Portland Trail Blazers: A look back at NBA draft history before 2018
The Portland Trail Blazers hold the No. 24 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft. What can we expect from this selection based off of the franchise’s draft history and the history of the pick?
The 2017-18 season was another positive step for the Portland Trail Blazers toward becoming Western Conference contenders. The Northwest Division champions went 49-33, their best record in three years. They also finished third in the West, their best placement since 2000.
Unfortunately, the sixth-seeded New Orleans Pelicans cut Rip City’s season short when they swept them 4-0 in the first round. The series loss upheld a playoff losing streak that now stands at 10 games.
Stars Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum are under contract through the 2020-21 season. Therefore, the Blazers will spend this summer focusing on solidifying the supporting rotation around them. Five players will be free agents this summer, four of them as restricted free agents.
Teams will be able to make offers to Jusuf Nurkic, Pat Connaughton, Shabazz Napier and Wade Baldwin IV this offseason. The question will be if the Blazers chose to match those potential offers or move in a different direction.
One place the Blazers will likely seek out additional rotation help will be in the 2018 NBA Draft. Portland holds only a single pick this year at No. 24. They join the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans among teams that are only picking once in this year’s draft.
Falling in the late first round, it’s easy to wave off the value of this pick. However, history shows that teams can find a gem at this point in the draft. The Blazers have picked 24th overall three times before, and it worked out pretty well for them.
Their first No. 24 pick came in 1978 when they selected Keith Herron out of Villanova. Portland waived him ahead of the 1978-79 season and he would go on to play for three other teams in three seasons. However, the Blazers would later pick 24th again in back-to-back years, selecting Terry Porter in 1985 and Arvydas Sabonis in 1986.
Porter would play 10 seasons in Rip City, serving as the starting point guard for two Western Conference title teams. He also picked up two All-Star nods in the process. Porter played 17 total seasons in the NBA and currently stands as the all-time win shares leader for all No. 24 picks.
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Sabonis didn’t come to NBA right away following his selection. Instead, he spent nine more years overseas, winning a gold medal, a EuroLeague championship and multiple domestic league titles and accolades in the process.
Sabonis finally arrived in Portland in 1995. Even in his advanced age, he proceeded to be a pillar at the center position, helping the Blazers make the conference finals twice in his seven seasons with the team. Sabonis was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011.
The Blazers aren’t the only ones to get good players at No. 24. Kyle Lowry, Latrell Sprewell, Sam Cassell, Andrei Kirilenko and Jon McGlocklin are among the names that have been selected 24th and made at least one All-Star Game. Starter-level players such as Derek Fisher, Serge Ibaka, Mike Newlin, Reggie Jackson and Tim Hardaway, Jr. were also picked here.
Useful role players like Rick Fox, Delonte West, Brian Shaw, Nenad Krstic, Rudy Fernandez and Monty Williams can also be found at No. 24. Shabazz Napier was the No. 24 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, selected by the Charlotte Hornets.
However, Blazers fans should hold only a tenuous attachment to whoever Adam Silver calls to the stage at No. 24 on draft night. With Neil Olshey as general manager, there is always a chance that pick will be on the move.
Only four of the 12 selections Olshey has made as GM since 2012 are currently on the roster. On the other side of the coin, the Blazers acquired Zach Collins, Pat Connaughton and Jake Layman all via draft night trades.
Next: 2018 NBA Mock Draft - Doncic still No. 1 in post-lottery edition
The 2018 NBA Draft is less than a month away, and the Portland Trail Blazers have a single pick with which to help build on to their future. There’s a lot of good value at this position, as the franchise has witnessed firsthand. However, there’s always a chance that Olshey will deal the pick, as he is more than willing to make the move to acquire the prospect he truly wants.