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 is best known at this point in his career as a two-sport athlete. He’s looking to make a name for himself as a hoopster, as he turned down a sure thing elsewhere to enter the NBA Draft this offseason.
Where He’s Been
In life, we as people with free will are regularly posed with dilemmas. Pizza Hut or Domino’s for dinner? Left or right at the fork in the road? The Office or Parks and Recreation on Netflix?
For Pat Connaughton, these decisions pale in comparison to the one he faced this summer, as he was granted the opportunity to choose between playing professionally in the NBA or the MLB.
Pat Connaughton becomes first player since Washington State’s Mark Hendrickson in 1997 to be taken in both NBA and MLB drafts
— kerry eggers (@kerryeggers) June 26, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsSimply put: Connaughton is a freak of an athlete. Kids everywhere envision themselves playing professional sports when they grow up, yet it’s a miniscule percentage of them who go on to live their dreams—let alone have their choice of two.
During his time at Notre Dame, Connaughton the basketball player averaged 10.5 points on 45 percent shooting (38.6 percent from three-point range) while collecting 5.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 0.7 steals throughout his four-year career. Connaughton the baseball player had a 96 mph fastball.
It’s easy to see why the floppy-haired Boston native was taken in the fourth round by the Baltimore Orioles in 2014, but it’s also clear that he has a potential in a certain league featuring 15-man rosters and 82-game seasons.
How He Got Here
Despite having the opportunity to pursue a professional baseball career, Connaughton took a chance at the NBA. He was selected 41st by the Brooklyn Nets, but as it turned out, that move was made for the Trail Blazers as part of the deal that sent Mason Plumlee to Rip City earlier in the draft.
ICYMI: Blazers acquire Connaughton and Plumlee in trade deal for Hollis-Jefferson and Blake http://t.co/oYd2DVeLyn pic.twitter.com/0lGfRRnb0f — CSNNW (@CSNNW) June 26, 2015
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Although there’s a strong chance Connaughton would have been taken somewhere between picks 42 and 60, Portland may have saved the kid’s NBA career before it began. Before the draft ever took place, the dual-sport athlete made his intentions quite clear on what would happen if he wasn’t taken in the league’s annual talent grab.
“There comes a point in everything where—[if] it doesn’t look like I’m going to make the NBA, and I get cut and there are no NBA teams interested—I won’t pursue it overseas because I can make a living and play another sport I love in the United States.”
That quote comes courtesy of Bleacher Report’s C.J. Moore, and it speaks volumes to his confidence level in Major League Baseball.
It’s always good to have a backup plan, and Connaughton was fully prepared to re-join the Orioles if the Association proved to be too ambitious for the 6’5”, 206-pound shooting guard.
What He Brings To The Table
At the draft combine, Connaughton earned recognition from scouts as being “deceptively athletic.” How did the soon-to-be rookie feel about that designation? Ask him yourself.
“Deceptively” athletic huh?? (As Chris Carter and the NFL prime time cast would say..) C’MON MAN!! pic.twitter.com/KMzQ3Vngfh
— Pat Connaughton (@PlanetPat5) May 15, 2015
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Simply put (and probably politically incorrect at that), Connaughton doesn’t fit your typical “White Man Can’t Jump” mold. He does, however, fit one stereotype, which is that he can shoot the lights out from behind the arc.
Having shot 42.3 percent from the three-point line during his final season with the Fighting Irish, it’s clear what his strengths are, and where he’s going to make a name for himself. The fact that he led the combine in multiple athletic categories is neat, but an athlete (especially a “deceptive” one) without a skill set might as well stick to hustling in the parks.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHRvNAENaxk]What To Expect
“Roles can change game to game…I think this team has so many guys that can play different positions, that can do different things, that bring different things to the table that the main goal is just to be a supporting cast to help Rip City win.”
Connaughton hit the nail on the head with that quote during his media day interview. He recognizes that he’s not going to be a star his first year in the NBA, but he also recognizes that he has a chance to be flexible on a roster needing every young player to step up if it’s going to exceed expectations.
As a threat from three-point land, Connaughton will fit right in with what the Blazers are looking to do this season. Terry Stotts has shown in the past that he agrees chicks dig the long ball, and if you’ve watched any preseason action up to this point, it’s clear that this is going to be even more of a theme in the post-everyone era of spreading the floor and hoping to outscore opponents regardless of defensive production.
Reality for Connaughton is that he must do one of two things to earn a regular spot in Portland’s rotation. He must either prove that his athleticism can translate to defense and creating his own shot, or he must become a true, Kyle Korver-esque distance shooter.
At this juncture, neither is truly realistic. Asking anybody on the planet to be Korver is unfair considering the 34-year-old is coming off a campaign that saw him knock down 48.7 percent of his three-point looks (he’s only shot worse than 40 percent from deep in one of his 12 seasons). It’s also unrealistic to ask a first-year player to fix the flaws that were exposed at the collegiate level.
If nothing else, Connaughton believes (albeit in slight jest) that he has something else in his back pocket if neither basketball nor baseball turns out to be his true calling.
“I made the joke that if for some reason basketball and baseball fails, I’m going to try to take over for Tom Brady during his four-game suspension,” said Connaughton in August, according to NBA.com’s Ian Thomsen.
“To be honest, I think I could have done something in football if I had put my mind to it.”
Although it would be a fascinating case study to watch this Notre Dame alumnus pursue yet another adventure in professional sports (and somewhat irritating to those of us who barely qualify for intramural leagues), here’s to hoping his lights-out shot and unreal hops trump the many other talents he has (and believes he has) at this point in his athletic career.
He’s a bit of a project at this point in the process, but a project worth pursuing with what he’s shown thus far.
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