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The Portland Trail Blazers select Dillon Brooks in the 2017 NBA Redraft

By Stevie Cozens

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 04: Dillon Brooks #24 of the Memphis Grizzlies drives during an NBA basketball game against the Brooklyn Nets on March 4, 2020 at Barclays Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Grizzlies won 118-79. 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 License agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 04: Dillon Brooks #24 of the Memphis Grizzlies drives during an NBA basketball game against the Brooklyn Nets on March 4, 2020 at Barclays Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Grizzlies won 118-79. 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 License agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images) /
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This week along with FanSided we redrafted the 2017 NBA Draft. We break down why the Portland Trail Blazers drafted Dillon Brooks with the 15th pick.

In the 2017 NBA Draft, the Portland Trail Blazers had three picks. Numbers 15, 20 and 26. At the time they traded 15 and 20 for the number ten pick of Zach Collins, and then selected Caleb Swanigan with number 26.

Now the trade of 15 and 20 for Collins was a nice trade. But we are just looking at the individual picks made with what the Blazers need, there were no trades made as part of this redraft.

At the time, the Blazers hadn’t made the conference finals with this version of the team yet, they had Jusuf Nurkic in-house and had wings in Maurice Harkless, Allen Crabbe and Evan Turner. But in the 2016/17 season they were an eight seed who were swept in the first round by the Golden State Warriors.

Crabbe and Harkless were unfortunately one way players in a lot of way. Crabbe showed some promise as a shooter with an excellent 41.1 percent for the Blazers but he was never a plus on defense. Also, after signing his four-year $75 million deal, he wasn’t able to produce at a level required to match this contract.

The Blazers needed size and shooting with some defense then, and this is even more the case now. Dillon Brooks is only 24-years-old and is a six-foot-seven wing who this season averaged 16 points a game on 37 percent from three. After being injured in his second year he has come back better than before on a young Grizzlies team.

Brooks earned a three-year extension after his strong play this year. If drafted by the Blazers would be a perfect foil to Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum. Like Rodney Hood who has succeeded in his time in town, shooting at size is a commodity in this league.

Brooks hasn’t yet shown the efficiency at the rim that his coaches would like, but at 220 pounds he has the tools to be a 60 percent plus finisher in the paint.

Brooks isn’t a great defender but he can stay in front of his man and sits around league average in both block and steal rate. He is a good offensive rebounder and though he isn’t a great finisher at the rim he can get to the line at a good clip.

Size off the bench should be the biggest addition for this team when looking at it’s next upgrade. Obviously at the team they had wings already, but there would be no harm in bringing in Brooks and having him come off the bench as a 21-year-old.

Brooks can also do some secondary playmaking off the bench, meaning he is competent in a number of areas that could help this team.

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Hindsight is obviously great, but Brooks was the best player on the board when the Blazers picked at fifteen. Considering how hard it is to find young wings who project as potential three and d players, Brooks commands value now, and when he was drafted as either a long-term piece or trade bait depending on the Blazers situation.

A three and d wing who is six-foot-seven at pick number 15? Yes please.