2025 Blazer Draft Prospects

[Tim Lehrbach]

Will the Blazers be lucky tonight? Even getting into the Top 4 would be great.

Flagg is the real deal. I've made it obvious I love Harper. And I have just about talked myself into Edgecombe being right behind him. Top three please.

[Walton1one]

lol, both DAL & SA move up & Philly, what a joke, well POR mgmt deserves this

Having SA out tank POR at the end, really cost the Blazers...

[PDXKnight]

lol, both DAL & SA move up & Philly, what a joke, well POR mgmt deserves this

Having SA out tank POR at the end, really cost the Blazers...

Clean house

[PDXKnight]

The nba doesn't even hide it's rigged now

[PDXKnight]

Almost like dallas la and the nba made a deal

[Walton1one]

I don't generally believe in conspiracy theories, but.....DAL trading Luka and getting Flagg? lol

[PDXKnight]

I don't generally believe in conspiracy theories, but.....DAL trading Luka and getting Flagg? lol

And sas getting number 2 on top of it all

[Walton1one]

I don't generally believe in conspiracy theories, but.....DAL trading Luka and getting Flagg? lol

And sas getting number 2 on top of it all

So a team that POR could have tanked past got #2 and a team that finished just behind POR finished 1st, think about that.

[PDXKnight]

I don't generally believe in conspiracy theories, but.....DAL trading Luka and getting Flagg? lol

And sas getting number 2 on top of it all

So a team that POR could have tanked past got #2 and a team that finished just behind POR finished 1st, think about that.

Sounds par for the course for portland

[Case2012]

Fleming a legit 6'8 without shoes and 7'5 wingspan. I think we trade this pick but for the sake of the thread I'll live in fantasy land while here.

With those measurements it's hard not think he'll go in the lottery. I would kind of be shocked if Joe and Mike don't take him given the type of players they like.

[Dame Lizard]

Fleming a legit 6'8 without shoes and 7'5 wingspan. I think we trade this pick but for the sake of the thread I'll live in fantasy land while here.

With those measurements it's hard not think he'll go in the lottery. I would kind of be shocked if Joe and Mike don't take him given the type of players they like.

I'd be happy with that.

[JRoy]

I don't generally believe in conspiracy theories, but.....DAL trading Luka and getting Flagg? lol

And sas getting number 2 on top of it all

So a team that POR could have tanked past got #2 and a team that finished just behind POR finished 1st, think about that.

But win streak!

[Case2012]

Read on Twitter

WCJ measured 6'2 with a 6'4 WS. If we can get a second or third pick I still want him though, he's the next Brunson.

Read on Twitter

Another player I really like.

Read on Twitter

Nique is at the top of my board at 11 but Wolf, Fleming, Lendeborg, WCJ are not far behind.

[dckingsfan]

ESPN has us taking Queen. Bleacher Collin Murray-Boyles. CBS Jeremiah Fears. Gonna be interesting...

[DeBlazerRiddem]

ESPN has us taking Queen.

Uhg. I had briefly been thinking about Queen because we could use a big man with some offensive skills but it did not take long watching him play to be utterly disgusted by his effort on defense and want that no where near this team.

A team might be able to hide him as a drop center, they wouldn't be good at rim protection but he wouldn't be as individually exposed. But if he had to ever play on the perimeter against NBA players like most modern 4's he would get hunted and cooked so badly.

[zzaj]

Fleming a legit 6'8 without shoes and 7'5 wingspan. I think we trade this pick but for the sake of the thread I'll live in fantasy land while here.

With those measurements it's hard not think he'll go in the lottery. I would kind of be shocked if Joe and Mike don't take him given the type of players they like.

It's going to be a tossup between Fleming and Carter as prospects...both are going to really rise once they get in for private workouts. I think Fleming's lack of handle is pretty overblown, there's also a notion that he doesn't process defensively...which I didn't see (and don't agree with) when I watched his games. Fleming isn't ever going to be a big self-creator, and his shot can be pretty inconsistent, but it's easy to see a bigger-stronger Camara type trajectory with his height, weight and +9" wingspan.

[zzaj]

Wolf, honestly would be a very interesting pick at 11...especially once Ayton is off the team. Clingan and Wolf are almost entirely opposite style players, but that would allow for a lot of flexibility in what the team can run. I actually think Wolf is going to rise up boards too, once teams see him up close. If he can end up a league average 3pt shooter on volume, he's an NBA player for a very long time.

[oldfishermen]

ESPN has us taking Queen.

Uhg. I had briefly been thinking about Queen because we could use a big man with some offensive skills but it did not take long watching him play to be utterly disgusted by his effort on defense and want that no where near this team.

A team might be able to hide him as a drop center, they wouldn't be good at rim protection but he wouldn't be as individually exposed. But if he had to ever play on the perimeter against NBA players like most modern 4's he would get hunted and cooked so badly.

