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Where Is Noah Vonleh’s Ceiling?

By Steven Dewald

Jan 16, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Noah Vonleh (21) rebounds the ball past Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 16, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Noah Vonleh (21) rebounds the ball past Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Can Noah Vonleh be the power forward of the future?

Noah Vonleh has now started in 35 games for the Trail Blazers. He is the youngest member of the starting unit at 20 years old, but is he really the power forward of the future? With C.J. McCollum and Damian Lillard controlling the backcourt for years to come, the focus for the future has started to move to what other pieces the Trail Blazers have going forward. Vonleh is only a year removed from being a lottery pick and provides the most intrigue for potential. Will his recent run of success be enough to gain the trust of the Portland front office going forward?

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The word “potential” has followed Vonleh in ever stop in his basketball journey. As a consensus top 20 recruit in the 2013 class he was perceived to be the next great University of Indiana basketball player. Vonleh’s potential put the nerves of Hoosier fans everywhere to rest, despite the fact that Cody Zeller had declared for the NBA Draft. Vonleh’s potential was evident his freshman year, but ultimately he proved to be a very raw product. Indiana failed to make the tournament after making a solid run in the previous year. This however, did little to impact Vonleh’s draft stock.

Going into the 2014 draft most franchise’s were searching for the new model of NBA big man. Several successful 2014 playoff teams revolved around offensively talented power forwards (Trail Blazers, Clippers, Heat), this reality only cemented the direction in which the league was trending. Four offensively gifted post players (if you count Jabari Parker) went before Vonleh that draft night. The Hornets, despite drafting Zeller the previous year, decided that another Indiana big man was worth the investment.

Injury complications and a crowded rotation led to Vonleh only playing in 25 games his first year. This was not good news for a raw teenage player in desperate need of playing time. Despite these setbacks, Vonleh was still able to flash some signs of his potential to be difference maker. You can see it clearly on display in his game against the Pistons last year.

The uncertainty heading into the 2015 offseason for Trail Blazers was palpable and the Nic Batum trade was the first of many dominoes that fell this past summer. Before the 2015 NBA Draft the Trail Blazers sent Batum to Charlotte for veteran Gerald Henderson and Vonleh. Neil Olshey finally got a player he coveted from the previous draft and Portland added a former lottery pick for pennies on the dollar. Both of these things did little to soften the blow of what happened in the days ahead.

It is ironic that the Trail Blazers acquired a young talented power forward (who received high praise due to his similarities to LaMarcus Aldridge) in the same offseason in which they’d lost Aldridge. Much of what made Vonleh such a hot commodity was due in part to the highly efficient play of power forwards like Aldridge. Now Portland is in possession of a player made popular by their system, while the player they once had is showing why a post with that skill set is so important.

Can Vonleh become a top tier big man in the NBA? It is clearly too soon to make that judgement, but Portland  is the perfect place to groom such a player. By merely starting on the overachieving Trail Blazers, Vonleh has exceeded the views of most of his critics. He has also benefited from unusual circumstances that led him to the starting lineup (LMA departure, Meyers Leonard injury). Vonleh does deserve credit though. Statistically his growth is minimal, but from watching him it is easy to see he is gaining confidence.

He is a long way from being an all-star, but at 20 years old his is certainly ahead of the curve. In a year filled with exceeded expectations in Portland, Vonleh’s progress might be one of the sweetest.