Trail Blazers News: Portland Goes International with Thursday Pre-Draft Workout
With the 2024 NBA Draft looming, the Portland Trail Blazers worked out six new prospects this past Thursday. That tally included two international players, reports Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report.
Two-time All-Horizon League Cleveland State guard Tristan Enarua, two-time All-Big East Marquette forward Oso Ighodaro, Nae’Qwan Tomlin (Memphis), 6-foot-10 Memphis forward Nae'Qwan Tomlin, and guard Bryson Warren of the G League's Sioux Falls Skyforce were the stateside prospects who got a look. Guangzhou Loong Lions guard Yongxi Cui and Dolomiti Energia Trento guard Quinn Ellis were the two contenders among international players in this bunch.
Portland general manager Joe Cronin has a variety of key decisions to make regarding his personnel this offseason, but the draft is certainly the first order of business. The Trail Blazers possess the Nos. 7, 14, 34 and 40 picks, and have been doing their due diligence with regard to sourcing talent. The club may already have a lot of young talent, but it's not yet clear if any will definitively reach All-Star status. Point guard Scoot Henderson, the third pick in last year's draft, and shooting guard Shaedon Sharpe, the No. 7 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, both still have that kind of upside, though both remain fairly raw at this juncture.
Under third-year head coach Chauncey Billups, who's heading to the Hall of Fame as a player this year, Portland once again finished with a terrible (on purpose) record of 21-61, during its first year without longtime mainstay Damian Lillard, who was flipped to the Milwaukee Bucks after demanding a trade.
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ALEX KIRSCHENBAUM
Clyde, Rick Barry, and Pistol Pete Now these players, could never be beat.