Blazers: 5 goals for Zach Collins to achieve in the 2018-2019 season

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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) /

Conservative block attempts

Through his first nine NBA games (58 minutes), Collins recorded 18 fouls and 17 points – not the ratio you want out of your lottery pick. He had officially contracted the Hassan Whiteside syndrome that so many rookies get.

The Hassan Whiteside syndrome? Wanting to block every shot that’s taken in the paint, often leaving your own man open for the easy bucket or committing an unnecessary foul.

As the year progressed and Collins played more minutes, his foul-to-point ratio corrected itself as he started focusing on contesting shots rather than trying to always block them. He finished 2017-2018 averaging 0.5 blocks and 2.0 fouls per game – both improvable metrics.

In the 2018 Summer League tournament, he blocked 2.7 shots per game and only committed 3.0 fouls per game. The fouls should be take with a grain of salt; Summer League players get 10 before fouling out, meaning Collins probably hacked a few opponents without having to worry about hitting six before the game ended.

Next. 5 goals for Caleb Swanigan in 2018-2019. dark

The success of the last four goals rests on Collins’ ability to bulk up and be able to push and shove with the league’s other seven-footers.

He has shown remarkable improvement from his first few games as a rookie – hopefully the trend continues and leads the bench unit in the absence of Ed Davis.