Agreed, we do not need anymore players with selective motivation, aka slacker. Ayton, Grant and Simons take up all of the slacker position minutes

[Walton1one]

Post Lottery mocks are up, here is a roundup

ESPN

DERIK QUEEN

Scouting report: Queen is perhaps the most skilled big man in this class. He is a terrific target in pick-and-roll, can create his own shot facing the basket with a wide array of moves, and has intriguing passing ability.

Queen's conditioning, occasional apathy defensively and lack of shooting range are things NBA teams picking in this area (or earlier) will want to get a better handle on in the predraft process. Interviews, workouts and more research will determine whether he gets picked higher or lower, as there is no real consensus among scouts for how to view his unique profile long term. -- Givony

NBA intel and fit: Portland's rebuild is ahead of schedule, with the Blazers going 23-18 over their final 41 games as Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara and Donovan Clingan showed significant promise, providing a strong core to build around. All that unexpected winning diminished the Blazers' lottery chances and has them staring at a third tier of prospects with plenty of talent but also obvious flaws.

Queen's lack of shooting might not be an ideal fit on paper for a Portland team that already struggled from the perimeter, but his talent might be too big to pass on, especially if Clingan can make a jump with his shooting like he showed flashes of in small doses as a rookie. -- Givony

Not a fan of picking Queen, IMO his fit with POR\Clingan is not good and has defense\conditioning concerns. Most mocks have him going inside the Top 10 though and not falling this far. They have POR passing on Demin (#12), Bryant (#14 to SA!!!), Essengue (#18), McNeeley (#20) & Clifford (#23) - ESPN has Fleming @ 27 & Lendeborg @ 29

THE ATHLETIC - VECENIE

KASPARAS JAKUCIONIS

Jakučionis is big and can play both on and off the ball, coming off a terrific freshman season in which he averaged 15 points, six rebounds and five assists. His vision is sublime, and he fits the current ecosystem of the NBA well with his dribble, pass and shoot traits. Still, he is a bit polarizing for folks around the league as he doesn’t have a ton of athletic explosiveness, and his defensive game was not always on point this year. His range is seen as somewhere from the middle to the end of the lottery.

The Blazers, in my opinion, have a tremendous frontcourt of the future with Deni Avdija, Toumani Camara and Donovan Clingan. However, there are questions in the backcourt surrounding young players Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson, and they could use another offensive option to start pushing those guys. Jakučionis can play both on and off the ball, giving him the flexibility to play with either of those players.

Yes please, if he slips here, he would be an ideal pick IMO, comes in as the 3rd guard, can be a b\u PG or play off ball with Scoot (much better fit than Simons), connective player, great passer and he can shoot which is needed

Vecenie has POR passing on Bryant (#12) that would be a tough call IMO b\t Bryant\Jakucionis, Essengue @ #14 (to SA), Clifford (#16), Demin (#18), McNeeley (#21) - He has Fleming @ 27, Lendeborg @ 33

THE RINGER

DERIK QUEEN

Queen is a bit of an odd bird—a mostly ground-bound scoring big who can bully opponents but largely doesn’t. His craft around the basket and consistent ability to get there—whether facing up from the foul line or picking his spots as a rolling screener—are nearly peerless in this class. His role on defense and iffy shooting loom over his upside, but Portland’s roster is big and long enough to cover him on the former, while his passing and broad offensive skill set should find a nice playmaking synergy with their scoring guards.

Deliberately paced big man who offers truly unique scoring craft, passing touch, and feel but faces fit concerns.

Queen is one of the tougher calls in this draft class—a true glass-half-full-or-empty player. He’s an older freshman, having turned 20 years old in December, but he’s also a balletic behemoth, with uncommon nimbleness in open space and surprising balance and body control when he’s driving to the rim.

Queen’s hands and touch are among his best physical qualities. He has a real knack for extracting rebounds out of the chaos around the basket, even if he manages to get only a fingertip on the ball. He’s just as clever and accurate with those mitts on defense and can create deflections or strip a driver without fouling. That said, he’s not exactly a deterrent around the rim; he’s mostly ground bound on defense and will have stretches when you’re left wondering, “Why didn’t he even attempt to go for that?” But a moment later, he can surprise with his ability to move with smaller players in ways that a lot of bigs cannot. So while he’s rarely, if ever, making the emphatic block over the top, he’s capable of snuffing out attempts at ground level before they happen.

That touch carries over into his offensive game and is particularly visible in his passing. Few big guys in this draft, if any, can go toe to toe with Queen when it comes to overall passing tools. He’s produced some eye-popping moments this season with his passing touch, whether in tight spaces around the rim, firing a laser to a cutting teammate, or rifling one-handed skips to shooters on the opposite side who are spotting up.

