Matas Buzelis was the No. 11 overall selection in the 2024 NBA Draft and is already making teams like the Portland Trail Blazers regret passing on him when they had the chance.
Buzelis was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team last season after averaging 8.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assists on 45/36/82 shooting splits. To Portland's credit, they still selected an All-Rookie Second Team player of their own in Donovan Clingan. Still, Clingan's ceiling seems limited to being an elite rim protector and rebounder. That's an incredible value addition to the Blazers roster; however, Buzelis is proving that he has star upside that Clingan simply doesn't possess.
Buzelis has showcased that throughout the Chicago Bulls' preseason, averaging 16.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in three games. Clingan is still managing to return value on his No. 7 overall selection, especially in such a weak draft class that, for the most part, has been as advertised. But we can't help but wonder what the Blazers' roster would look like with Buzelis in the picture.
Matas Buzelis would have fit Portland's roster perfectly
At 6-foot-10, he's exactly the type of length and versatility Blazers general manager Joe Cronin values. He would have been a perfect fit alongside Deni Avdija and Toumani Camara, bolstering Portland's strength and giving Chauncey Billups plenty of options with their ability to play multiple positions.
Another factor to consider is that the Blazers have been heavily scouting Yang Hansen for two years now. After Portland selected Hansen, Cronin even mentioned that they were hoping he would be in Clingan's draft class. So, if they have been planning to take Hansen all this time, why take Clingan instead of someone like Buzelis?
The Blazers wisely bought out Deandre Ayton this summer, but still have a center logjam between Clingan, Hansen, and Robert Williams III (when healthy). Clingan and Hansen are more traditional centers that aren't very versatile in terms of being quick enough to play the power forward spot and guard out on the perimeter in the modern NBA. Meanwhile, someone who can effectively play the four is Buzelis.
Drafting him would have solved a lot of the Blazers' current roster problems, between their crowded center position, lack of star upside, and overall inability to generate offense. He also would have been the perfect insurance policy if the Blazers had ever found a reasonable trade to dump Jerami Grant's contract, providing Portland with a similar skill set in terms of length and floor spacing.
The silver lining is that the Blazers didn't miss on the Clingan pick. His high floor also likely made Portland feel more comfortable taking a swing on a high-risk, high-reward prospect in Hansen.
Still, with how far behind the Blazers are in the Western Conference race, hitting a home run with Buzelis would've gone a long way toward closing the gap.