Ushering in a new era of Portland Trail Blazers basketball seems to be the theme of the 2015 NBA offseason. The Rip City roster no longer resembles the crew that had back-to-back 50-win seasons over the past two years, but one thing it can hang its hat on is that youth and potential have become the beacons of hope in an otherwise confusing time.
In a 15-part series, Oregon Sports News’ Bryant Knox and Jared Wright will be breaking down each player on the Trail Blazers roster. The series will conclude with an OSN Roundtable in October covering the state of the franchise entering the 2015-16 campaign.
In this edition of the roster breakdown, we take a look at a player who’s new to the Association, but saw his draft stock fall from top five to non-existent in just one year’s time.
Where He’s Been
In the year 2014, Cliff Alexander was one of the most highly touted prep players in the nation. He had size, strength and athleticism, and according to Rivals.com, he was a five-star recruit and the fourth-best player in the country his senior year of high school.
Now, Alexander is playing with a chip on his shoulder after going undrafted, but the question for casual fans is: What changed in just one year’s time?
Stunned Cliff Alexander went undrafted. A year ago, he was viewed as a lottery talent. Off the court issues really resonated with teams.
— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixSI) June 26, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsFor starters, Alexander injured his foot before his year at Kansas ever began. Despite being a projected top-five pick in the 2015 draft, the freshman was forced to miss summer workouts, which put him behind schedule as far as the Jayhawks were concerned. Following the youngster’s recovery, head coach Bill Self had already moved on and committed to Plan B and beyond. Even worse was that Self challenged Alexander’s motor during a January game, showing he’d seemingly lost faith in the idea that talent could trump an unexpectedly rough transition to the collegiate level.
Bill Self on Cliff Alexander: “I didn’t think his motor was very good tonight.”
— Rustin Dodd (@rustindodd) January 18, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js To put the icing on the cake that was Alexander’s terrible year, the freshman’s season was cut short due to questions surrounding his eligibility. Kansas, fearing NCAA backlash, suspended Alexander indefinitely following a report from Yahoo! Sports involving his mother and possible impermissible benefits. Alexander never played another game for the Jayhawks, and his roller coaster of a draft stock completely plummeted (especially after injuring his right knee during a pre-draft workout) before going undrafted in June.
@CAlexander mock history pic.twitter.com/zcRLWYP6wc h/t to @LosBrooklynNets
— NetsDaily.com (@NetsDaily) June 28, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
How He Got Here
The dog days of the NBA summer are “lists” favorite season. Not sure what I mean? Observe:
— 5 NBA Players Who Will Step Up Next Season
— 10 NBA Teams Poised To Take a Step Back In 2015-16
— 9 Million NBA Teams LaMarcus Aldridge Will Meet With This Offseason
“Lists” have a way of creeping up on us during the summer months, and one list that saw Alexander’s name prominently featured on every major site was: “Top Undrafted Talent Remaining From 2015 NBA Draft.”
Although Alexander’s draft fate wasn’t all that surprising for those who had been tracking his stock closely, it was clear that people still believed in the talent he had from high school (or at least they believed it enough to feature him on their lists of players who will still have a shot at making an NBA roster).
As expected, Alexander was added to a summer league depth chart. The power forward posted 8.5 points and 6.6 rebounds per game while playing for the Brooklyn Nets summer squad.
Although those numbers hardly resemble the statistics of a one-time surefire superstar, the Trail Blazers caught notice. And more specifically, they noticed that their summer overhaul had left them with plenty of cash to spend and plenty of opportunity for young, hungry pieces.
What He Brings To The Table
Although we don’t know what Alexander the NBA player looks like, we have a solid idea of what he can do when healthy and living up to his full potential.
For starters, he can do this:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHrsPZ2DVVs]At 16 years old, Alexander took down a backboard following a one-man fastbreak. Don’t kid yourself into thinking this hoop was vulnerable from the beginning; Alexander made the hoop vulnerable with his size and strength, which makes sense considering how Eric Bossi described him as a prospect once upon a time on Rivals.com:
“Alexander is a physically intimidating power player. He uses his strength, long arms and attacking nature to go right at the rim. He can make jump hooks and is developing touch to eight feet. Perhaps his biggest strength is his rebounding. Alexander grabs rebound above the rim and often snatches them away from opponents.”
Physically, Alexander is extremely gifted. Although he’s slightly undersized for a power forward at 6’8”, he more than makes up for that with a 240-pound frame and an incredible wingspan that, according to DraftExpress.com, has measured between 7’2” and 7’3.5”.
Also according to Draft Express, Alexander collected nearly 70 percent of his points in college off of offensive rebounds. We’ve known since his high school days that he has the knack to become an elite rebounder, so until he can be more consistent with his mid-range jumper, expect him to once again find most of his buckets on hustle plays on the boards and escaping defenders by cutting to the rim.
What To Expect
No disrespect to Alexander, but if he receives significant time this season anywhere other than the D-League, it’s a bad sign for the Blazers. Hopefully the 19-year-old continues to develop his game, but the odds of him becoming a part of the rotation are not in his favor if the incumbent frontcourt is staying healthy and showing enough promise to justify their roster spots.
In other words, we’re looking more at Nephew Cliffy than Uncle Cliffy 2.0 this season.
Although Alexander will be one of the last men off the bench, he has a guaranteed contract, and that’s all the 19-year-old can ask for at this point in his professional process. Even better is that he has a true big man teacher on this roster in Chris Kaman. The 33-year-old’s role has shifted from perennial starter to mentor, and he’ll be able to coach the plethora of young bigs Portland’s acquired both on the court and in the locker room.
The hope here is that Alexander, a player who was once considered the best big man entering college alongside Jahlil Okafor, can join the likes of Wesley Mathews, who has gone from undrafted to a significant piece on an NBA roster.
That’s not going to happen this season with the Blazers, but every career starts somewhere. And if this particular big man can stay healthy and get back to the basics, he’ll be well on his way to utilizing the natural talent he has on a roster further down the road.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
