5 players the Portland Trail Blazers should consider trading up for
By Ty Delbridge
1. Mikal Bridges
- Height: 6’7”
- Weight: 200 lbs
- Position: SF/SG
- Age: 21
Mikal Bridges is declaring for the NBA Draft as a redshirt junior. He played three full seasons at Villanova University and was a two-time NCAA champion. He has ideal size for an NBA wing at 6’7” with a 7’2” wingspan.
He is not going to be a star player, but he does everything an NBA team wants in a role player. Bridges is unselfish, he can shoot, score, defend and is a high-IQ basketball player on both ends of the floor. He got better every year in college and is one of the few guys who will not need much grooming on the NBA level.
In his last season in college, Bridges averaged 17.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocks in 32.1 minutes per game while shooting 51.4 percent from the field and 43.5 percent from the 3-point line. In the NBA, Bridges won’t have to worry about being the main guy on offense. He can let the ball find him in the flow of the offense and can focus on getting open shots and playing good defense.
In ESPN’s latest mock draft, they had Bridges going 10th and said: “ Bridges is an easy player to slot on almost any NBA roster, thanks to his multipositional defensive versatility, 3-point shooting and role-player potential.”
Those are the traits the Blazers need in a player. Bridges may be the one guy they can add this draft who can come in and help them win with this current roster right away. He can knock down 3-point shots, makes smart plays and can defend multiple positions. The Blazers would have to enter the top 12 to select Bridges, but because he is an older player, he may slip a little bit.
Next: 2018 NBA Mock Draft - Final edition
Bridges could be a contributor off the bench his first season. Depending on how that goes, he could become the longtime starter at small forward. He could play next to Lillard and McCollum and then slide over to the shooting guard when one of those two go to the bench. He is the type of player who can impact the game without the ball in his hands.