The Trail Blazers Need To Resolve Their Issues, As To Free Up Clingan

Donovan Clingan is entering an odd situation in Portland.

Jul 15, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) controls the ball against the Philadelphia 76ers during the first half at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports / Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports

At 7-foot-2, offering a wingspan of nearly 7-foot-7, Donovan Clingan has the size to become one of the NBA's best interior defenders, especially when you factor in his movement pattern, defensive timing, and 280-pound frame.

The Portland Trail Blazers, who took Clingan No. 7 overall, is currently in a position where they can afford to bring the rookie along slowly, with Deandre Ayton and potentially Robert Williams ahead of him on the depth chart.

The question is, though: Given where Portland is in its process, does it make sense to bring the 20-year-old along slowly? The Blazers are going nowhere this season, and will need to make significant alterations to their roster over the coming year. If Clingan is indeed their future, it would make sense to carve out as many minutes for him as possible this very season, so as to get his feet wet.

Providing Clingan with minutes won't just do him good, but it'd also help speed up the chemistry between and him and Scoot Henderson, the man who will be responsible for giving the ball to the big man over the next decade or so. The quicker the duo begins to share the floor, the better.

Off of that, it's about time the Blazers begin to make some tough decisions.

The aforementioned Williams is surely on the trade block. He doesn't fit their long-term picture, he's constantly injured, and there is an immediate need of clearing minutes at that position. Jerami Grant also projects to be a goner sooner rather than later. His $32 million in annual salary, at age 30, seems like a hindrance for an up-and-coming young team in need of fierce development time.

With the regular season still two months away, the Blazers technically have time to get their affairs in order, but with so many teams more or less done making offseason moves, finding takers at this stage of the summer won't necessarily be easy.

This isn't to say the Blazers made the wrong choice by drafting a center. This is more to say that their follow-up moves - or lack thereof - seem increasingly curious.

Ayton is in no rush to get moved, for what it's worth. Not only did he finish last season on a high note, it's also quite a lot to throw Clingan into a starting lineup, and expect him to carry 30+ minutes. Keeping Ayton, for now, and letting Clingan get all the non-Ayton minutes seem like a fair compromise at this stage, even if the overarching point of needing moves remains.

The Blazers appear to be caught in-between two timelines, despite having stellar overall talent, and several intriguing players on the roster. 

However, as is always the case with NBA teams, eventually you have to choose a direction, and given that Clingan projects to be a steal for them, it wouldn't be the worst thing if they didn't linger.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.

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