Blazers' baffling Yang Hansen pick is actually pure genius

Now that the Portland Trail Blazers fanbase had had some time to catch its breath after the infamous Yang Hansen draft selection, there has been a multitude of scattered intel out there that’s collectively eased the minds of Blazers fans wherever they could find it.

The frustrating part of this approach is that bits and pieces of a front office’s vision are just that—not the entire picture. Why did the Blazers not take the New Orleans pick involved in the Derik Queen trade? How did the Blazers know that Yang was their guy? Why did they draft Yang into a roster with four centers? Doesn’t the Chinese Basketball Association feature much weaker competition than the NBA? Let’s talk about it.

Portland's Yang Hansen steal was years in the making

Assistant general manager Mike Schmitz began scouting Yang back in 2023 before he appeared on even the deepest draft boards and before Jody Allen announced the team was for sale. He first appeared on the organization’s radar after playing at a FIBA U19 World Cup event held in Hungary in June. In one of those games, Yang matched up against—and outperformed—Alex Sarr.

In July of 2024, Yang and the Chinese men’s national team matched up against the Australian men’s team. The Australian team featured several NBA players: Josh Giddey, Jock Landale, Patty Mills, Matthew Dellavedova, Joe Ingles and NBA Defensive Player of the Year Dyson Daniels among them. While Australia demolished China 91-58, Yang was only a minus-1 in his 21 minutes, grabbing 10 rebounds to go with seven points, four blocks, and three assists. 

Later that month, Portland set up a closed-door scrimmage: the Blazers versus China’s men’s national team. In that matchup, Yang performed favorably against then-rookie Donovan Clingan, easing the fears that Yang’s CBA competition level was holding him back. 

On May 29, 2025, Hansen Yang joined the Blazers for a published workout in Portland. In that workout, Yang was matched up against five other players who would be picked in the first round (save Rasheer Fleming, who was chosen 31st).

As for Yang’s highlights, it turns out that Chinese basketball is a much different game than in the USA. Chinese basketball is strictly about fundamentals, which the highlight videos produced by China widely showcase. The only way to get a fair assessment of Yang’s skill was to travel to China and watch; when the Blazers drafted Yang, they themselves produced a supercut of the unseen Yang footage.

Had other teams seen this footage, Yang may not have been there at 16; there’s quite a bit of Arvydas-esque footage crammed into three minutes.

The Blazers drafted Yang with Ayton’s expiring in mind, giving him a year of seasoning and having him work out with Clingan for an “iron sharpens iron” approach. While it sounds strange to draft a pair of centers back-to-back, there are a couple of things to note here.

The Blazers worked out at least nine players who were projected to be drafted in round one, and 34 players projected elsewhere, including Yang. Of those, Yang was the pick.

Secondly, of the presumed starting lineup, which player in the draft would have replaced them? That short list evaporates quickly after pick four.

After the initial shock of the Yang pick, it’s safe to say there are brighter days ahead for the Blazers. Within a full battery of career moments for Mike Schmitz, this may be the one to catapult him into the upper echelons of team leadership.