We're now 26 games into the 2025-26 regular season, and the Portland Trail Blazers still have yet to gain clarity on rookie Yang Hansen.
He's played in just half of those games, averaging 2.6 points and 1.8 rebounds in 7.7 minutes. For a Blazers team that has constantly emphasized a long-term approach, wouldn't it make sense to make the rookie you were so high on more of a priority? Not just from a developmental standpoint, but also from an evaluation standpoint.
Hansen's rookie season has been an absolute rollercoaster. Early on, he was legitimately looking like the steal of the entire 2025 NBA Draft with his footwork, passing ability, and overall basketball IQ. But as the summer dust settled and competition picked up, the Hansen hype train quickly derailed. The speed and physicality of the NBA became too steep a learning curve, and Portland's promising rookie unfortunately started to trend in the opposite direction.
So what is he, the steal or bust of the draft? The reality is, he's only 20 years old. No one knows for sure how his career will unfold, and we must be especially patient with it relative to other rookies, given the project nature of the pick. But Portland also isn't doing a great job of seeing what they have on their hands.
For better or worse, the Blazers must prioritize Yang Hansen
This is a wasted opportunity as the Blazers could've gotten much more out of Hansen's rookie season. Take his first starting debut against the Memphis Grizzlies, for example. Zach Edey was absolutely eating him for lunch in the first half, but Hansen looked like an entirely different player in the second half, managing to hold his own more often than not against one of the most physically dominant bigs in the league.
Interim head coach Tiago Splitter is hesitant to throw Hansen into the fire and clearly doesn't think he's ready, based on the fact that he's completely fallen out of the rotation. But that Memphis game showed that maybe being thrown into the fire is exactly what Hansen and the Blazers need.
They can put him in the G League all they want, and he'll continue to play well. But that's never been the issue. The concern with Hansen is how his game can translate at the highest level. He needs reps to adjust to NBA speed, and the Blazers are delaying the inevitable by trying to keep him from being fed to the wolves.
They were high enough on Hansen to take a projected second-rounder with the No. 16 overall pick, and a huge reason why was his basketball IQ. Against Edey, Hansen was quickly learning and improving in real time. He got more comfortable and confident with each passing possession. That's what the Blazers need to get out of this season. They are fighting for the play-in, but have no legitimate shot at the postseason unless they make a trade deadline upgrade.
This is a transitional season for Portland, and it's as good a time as ever to get Hansen that NBA experience he truly needs. Expectations next season will be much higher with an improved roster and Damian Lillard's return. At that point, it's going to be that much harder for Hansen to crack the rotation.
Plus, don't they want to know if they can truly move on from Robert Williams III by February's deadline? Hansen was projected to be the backup behind Donovan Clingan to start the season, which would've made Williams much more expendable. But with the uncertainty now surrounding Hansen, it makes an already complicated Williams trade decision that much more difficult.
Roster clarity should be a point of emphasis for the Blazers this season, and at the forefront of that should be their rookie.