The Portland Trail Blazers are now 6-5 on the season after a 125-117 road win over the New Orleans Pelicans. Although the Pelicans lost, one of the main takeaways from this game was how special rookie Derik Queen looks. From the Blazers' standpoint, this raises the question of whether or not they selected the right big man in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Did the Blazers overthink their evaluation of Derik Queen?
The Blazers were shorthanded due to several injuries and a second-quarter ejection of Jerami Grant. Still, their No. 16 overall selection, Yang Hansen, didn't see the court, recording his sixth consecutive DNP-coach's decision.
Meanwhile, Queen finished this contest with 26 points, seven rebounds, and four assists, shooting 12-of-18 from the field.
This shouldn't come as a surprise, considering Queen has emerged as one of the standouts so far in a strong draft class. Opposing teams are taking notice of Queen's unique skillset as a playmaking center. Even the greatest power forward of all time, Tim Duncan himself, praised Queen when he took on Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs.
Antonio Daniels during the broadcast: "Tim Duncan just sent me a text… he said 'man I really like that [Derik] Queen guy' pic.twitter.com/LRJbwjbku2
— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) November 9, 2025
Derik Queen is already the offensive hub Portland hopes Yang Hansen becomes
We must be both careful and patient with these rookie comparisons. Hansen is clearly on a different career trajectory than the rest, as he looks to improve his speed and conditioning level. Still, this one hurts because Queen was ultimately selected No. 13 overall and was clearly in Portland's draft range had they stayed put at 11.
Hansen is four inches taller than Queen, which in theory should give him a higher ceiling if he's able to put it all together at the NBA level. But that theoretical upside may not be reality, as Queen appears to be on a star-like trajectory.
Entering the draft, there were concerns regarding how Queen's 6-foot-9 frame would translate at the next level, especially considering he's not a reliable floor spacer. Adding to those red flags was a historically bad combine where he showcased concerning athleticism. However, Queen is the latest example of how front offices can oftentimes overanalyze their prospect evaluation process. Queen proved he's a hooper at Maryland, and that's immediately been on display in New Orleans.
Queen has one of the highest basketball IQs in this draft class. He's a unicorn that can be utilized as an offensive hub, thanks to his patience, crafty footwork, and ball handling. Sound familiar? That's why his rookie campaign is painful to follow for Blazers fans, because that's precisely who Hansen is supposed to be. It's easy to envision Queen being a perfect fit for Portland's athletic roster, initiating fastbreaks and finding their athletic backcourt on backdoor cuts in half-court sets.
Portland won't admit this potential draft mistake this early on, but it's fair to at least raise the question of whether they got too cute in the draft. Queen was a proven lottery talent that would've provided Portland with just about everything they are still waiting to get out of Hansen.