This year's center with the best offensive skills! TA highly praises Yang Hanshen, team reporter: He deserves a top ten pick.

On July 28, Beijing time, the renowned American media The Athletic (TA) commented on all the rookies of this draft class, suggesting that Yang Hanshen might be "the center with the best offensive skills among this year's rookies." Blazers reporter Kunz further stated that there is ample reason to believe Yang Hanshen even deserves a top ten pick.

When TA mentioned Yang Hanshen, they provided the following analysis:He might be the center with the best offensive skills among this year's rookies.In four games, he recorded a total of 15 assists but also committed 15 turnovers. Yang Hanshen can participate in reverse screens, and he is most effective when driving to the basket. Additionally, he completed eight blocks. The Blazers selected top rim protector Donovan Clingan in last year's lottery, and with Robert Williams on the team, they can afford to develop Yang Hanshen calmly.

Blazers reporter Kunz mentioned Yang Hanshen's draft position in a recent article.He believes Yang Hanshen's performance has already indicated that his draft position should be even higher than 16th.Here are Kunz's interpretations and opinions—

If the summer league indicates anything, it is that Blazers center Yang Hanshen's early performance suggests he should be drafted higher than 16th.

This is undoubtedly a significant shift for both Yang Hanshen and the Blazers. Previously, fans and analysts criticized them for "taking a risk" by selecting a player who was expected to be picked in the second round. However,there is ample reason to believe Yang Hanshen deserves a top ten pick,which makes General Manager Cronin's move brilliant—acquiring a player he has coveted for years while also gaining additional assets.

What seemed like an unconventional choice now appears to be quite insightful.

As a rookie, Yang Hanshen still has a long way to go, but it is undeniable that he possesses the unique "potential" needed to become a star in the league. His understanding of the game has reached a top level, as evidenced in the summer league: whether as a help defender or creating passing lanes for teammates to cut to the basket, he frequently directs his teammates to the right positions.

Passing is Yang Hanshen's most prominent trait, but he also possesses excellent footwork and spacing ability, making him a scoring threat in the future. Comparing him to the "Chinese Jokic" is not without basis, and this is likely to excite the Blazers about having selected a potential game-changing gem.

Evaluating draft rookies is not as black and white, but a key distinguishing factor in determining whether a player deserves a top ten pick is their potential to become a star. Generally, teams selecting high often lack star power and need to take bold risks to get back on track, as seen with the Brooklyn Nets selecting the controversial rookie Yegor Demin at 8th overall.

The Blazers' decision to trade down was the right move.

Despite the Blazers' win total increasing by 15 games, the team still urgently needs a star. They managed to secure a rookie with such potential despite trading down twice—once losing to the Phoenix Suns due to the lottery tie-breaker, and another time proactively trading with the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Blazers found themselves in a tough position when selecting 11th in the 2025 NBA Draft, as there was a general consensus that eight rookies were regarded as top-tier. Although not all of these eight top rookies were selected in the top eight as expected, by the time the Blazers were on the clock, all of them had been taken. The Suns selected the last rookie from this tier—Duke center Kaman Maruach—at 10th overall.

The Blazers' situation allowed them two reasonable choices to maximize value: actively trading up to enter that top tier, or strategically trading down. Of course, the Blazers wisely chose the latter. They traded with the Grizzlies, moving their draft position down to 16th, while also gaining an extra first-round pick (from the Orlando Magic in 2028) and two second-round picks in the process.

What happened next was a foregone conclusion; they selected the most unconventional player in the entire draft—Yang Hanshen. Fortunately for the Blazers, as time passes, this decision increasingly looks like a stroke of genius rather than a foolish move.