Donovan Clingan just keeps getting better for the Portland Trail Blazers at 22. Monday's win against the Denver Nuggets further confirmed that he's already among the best centers in the league. Clingan held his own against Nikola Jokic and even contributed on the offensive end, finishing with a season-high 17 points, 18 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 blocks.
He also played a season-high 32 minutes, which shows how much his conditioning has improved since entering the league. This draft pick keeps looking better for Portland. Unfortunately, that makes their subsequent first-round pick, Yang Hansen, look increasingly puzzling.
It's an inverse relationship because they can't really share the floor, since neither can play the four in the modern NBA. There are only 48 minutes to share between the two first-round draft investments. And with Clingan proving he can play 30+ minutes a night now without a decline in production thanks to improved conditioning, it raises the question of whether Hansen fits into their long-term plans.
Donovan Clingan's rise makes Yang Hansen's path even harder to see
In the short term, it's clear he won't see much action, especially since they brought back Robert Williams III on a three-year, $44 million deal this offseason. Hansen seems to be in a frontcourt committee with Micah Potter and Branden Carlson for the third-string spot in Micah Nori's rotation.
That’s not nothing, given Williams’ unfortunate injury history and Portland’s maintenance plan. But as the lone loss of the season against the Memphis Grizzlies showed, this team is still vulnerable in the frontcourt when Williams isn't available.
That's why they were wise to bring him back on that three-year deal after his productive, relatively healthy season last year. It gives Hansen three more years to develop, at which point he'll be 24 and hopefully ready to make a more meaningful contribution. Again, that's quite an investment in a multi-year project that, in all likelihood, still wouldn't be anything more than a backup to Clingan at that point.
Hansen deserves credit, as he looks better this season than last. It's far too early to declare him a draft bust. But it is fair to say the vision was puzzling at the time, and it seems increasingly difficult to make sense of the better Clingan gets, too.
Clingan was already coming off an All-Rookie season the summer the Blazers decided to pick Hansen. The UConn product already showed enough to be considered a long-term starter at the position, yet that clearly didn't stop general manager Joe Cronin from taking a flyer on his guy.
Cronin is certainly a risk-taker in Portland's rebuild, with many of those moves coming from bold trades that have ultimately worked out in their favor. But the draft hasn't been as much of a success story in this rebuild, and it makes you wonder whether this was truly a calculated bet by Cronin.
At least they managed to trade back with the Grizzlies and pick up an additional first-round pick (2028 via Orlando) in the process. But with Clingan getting better every season, not just solidifying his place as a starter but amongst the league's best at the position, it's going to be hard for Hansen to cut into those minutes going forward.
How do you return value on the draft pick if not by playing minutes? I don't see the Blazers trading Clingan, since he's a building block, but it's also hard to see them trade Hansen given factors like the China market and new ownership. It seems like Cronin and the Blazers are stuck with this draft gamble that will struggle to materialize as long as Hansen remains on the bench. And that won't change until he's better than Clingan, so good luck.
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