The Portland Trail Blazers lost to the Los Angeles Clippers with a final score of 114-107. The silver lining is that Portland has remained competitive against three teams that should be considered contenders in the loaded Western Conference. However, one concerning takeaway early on in the season is the lack of involvement for highly anticipated rookie Yang Hansen.
The Blazers big man played just four minutes in this contest, finishing with four points and one rebound. On the season, he's now averaging 6.5 minutes, two points, one rebound, and one block per game.
Entering the draft, Hansen was universally projected to be a second-round prospect. Portland's front office clearly saw something special in him after heavily scouting him for two years, deciding to take him with the No. 16 overall pick.
Because of the second round projection, many expected Hansen to be a project that Portland would slowly be bringing along, especially considering they just recently invested a first-round pick at the position by selecting Donovan Clingan a year prior. Throughout the offseason, Chauncey Billups and Joe Cronin emphasized that they don't view that to be the case. Hansen's play in the summer league and training camp also supported those comments as he appeared ready to take on an immediate role in the NBA due to his unique skillset.
However, three games into the regular season, it's clear that Tiago Splitter and Portland's coaching staff don't trust Hansen enough to spell Clingan for extended stretches.
Yang Hansen isn't making the immediate impact Blazers expected
Ivica Zubac finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and two blocks for the Clippers. While he deserves credit as an underrated center in the league, this was also partially because Portland had no answer for Zubac's interior presence when Clingan was out of the equation. Zubac played 11 more minutes than Clingan, but Splitter elected to play small ball for a majority of those minutes.
Why not Hansen? What is the point of investing this first-round draft capital in a player who has justified the unconventional selection with his play over the summer, only to go on not to play him in meaningful games?
Robert Williams III's extended absence from the season was a perfect opportunity for the Blazers to see what exactly they have in their promising young rookie. Yet, it's Jerami Grant or Deni Avdija playing center.
Fans are understandably eager to see Hansen get an increased role, and that frustration is compounded in matchups against teams like the Clippers, where they have a traditional center in Zubac. Portland was struggling to generate offense the entire game, shooting 37.0% from the field. Implementing Hansen as an offensive hub, even to give the team a fresh look for a short stretch, wouldn't have hurt.
The fact that neither Billups nor Splitter has trusted Hansen for extended stretches suggests this will be more of a long-term project than Portland initially indicated this offseason. Hansen could still easily justify the first-round gamble, but Blazers fans must be patient as he tries to carve out a role despite a depleted frontcourt.