The opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament is marked for upsets and unexpected stars. The Oakland Golden Grizzlies and Jack Gohlke, for example. John Poulakidas and Yale. More often than not, though, those players are destined to be March Madness legends, not NBA draft picks.
On the flip side, some prospects use the first two rounds to leap up draft boards. Players who were thought of as potential second-round picks move into the first. Late first-rounders put themselves in the lottery conversation. Highly rated prospects can lock themselves into becoming a top-five or top-10 pick.
It's also a chance for NBA teams to see mid-major stars play against high-level competition and watch how players fare when the lights are brightest. As a team hoping to land one of the top picks in the 2024 NBA Draft, the Portland Trail Blazers are likely watching more closely than others.
How could some of these breakout players fit into the Blazers' rebuild? Here are six of the opening weekend's standouts who would mesh with what Portland's hoping to find in this year's draft.
6 March Madness prospects who showed they're ideal fits for the Trail Blazers
Some of the players who have flown under the radar to this point in the draft process used last weekend's national stage to show they should be on Portland's draft board, maybe not as one of the franchise's two lottery picks but as options for the Blazers' two early second-rounders (Nos. 34 and 40).
Tyon Grant-Foster, wing, Grand Canyon
Grant-Foster's off-court journey is impressive in its own right, but don't let the idea of him playing at a smaller school like Grand Canyon fool you - the Antelopes' star is a big-time player.
Grant-Foster is a 6-foot-7 wing who shows legitimate two-way potential. His size, athleticism, offensive skill set and defense-friendly attributes point to a player who could be better in the NBA than in college.
Grant-Foster can use a strong burst to drive past defenders in the half-court and a 7-foot wingspan to finish at the rim. He got to the free-throw line 8.3 times per game this season for GCU.
He averaged more than 20 points and 6 rebounds this year, and despite shooting only 33.1 percent from three, has a good-looking stroke. He shows promise defensively as he averaged 1.5 steals and 1.7 blocks during the regular season.
He had no problem showing out against higher-level competition in the Lopes' two tournament games, either. He totaled 51 points, 15 rebounds, 5 blocks and 4 steals against Saint Mary's and Alabama.
Tristan da Silva, F, Colorado
Cody Williams could be a top-five pick, but it was da Silva who looked the part of an NBA player during Colorado's three tournament games.
The 6-foot-9 senior is a do-it-all forward who can mesh with any scheme and any lineup. He has career shooting splits of 49/39/79 and averaged 5.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals during his final campaign in Boulder.
He won't wow anyone with his athleticism and won't jump out of the gym, but at worst da Silva should be a high-level glue guy in the NBA. Think Jaime Jaquez of the Miami Heat or a more talented and skilled Toumani Camara. He's an intelligent but skilled scorer who picks his spots and is willing to make the right pass and make it accurately.
Da Silva averaged 18.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.3 steals while shooting 60 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from three on more than five attempts per game against Boise State, Florida and Marquette last weekend.
Oso Ighodaro, C, Marquette
Ighodaro is similar to da Silva in that he's a low-usage player who will find a way to fit in, at least offensively. He may be a better fit for the Trail Blazers, though, as a 6-foot-11, 235-pound center.
The 21-year-old won't force anything on offense and doesn't shoot, but he's smooth near the rim and has a push shot that's almost automatic within 8 feet. That works for Ighodaro as he's more of a facilitator than a scorer. He's excellent in a two-man game, whether dribble-handoffs or screen-and-rolls. He's athletic enough to be a lob threat yet skilled enough to make plays on the short roll.
He's one of the more switchable centers in this draft class defensively. He is agile side-to-side and moves smoothly when hedging pick-and-rolls and guarding smaller players on the perimeter.
Terrence Shannon, F, Illinois
When talking about Terrence Shannon's draft prospects, it's critical to acknowledge he was charged with rape or an alternative count of sexual battery in December and was immediately suspended. He filed a temporary restraining order against the University of Illinois Board of Trustees claiming he wasn't granted due process before being suspended from the team and was reinstated.
That situation may take Shannon off of some teams' boards entirely.
But as an NBA prospect, the 6-foot-6 forward is big, powerful, knows how to score and has proven he can lock down defensively when he wants to. And he's been on a tear down the stretch of this season when games matter the most.
Shannon can get by defenders, bulldoze his way to the rim and finish through contact. He averaged 23.3 points this season as a fifth-year senior, and though he's not necessarily a knockdown shooter from deep, hit 36.1 percent of his 6.7 attempts.
In three Big Ten Tournament games and two NCAA Tournament games, the 23-year-old is averaging 31.6 points and 1.8 steals on 53/43/88 shooting splits.
Harrison Ingram, F, North Carolina
Harrison Ingram looks like what Nassir Little was supposed to be when the Trail Blazers drafted him in 2019. Ingram is the prototypical modern NBA four; he's strong, quick and switchable with a good (and still developing) 3-point shot. He's versatile enough to slide into a lineup and be a low-usage connector but talented and streaky enough to carry a team offensively for stretches.
Ingram was a five-star recruit who chose to play at Stanford, but his two seasons with the Cardinal were underwhelming. Since he arrived in Chapel Hill, though, he's blossomed.
Ingram averaged 12.2 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists this year at 6-foot-8 and put-together 230 pounds. He's played next to All-American center Armando Bacot but has also seen time on the wing. The 21-year-old junior is shooting a career-high 38.7 percent from deep this year on a career-high 4.5 attempts per game.
He's developed into an irreplaceable Swiss army knife for a Tar Heels team that could win a national title and could do the same in Portland.
Zach Edey, C, Purdue
Edey is the most polarizing draft prospect in this class and maybe in the last few seasons. He's about to become a back-to-back National Player of the Year, dominates near the rim on both ends and is one of the best pure back-to-the-basket post players in recent memory.
He's also plodding, will get dusted in transition and is likely to become a specialist who can only be on the floor in certain situations.
Still, the Trail Blazers could stand to add a big man in this year's draft, and Edey is 7-foot-3 and 300 pounds. Portland needs rim protection behind their diminutive backcourt and the Purdue star has blocked 2.1 and 2.3 shots per game the past two seasons, respectively.
Just because he's massive, don't underestimate Edey's skill level. He's agile for someone his size, knows how to position himself for an entry pass and has touch around the rim. He's used to seeing double teams and knows how to find an open shooter.
Yes, NBA teams could go small and attack Edey in pick-and-rolls to expose him as a perimeter defender and force him to run the floor in transition. If they do that, though, they run the risk of being dominated on the interior in the half-court on both ends of the floor.
He'll never be a 30-minute-per-game starting center in the pros, but he's more than capable of dominating an NBA game in the right situation and his profile fits snugly into what the Blazers need as a rotational big man.