Blazers need a major lineup shift to maximize their incoming draft pick

The March Madness tournament is upon us, and with it comes the shoring up of some of the June draft’s rough edges. But perhaps for the first time in what feels like several years, much of the top half has already been decided in batch form. Picks 1–3 will feature some combination of Peterson, Dybantsa, and Boozer, pick 4 likely belongs to Caleb Wilson, with slots 5–10 occupied by five point guards and Nate Ament. 

Just one spot beyond that is where the Blazers project to end up—pick number 11. In this lottery pocket, the positional balance shifts more toward the frontcourt. Regardless of how you feel about Scoot Henderson, this is where the Blazers want to pick, because to unlock Portland’s true potential, Deni Avdija must slide over to the point guard position. 

Playing Deni Avdija at point guard is how Portland reaches its ceiling

Deni is definitely quick enough to guard opposing point guards, with great footspeed in the open floor and above-average lateral footwork. He already takes on a facilitator role at his current position, leading the Blazers in usage and assists. Having a capable player at his size running the offense is a luxury the Blazers should seize. 

Doing this allows Camara to slide to the small forward position, opening up the power forward slot to one of several NBA-ready big men in this year’s draft. When and if Yang Hansen comes around, he will play in drop coverage and get roundly torched by stretch bigs just like Clingan. As the team is on the precipice of the postseason, the Blazers should be done taking swings and look to fill in the gaps. 

Tom Dundon’s takeover is knocking on the back door of this very season, and the man is going to want to win. As it stands right now, the Blazers need to start plugging holes, and oddly enough, the biggest one is at the backup center position. A big man that can play alongside Clingan and hold his own at the 5 with Donovan on the bench is going to unlock a lot for the Blazers. 

Portland can shore up frontcourt depth in the draft

Luckily, this draft has no shortage of those types of players, luckier still that they will all be available with the 11th pick. What’s more, many of the players offer drastically different skillsets, giving the Blazers the unique ability to fine-tune the lineup to suit the new regime’s vision.

Hannes Steinbach is the most prolific rebounder in NCAA basketball, leading the nation with 11.8 per game. Like Clingan, Steinbach dominates the offensive glass with 4.2 offensive boards per game. Pairing those two would help blunt the edge of poor shooting nights and ensure wire-to-wire glass dominance when Clingan takes a seat.

On the flipside, Michigan’s Morez Johnson Jr. and Yaxel Lendeborg are big-bodied elite defenders, much like Robert Williams III, but with reliable-looking three-point strokes. They don’t gobble up as many rebounds as Steinbach, but they can put the clamps on a greater variety of players.

Whichever direction the Blazers decide to go, the center position is by far the weakest in this draft cycle, giving Portland the upper hand when choosing a player that will slot into the lineup on day one.