Portland Trail Blazers: 3 goals for Zach Collins in 2018-19
By Ty Delbridge
The Portland Trail Blazers moved up the 2017 NBA Draft to select Zach Collins with the 10th overall pick. Now heading into his second season with the team, they’re hoping for Collins to be more of a meaningful contributor.
Zach Collins had an up-and-down rookie season playing for the Portland Trail Blazers last year. He only played in two games in NBA Summer League before suffering an injury. He then fell behind the team’s other rookie, Caleb Swanigan, in the rotation during the preseason. Swanigan looked to be the more NBA-ready player at the start of the season, but the Blazers still sent him to the G League for most of the year while keeping Collins with the main roster.
Collins sat on the end of the bench for most of the start of the season. He only saw garbage time minutes when he did play, and only played in eight of the first 24 games of the season. But the rookie worked hard, kept working on his game and stayed ready for his moment.
He played in every game the rest of the season from the 25th game to the end of the year, including the playoffs. The rookie became a key reserve big man off the bench and formed a dynamic duo with the other backup big, Ed Davis. His ability to space the floor, move quick and play defense saw him get early minutes.
Collins played in 66 games last season, averaging 4.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.5 blocks in 15.8 minutes per game while shooting 39.8 percent from the field and 31.0 percent from the 3-point line. By the end of the season, coach Terry Stotts was playing Collins in tight games over Jusuf Nurkic, and he seemed to have more trust in the rookie when the games mattered.
In the playoffs, Collins stepped up for a player who was not supposed to have much of an impact his first season. He was one of the key reserves off the bench and was often on the floor in the fourth quarters. Even though the Blazers got swept, Collins was a bright spot for the team. He averaged 7.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.5 blocks in 17.5 minutes per game.
The front office decided to let Davis walk in free agency so they could allow the rookie to see more minutes going forward. Collins is a more skilled player who can do more things than Davis could and fits the mold of how bigs play in the NBA today. He could be a key player off the bench or even the starting power forward playing alongside Nurkic. Whatever role he does play, here are three goals for Collins heading into the 2018-19 NBA season.