Chris Youngblood is getting another crack at the NBA, and this time the door looks a little more open.
After his brief run with the Oklahoma City Thunder ended in February, Youngblood has landed on the Portland Trail Blazers’ Summer League roster, giving him a fresh chance to turn a two-way look into something bigger. In Oklahoma City, that path never really materialized, even though he arrived with the kind of profile teams like to stash and develop.
The Thunder brought Youngblood in on a two-way contract before last season as a tough, shoot-first guard with some rotational upside. At Alabama in his final college season, he played 28 games and put up 10.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.9 assists while hitting 38.8% from deep. At 6'4", he had the size and the kind of off-ball shooting touch that can keep a player alive in the league.
But the opportunity never grew. Across 32 games with Oklahoma City, Youngblood averaged only 5.4 minutes and shot 33.3% from the field. He was passed by Brooks Barnhizer and Brandon Carlson in the rotation picture, and when the Thunder waived him in February, it wasn’t a shock.
Portland gave him another landing spot on a two-way deal, and he made the most of his G-League run with the Rip City Remix. In seven games there, he averaged 22 points and shot 44.8% from 3-point range.
Now he’s in line for real minutes with Portland’s Summer League group, and that matters. The Blazers do have a crowded backcourt, with Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson clearly ahead of him, but Youngblood still has a lane if his shot keeps falling. If he can keep spacing the floor and hold up as a wing, he could work his way into a role this season - something that never seemed likely in Oklahoma City.
The Thunder’s offseason has already shown what happens when a deep team runs into the limits of the modern CBA. Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe are gone, and Luguentz Dort could be next. For players like Youngblood, that kind of churn can be the difference between being buried and getting a real shot.
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