Trail Blazers basketball is back, even if it’s only for Summer League. Portland opens against the Phoenix Suns tonight in a nightcap, and while the setting is casual, the stakes are real enough for a team with this much young talent. For the Blazers, this week is less about wins and losses and more about sorting out who can actually stick.
The biggest name to keep an eye on is Yang Hansen. His rookie season was rough.
He spent most of it buried on the depth chart, and when he did get on the floor, he looked too raw to hold down a spot. He was always going to take time, but his first year showed just how unfinished he really is.
That makes Summer League a major checkpoint for him as he heads into year two. Portland does not need him to suddenly fix everything at once.
What he does need is some clear progress in a couple of areas he can build around. Maybe that means shooting and high-post playmaking.
Maybe it’s rim protection. Maybe it’s post scoring.
The exact path matters less than the outcome: he has to carve out a role, or the bust talk is only going to get louder.
There’s also a real opportunity here for Portland’s two-way players, Chris Youngblood and Jayson Kent. Both came aboard late last season and barely saw the court, with Youngblood appearing in two games and Kent in five during the 2025-26 season. They’re still trying to establish themselves in Rip City, and Summer League is their chance to make a stronger case.
That path is not imaginary, either. Sidy Cissoko and Caleb Love already showed that two-way players can work their way into Portland’s rotation. Youngblood and Kent will be trying to follow that same trail, and a strong week in Vegas would be a good place to start.
Then there’s the most obvious team need of all: shooting. Portland still has to find more perimeter juice, and because the core is already pretty set, that kind of help is probably going to come from the edges rather than a major addition. Summer League is where those fringe pieces can force the issue.
Youngblood is one possibility after earning his first NBA deal with OKC last summer by lighting it up in Vegas. If he does not emerge as the answer, Portland has other options on the roster who can space the floor, including Jalen Bridges, Quincy Olivari, Andrew Carr, DJ Steward, and Flynn Cameron. One of those players could even put himself in position for the Blazers’ final two-way spot if the jumper is falling this week.
It may not come with the buzz of an AJ Dybantsa or Darryn Peterson, but there’s still plenty for Blazers fans to watch.
In Other News...
Pacers Just Lost Another Frontcourt Piece Fans Were Watching
After reshaping the frontcourt in recent trades, Portland added another body to the mix by claiming Micah Potter off waivers from Indiana and putting him on the active roster. The 28-year-old power forward gives the Trail Blazers a little more size and flexibility as they continue sorting out the rotation behind the main pieces up front.
Potter spent last season with the Pacers, appearing in 47 games and showing enough to stay on a teams radar, even if Indiana ultimately needed the roster spot for a different frontcourt move. For Portland, the appeal is straightforward: a low-risk addition with another year left on his contract who can help fill minutes while the Blazers keep building out the depth chart. [Read more 🡒]
How The Blazers Found A Prospect The Rest Of The NBA Missed
Jayson Kents path to Portland was anything but direct. The forward went undrafted, had no summer league invitation waiting for him and was not even on the radar of most NBA teams after his college career took a hit at Texas, where a wrist injury and limited playing time followed a strong second season at Indiana State. For a player whose stock had once looked far more promising, the climb back started the hard way, with a tryout for the Trail Blazers G League affiliate, the Rip City Remix, and then a standard G League deal that kept him in the organization.
Portlands interest sharpened after a July 2025 Pro Day, when Kent got a chance to put himself in front of the Blazers and earn a look they had not given him before. The appeal was not hard to understand once they saw him in a different role, with more responsibility on the wing and with the ball in his hands, a usage that seemed to reveal more shooting and perimeter skill than the rest of the league had fully accounted for. From there, the door opened to a preseason mini-camp invite and, eventually, a spot on the NBA roster. [Read more 🡒]