Ratiopharm Ulm's Noa Essengue is rapidly rising up draft boards, and rightfully so. There's even a possibility that he won't be available by the time the Portland Trail Blazers are on the clock.
But if he falls to pick No. 11, Portland would have a golden opportunity to add a forward who has drawn comparisons to Tayshaun Prince. On The Kevin O'Connor Show, Rafael Barlowe described Essengue as a combination of Shawn Marion and Prince in terms of his ability to impact the game in multiple aspects.
Marion has a knack for scoring without needing plays run for him, which reminds Barlowe of Essengue, mentioning his "energy, rebounding, timely cuts, and transition finishes." But what makes Essengue worthy of a lottery pick in a strong draft class is his two-way impact as a versatile wing, where the Prince comparisons come up.
"The sky is the limit for him. Defensively, I think maybe he could be like Tayshaun Prince. This long, switchy defender that can guard one through four. Him being thin could help as far as chasing guys off screens. I really like him," said Barlowe.
Essengue gets Blazers one step closer to becoming Billups' Pistons
For now, it's a stretch to say the 36-win Portland Trail Blazers are like Chauncey Billups' old Detroit Pistons team, which won the Finals in 2004. But that's the identity they are building towards, which is clear after signing Billups to a multi-year extension.
"I think the telltale of [building a culture], for any coaches, is if at some point when your team kind of takes on your personality and how you believe the game should be played, I think you've gotten there," said Billups after the extension.
Admittedly, these aren't perfect comparisons in terms of play style, and they certainly have a long way to go before becoming this. However, in terms of how the Blazers achieve this vision, Scoot Henderson needs to take a significant leap to become Portland's version of Billups, while Donovan Clingan is the elite defensive anchor like Ben Wallace.
Billups' extension was a polarizing decision, and time will tell whether Portland made the right call. One obvious positive that comes from it is that it provides Henderson with an ideal mentor, especially since Billups overcame struggles early on in his career.
The main factor preventing Clingan from becoming as impactful as Wallace is his conditioning -- Wallace impressively averaged a team-high 37.7 minutes per game while playing in 81 games in 2003-24, finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
Star power is the most significant thing the Blazers lack compared to the rest of the Western Conference. Hopefully, they can find a way to address that with a trade this summer, but that's easier said than done. Their best bet to compensate for their lack of star power is to give themselves an advantage elsewhere. For the Blazers, that means an elite defensive team.
They are already on the right track with an All-Defense player, Toumani Camara, and securing a long-term defensive anchor in Clingan last summer. That led to a top-ten-ranked defense in 2025.
Drafting Essengue would build off that foundation, helping get closer to following the 2004 Pistons' championship blueprint.