Portland Trail Blazers: 4 upside players at No. 25 in 2019 NBA Draft

3. Darius Bazley

Position: PF/SF
Age: 19
Height: 6’9″/7’0″ wingspan
Weight: 209 pounds

One of the biggest mysteries in the entire 2019 NBA Draft class is Darius Bazley. He decided not to attend Syracuse University after high school and was going to play in the G League. However, he decided to take a year off instead of the G league and work on his game by himself with his trainers.

A former five-star recruit, Bazley is still a raw basketball player with much room to grow. Since he hasn’t played competitive basketball in over a year, teams don’t really know what to think about him. He’s been a very inconsistent player over the years who shows flashes of being really good at times but then also disappears from games. All that combined with a poor NBA Draft Combine performance has pushed him down many draft boards.

Bazley has all the physical tools and athleticism to play in the league. His length and quickness project him as a good, switchable defender that can guard 1-4. On the offensive end, Bazley can handle the ball and make some things happen. He can grab a defensive rebound and start a fast break, has upside as a playmaker, can hit tough shots from all over the court and has a nice touch around the rim.

The Blazers have one of the best player developmental staffs in the entire league and might be able to unlock the excellent basketball player inside of Bazley over time. He won’t have to be the go-to guy like he is probably used to.

Once he becomes physically stronger and more confident as a player, Portland can use him as a playmaker at the forward spot and eventually he could be deadly in both the pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop. He has the body and the skills to be both the ball-handler and the roll/pop man. Bazley would give the Blazers another guy to be on the same timetable as Simons, Collins and Gary Trent Jr. for the future of the franchise.