The idea of the Trail Blazers leaving Yang Hansen exposed would have sounded absurd not long ago. Now it shows up in an expansion draft projection as one of the cleaner decisions Portland could make.
That’s the reality hanging over the league as expansion inches closer. In March, the NBA’s board of governors approved a vote for the league to explore adding teams in Las Vegas and Seattle, and ESPN’s Shams Charania reported a target date of 2028-29 for those franchises to start playing. Before any of that happens, though, those teams will need players, which could trigger an expansion draft similar to the one the Charlotte Bobcats had in 2004, when teams could protect up to eight players.
Bleacher Report’s Dan Favale and Grant Hughes recently ran through which eight players each team should shield under that kind of setup, and Portland’s roster quickly turned into a tricky puzzle. The Blazers are deep, but not in a neat way. They’re also juggling two timelines at once, which makes every roster choice feel a little heavier.
Portland made the playoffs for the first time in this rebuild, and the front office is trying to build off that while Damian Lillard and Ja Morant now run the backcourt. That creates a logjam, but it also leaves room for young players to get squeezed. Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe made the protected list in the projection, while Hansen did not.
Favale and Hughes’ projected protected group for Portland was not listed in the source, but the players left unprotected were: Ja Morant, Yang Hansen, Micah Potter, Vit Krejci, Sidy Cissoko, Branden Carlson.
Morant’s fit is part of the calculation. His defense, his shaky floor spacing, and a downhill style that overlaps with Deni Avdija could end up making the young core harder to sort through, not easier.
Still, Portland would be taking a cheap swing on talent, and if the move goes sideways, an expansion draft could give the Blazers a straightforward escape hatch. A team in Seattle or Vegas would likely be willing to take that kind of bet.
Hansen’s case is even more striking because of how fast the perception changed. Hughes pointed out that a year ago, after all the buzz around the pick and his electric Summer League showing, exposing him would have felt impossible. Now the picture is different.
“A year ago at this time, all the Yang Hansen hype would have made exposing him unthinkable. But he looks nowhere near ready to contribute and may not be able to his the main flaws-poor foot speed and a lack of defensive oomph-through hard work. Plus, it's too tough to make a case that the Blazers would choose to make anyone on their protected list available before him," Hughes said.
Portland has tried to cover itself in case Hansen never becomes the answer. The team’s three-year, $44 million deal with Robert Williams III was described as its best offseason move because of the injury protections attached to it. The Blazers also added more frontcourt depth with offseason signings including Branden Carlson, Micah Potter, and, most recently, Jeremy Sochan.
That kind of insurance lets Portland keep building while giving Hansen time. But with expansion on the horizon, the luxury of patience comes with a deadline. Hansen may still be part of the future, but the clock is clearly ticking on whether he can prove he belongs in it.
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