The center position has plagued the team for years and years. Finally, this past off-season, General Manager Neil Olshey struck gold with Robin Lopez. Lopez was an absolute perfect fit for Portland. He is young enough to have prime years left. He is old enough to be a well-rounded center. He is weird enough to live in Portland. Now the task is to find a suitable backup center.
Lopez is a great fit next to All-Star Power Forward LaMarcus Aldridge, and hopefully will stay together for the foreseeable future. Another new addition, Thomas Robinson, really added to the frontcourt depth. Robinson has a ton of potential to be a very good power forward. Now the hole is at the backup center position.
Meyers Leonard was a very highly touted prospect when the Blazers drafted him in 2012 with the number 10 pick. Joel Freeland was terrible in 2012-2013 but showed some promise this past season. The Blazers also have the mid-level exception and can offer approximately $5 million dollars to a free agent, and if I were a betting man, I would say that money goes to a backup center. But to wrap up my positional draft guide, here are my 3 big guys to keep your eye on for the Blazers.
Adrien Payne, Michigan State University
Projected Draft Position: Late-First Round
Payne is more of the new-wave of centers in the league, someone that can rebound, bang inside, but can also shoot 3’s. I like Payne but am not sure that he fits what Portland is doing. It is no secret that the Blazers love to shoot 3’s but the reason that it works so well is because Lopez and Aldridge are able to keep the paint occupied and try to find shooters occupied. If Payne can occupy some space underneath and restrain himself from just standing around the perimeter, I think he could be a good addition to the frontcourt depth.
Mitch McGary, University of Michigan
Projected Draft Position: Late-First, Early-Second Round
McGary has two strikes against him … Injuries and off the court issues. Add the fact that he is an undersized center, this might be a non-story for a lot of the teams around the league. The thing that is so intriguing about McGary is that he is so incredibly talented player. He really only played one season of the two years he was at Michigan but without the injuries and off the court issues, he would easily be a lottery pick. If the Blazers went this route, I really think it would the ultimate case of feast or famine.
Patric Young, University of Florida
Projected Draft Position: Mid-Second Round
This guy is one of my personal favorites. He has that “it” factor that you look for in a young player. I really enjoyed watching him in the NCAA Tournament and feel like he was partly overshadowed by Scottie Wilbekin. Young plays non-stop and seems to always be on the ground. That is what you are looking for from your bench: hustle, hustle and more hustle. I can only imagine Young next to Thomas Robinson coming off the bench. The main question about Young is if he has the size (6’10”) to compete with NBA centers.
Now that I have given you my entire draft guide, tomorrow will be my annual NBA Draft Lottery Mock Draft in which I will give my final prediction of what the Blazers will do. Stay tuned and get ready for surprises in the draft!
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