ and to convert people to Christianity. Not just by letting them know, but through our actions, walking the walk. It was a great experience for me, just meeting other people and other players like me - basketball players in college who are walking the same walk as I am. It gave me a lot to think about coming back this year from a leadership standpoint for my team.
What is the best advice you've received from a coach?
What I want to say is not from a coach. My dad always says there is more to life than bouncing a basketball. When things are going good and when they are going bad, just knowing that there's more out there than just playing ball. One day that's all going to be over and you are going to have to do something else. When I am going good or I start getting a little cocky, that's just a reality check for me. If I am doing well in basketball, I know that's not the only thing that's going on, there's family you have to worry about and other stuff in your life you have to worry about, so you can't get a big head, you have to stay grounded.
Who is your most influential role model?
My parents. Growing up they showed me right from wrong. They were perfect examples of how to live right, what to do right. When I messed up, they always taught me yet disciplined me in the same respect. It's just something that I want to carry on in the way I raise my children and the way I look at family life - just looking at what they did and trying to go about doing it the same way they did it.
What is your greatest accomplishment as an athlete?
I don't think it has happened yet. Hopefully it will this year, (around) ACC Tournament time when we make the NCAA Tournament and we have something to say about this ACC race.
What is it like competing in a conference like the ACC?
It's definitely tough. You have to be focused. You have to come out with the same work ethic everyday because you know that other teams are getting better. Everybody is fighting for the same goals. Right now, most everybody has two or three losses so we are all jumbled up. It's the team who stays focused, gets better each and every day and comes out here to practice, that's the team who's going to separate themselves from the pack in the positive way. I think that's what we are trying to do in practice, getting better so that we can separate ourselves from the rest of the pack.
 | | Hammonds reaches for a loose ball over Duke's Nolan Smith. |
You have received ACC All-Academic honors. How do you balance being a student-athlete?
Just time management, really... Knowing when it's time to come on the court and work on your game and also knowing when it's time to do your work off the court and in the classroom. That's the biggest thing to it - just knowing when and where. I think I learned that from my two role models, my parents. They taught me at a young age, "You've got to get your school work in first and then you can go have fun, go out and do whatever activity you want to do but first and foremost is get your education."
You are majoring in architecture. How do you hope to use that beyond graduation?
One day, after I finish playing basketball, I want to go to grad school and I'd like to intern at (an architectural) firm. Hopefully I'll be good enough at what I do to become a partner and hopefully one day own my own firm, working in high-end residential and (in) building apartment complexes somewhere in the Southeastern United States. Somewhere I can be close to my parents and close to home.
What is your most memorable moment in sports?
My most memorable moment would have to have been in high school when I played with my brother - his senior year, my junior year - winning the regional championship and the way we did it. The team had beaten us twice during the regular season. Even though we were favored in most of the games, they thought coming in to the regional championship game that they were going to beat us again. We went out that game - I think my brother had 25 points and I had 23 - and we won by 20 something points. But it was a moment that we shared, capping off his career as a high school basketball player. It was just a special moment.
Why did you choose Clemson?
Basically because of the coaching staff... When I met Coach Purnell and Coach Smith, I knew they were people that if I need them for anything in 15 years and I give them a call and say, "Hey coach I need this, I need you," they are going to be there for me. It felt like family when I came here on my visit. It was just something between me and Coach Purnell and the other coaches, we just clicked. I knew Clemson had a good architecture program, but the bottom line is that it was the coaching staff.
Do you have any plans yet for immediately after graduation?
My immediate plans are definitely to play ball. Hopefully I will get a shot to play in the NBA, but if not I want to try to play somewhere in a good league overseas, somewhere where I might get a shot to play in the NBA. That's my ultimate goal. I may play five, six years or so until my body feels like it's time to hang it up. Then get into coming back to grad school and finishing up my master's so I can get in to architecture.
Cliff Hammonds and the Tigers return to the hardwood tomorrow (2/2) at 8 p.m. when they host Boston College. Clemson then hits the road for a visit with Virginia on Thursday (2/7) and North Carolina next Sunday (2/10).
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