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Blazers: Zach Collins not dominating Summer League as expected

By Nate Mann

LAS VEAGS, NV - JULY 8: Zach Collins #33 of the Portland Trail Blazers goes to the basket against the Atlanta Hawks during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League on July 8, 2018 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
LAS VEAGS, NV - JULY 8: Zach Collins #33 of the Portland Trail Blazers goes to the basket against the Atlanta Hawks during the 2018 Las Vegas Summer League on July 8, 2018 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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HOUSTON, TX – APRIL 05: Luc Mbah a Moute #12 of the Houston Rockets goes up for a shot defended by Zach Collins #33 of the Portland Trail Blazers and Pat Connaughton #5 in the second half at Toyota Center on April 5, 2018 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX – APRIL 05: Luc Mbah a Moute #12 of the Houston Rockets goes up for a shot defended by Zach Collins #33 of the Portland Trail Blazers and Pat Connaughton #5 in the second half at Toyota Center on April 5, 2018 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

Defense

Patience and IQ

Zach Collins showed off impressive defensive instincts in his career-defining March Madness run with Gonzaga in 2017. It earned him the No. 10 overall pick by the Portland Trail Blazers.

But through his first seven NBA games, the rookie accumulated more fouls than points. He bit on every pump fake and frequently left his man open to go for the highlight block. NBA point guards read this and passed to the open big man, who then got a free dunk or layup.

This “rookie syndrome” faded the more Collins played. Still, he often committed dumb fouls that gifted free throws to the opponent.

So far in Summer League, he has shown a matured level of patience defensively. He doesn’t fall for pump fakes and focuses more on contesting the shot rather than swatting it.

Boxing out

Back to the thin frame problems.

Last season, Collins averaged 2.7 rebounds in 15.8 minutes of floor time per game. Across his two Summer League matchups, he grabbed 14 rebounds in 48 total minutes, a much higher rate than in 2017-2018.

However, he’s still having difficulties boxing out opponents. It took until 8 minutes left in the third quarter for Collins to successfully box out a Utah Jazz big man.

He had a particularly tough time with undrafted rookie Isaac Haas. Collins couldn’t keep Haas out of the paint on defensive rebounds; fortunately a lot of the potential boards bounced a different direction and into Caleb Swanigan’s hands. (Swanigan grabbed 13 rebounds against the Jazz.)

Next: Damian Lillard talks to media during Summer League games

Before getting injured against Atlanta, he did manage to show off the pros and cons of his developed game.

His basketball IQ and down-low defense were the most noticeable positives from the two games, and his thin frame getting pushed around by defenders was the most glaring negative.

Hopefully he follows through on his promise to bulk up over the summer to address this problem.