Surprising picks and stunning trades are through lines each year at the NBA Draft and part of what makes the event such a fascinating spectacle. But the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday during the first round of the draft made a selection so unexpected and so astonishing — drafting Chinese center Yang Hansen at No. 16 overall after acquiring his rights via the Memphis Grizzlies — that no amount of alliterations or adjectives quite capture it.
Yang finished as the No. 43 overall player in the CBS Sports Top 100 NBA Draft Prospect Rankings and was projected as a mid-to-late second round pick. No mock draft at CBSSports.com had him projected as a first-round pick and no major media board had him as a top-30 player in the class. That he went in the first round is a major surprise; that he went No. 16 overall — two picks after the lottery! — is even more shocking.
Portland general manager Joe Cronin spoke after the selection and stood by the pick despite the scrutiny surrounding it, calling Yang a “very, very unique talent.”
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“High-end skillset. His ability to pass, his basketball IQ, his functionality in the post, his ability to step out. We think he’ll be a good free-throw shooter and we think he’ll be able to make perimeter jump shots as well,” Cronin said. “Defensively, he’s a really smart player that can be pretty versatile in the post with his size and IQ.”
Adding to the perplexing nature of the decision, to say nothing of the value, Portland also is coming off selecting in the draft lottery last year, picking 7-footer Donovan Clingan at No. 7 overall. Yang measured at 7-1 and profiles as a true big man, so how he fits with Clingan is also a question — though comparisons thrown out to former MVP Nikola Jokic should rev Portland’s engines up a bit.
Cronin, though, made it clear that the pick was less about fit and more about traits — such as smarts and feel.
“I think in these playoffs, one thing I’ve really noticed is the way these successful teams think (about) the game,” Cronin said. “Their basketball IQ, their skill sets, their ability to make others and each other better is a critical component to winning these games. And that’s what Yang brings to this. His basketball IQ is very, very high and he makes others better. That’s what we’re trying to do here is find guys that help supplement and build each other up and it’s something that he thrives at.”
Yang has traits that had NBA teams interested, but selecting him this high stunned just about everyone. CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander summed it up perfectly on CBS Sports HQ right after the pick.
“People around the league are shaking their heads and texting each other right now going: What on Earth is Portland doing?” he said.
Time will tell if Yang is able to fulfill the prophecy as a ‘Chinese Jokić’ or if he’s a big-bodied center who is stiff and may struggle against NBA competition. My evaluation was more so the latter than the former watching him compete in the CBA with Qingdao. But you have to respect a team willing to go out on a ledge for their guy despite the headwinds suggesting they may be on an island.
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