The Trail Blazers made their message to Yang Hansen pretty clear this week: nothing is going to be handed to him.
Portland opened free agency by signing Branden Carlson, then kept building out its frontcourt by claiming Micah Potter off waivers. Potter spent 2025-26 with the Indiana Pacers, and the move gives the Blazers another big who can space the floor and compete for rotation minutes next season.
That’s good news for Portland’s depth. It’s also a tough development for Hansen, the team’s 2025 first-round pick.
The Blazers already had a solid center group with Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams III, whom they re-signed in free agency. Now they’ve added two more combo bigs who can bring value right away, both in the regular season and possibly in the postseason.
Carlson, 27, is heading into his third NBA season and has already logged spot minutes for the Thunder in meaningful games. That kind of experience matters, and Portland clearly sees something worth betting on.
Potter comes in after a strong year with Indiana. In 47 games, the Wisconsin product averaged 9.7 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 42.3% from three.
At his size, that kind of perimeter touch is rare. He’s one of the league’s best pure shooters for a player with his frame.
For Hansen, though, the path just got steeper.
Both Carlson and Potter will be looking for steady roles in 2026-27, and both appear much closer to being ready to help a team win right now. They have clean, defined jobs as stretch bigs and secondary rim protectors, plus the veteran polish that comes with being able to step in and contribute without much adjustment.
Hansen doesn’t have that yet. Right now, he’s still searching for a clear NBA skill he can lean on, and that makes it hard for Portland to justify giving him minutes while it’s trying to compete.
The Blazers aren’t in rebuild mode anymore. They’re in the playoff mix and trending upward.
Carlson and Potter fit that picture. Hansen, at least for now, does not.
He’s going to have to earn every minute he gets.
In Other News...
Blazers Fans Wont Like Who Just Made Portland Pay In Vegas
The Blazers trip through Summer League in Vegas turned into a familiar kind of annoyance, the sort that lingers a little longer because it came against a team with a recent Portland connection. Phoenix slipped past Portland 81-79, and the Suns got a big lift off the bench from Javonte Cooke, who spent time on a Trail Blazers two-way deal before moving on and showing what he could do in a game that mattered to both sides emotionally, even if only one side was keeping score.
Cookes night was the kind that makes a front office replay a decision in its head, especially when a close game is decided by a handful of possessions. Portland had already moved on with other two-way options, but Cookes performance in Vegas gave the Suns a useful answer and left the Blazers with another reminder that roster churn in July can come back to sting in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
Yang Hansen Gave Blazers Fans Plenty To Love And Worry About
Yang Hansens first Summer League run in a Trail Blazers uniform gave fans a little of everything in Portlands 81-79 loss to Phoenix. The young big showed off the kind of footwork and passing touch that made him such an intriguing addition, and he was active on the glass while logging 26 minutes in Las Vegas. For a debut in a setting where everything is magnified, it was easy to see why the Blazers are interested in what he might become.
The other side of the tape was just as revealing. Hansen is still learning how to handle the physical edge that comes with NBA-level frontcourt play, and he had stretches where the Suns made him work for every inch. That is the tension for Portland now: the skill package is real, the growth curve is obvious, and the path to a rotation role will depend on how quickly he can tighten the areas that were exposed in his first look. [Read more 🡒]