We expect prospect bigs who play strictly inside the arc to be highly efficient scorers—after all, they’re playing right near the rim. Typically, we’d want a big’s 2-point percentage to be north of 65, but Queen has shot only 55.8 percent inside the arc. But there’s some important context to consider. For one, when he’s actually at the rim, he’s great—68.4 percent there and 48.8 percent in the paint overall. For another, he played a large percentage of his minutes with Julian Reese, a rim-running, post-up big. As a result, Queen attempted way more 15- to 18-foot 2-pointers than he should have. I don’t see Queen ever becoming a dynamic shooter, but when his feet are set, he has the touch, energy transfer, and release point to eventually turn those long 2s into 3s. He’s also smooth and looks the part from the free throw line, at 75.5 percent on 208 attempts.

Overall, scouting Queen is a never-ending back-and-forth between marveling over his skill and fretting over how he’ll adapt to the NBA—the speed of the game, the size of the athletes, the ruthless accountability. If he doesn’t become a semi-dependable shooter or a lob threat, what are the conditions in which he’d thrive? There are still too many instances when, because of his lapses in attention to detail, he leaves opportunities on the table for his talent to impact the game. To maximize who he can be, Queen will have to find a way to adopt a mentality of doing his work early as opposed to waiting until a situation is dire before he springs into action.

Another Queen pick, I am not convinced he will fall down to #11 though, they have Jakucionis (@ #9) & Bryant (@ #10) going right before POR pick and POR passing on: Demin (#13), Clifford (#16), McNeeley (#21) - Interestingly they have Cedric Coward @ # 15


CBS

JEREMIAH FEARS

Fears is a high-upside playmaking lead guard and while he likely won't be ready to play right away, he could provide a long-term contingency plan should Portland ever reach the conclusion that the backcourt experiment of Scoot Henderson, Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe just hasn't gelled the way they hoped they might.

Have a tough time seeing POR take another smallish\non shooting guard, though if Cronin goes for pure upside (as they tend to do) then maybe, not a great fit though and this would mean they are hedging on Scoot and I have no idea what it means for keeping Simons, just the type of nonsensical move this fromt office would make.

They have POR passing on McNeeley (#14), Clifford (#15), Demin (#22) & Essengue (#23)


BLEACHER REPORT

KASPARAS JAKUCIONIS

Kasparas Jakucionis will earn workouts and consideration from top-10 teams, though backcourt logjams and questions about creating separation could also push him into the late lottery.

His 6’6″ size and scoring/playmaking versatility should help teams see a combo that can play off an established lead ball-handler like De’Aaron Fox.

While Jakucionis struggled from the field down the stretch, he mostly showed enough effective change of speed, creative shotmaking and high-IQ passing for scouts to believe he can compensate for limited athletic traits.

Team Fit: After developing a stingy defense under coach Chauncey Billups, the Blazers could try boosting their offense here with Jakucionis. He’s a crafty, creative scorer, and while he has a tendency to sometimes get over his skis, he might thrive in a multi-creator offense while splitting touches with Scoot Henderson, Anfernee Simons and Deni Avdija. —Zach Buckley, NBA Analyst

They have POR passing on Clifford (#15), Bryant (#16), Demin 9#18) & McNeeley (#19)

They also proposed a trade with UTA for Lauri Markkanen

TRADE IDEA
Blazers Receive: Lauri Markkanen
Jazz Receive: No. 11, Deandre Ayton, Kris Murray, a 2029 first-round pick (top-five protected) and a 2030 first-round pick swap (via MIL)

So (2) 1st's, both probably lottery & most valuable of the (2) swaps from MIL (30') for Markannen? No thank you.

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

EGOR DEMIN

Portland makes some sense as a Demin destination, pairing a jumbo wing playmaker with a roster loaded with athletic scoring guards. Shooting it more consistently than he did at BYU will be a major key long-term, but the upside here will tempt someone in the late lottery or teens.

I think Demin would be a good pick if Jakucionis\Bryant or gone (or even maybe if they are there?) Probably has the best potential upside\ceiling of all 3 guys and he could fit in well alongside either Scoot\Sharpe (or even Simons). He also brings great size to POR backcourt, is very switchable position wise, something that POR values. His archetype is so unique that teams rarely pass on them, even though Demin has some shooting concerns, history has shown these guys tend to have productive careers but take some time to develop (Giddey\Livingston)

NO CEILINGS

KASPARAS JAKUCIONIS

The Portland Trail Blazers already have a stable of quality young guards, but they had to pounce here after Kasparas Jakucionis fell all the way to #11. The Illinois standout might be the best playmaker in the class, and he will instantly provide more passing juice for a team that finished 23rd in the league in overall offense and 27th in assists per game. Jakucionis also has the size to play alongside any of their other guards, which will help with shaping lineups. Portland also has a great core of young defenders, which will make it easy for Jakucionis to hide on that end until he’s up to NBA speed. It might not be the most obvious selection, but it’s hard to argue with the value proposition here for Portland.

They have Bryant going #9, and POR passing on Clifford (#15), Demin (#17) & Essengue (#18) & McNeeley (#24) - They have Fleming going #13 & Fears going #16, both outliers to other mock drafts I have seen

[zzaj]

We gotta pay special attention to ESPN's mocks going forward--they have been correct for the Blazers the past 3 drafts, IIRC...