Portland Trail Blazers: 3 reasons Nassir Little was a good pick

The Portland Trail Blazers held on to their pick first round pick and made a smart choice at No. 25. Here are 3 reasons Nassir Little was a good pick

When the 2019 draft began, The Portland Trail Blazers probably did not imagine that a former five-star recruit coming out of high school and a projected top-five pick in most mock drafts to start the season would be around for them to select at No. 25. After he was selected, Nassir Little was already being talked about as the steal of the entire draft.

Little played one year at North Carolina before declaring for the draft. He was the No.6 rated recruit coming out of high school and was rated higher than last years first-round pick for the Blazers, Anfernee Simons, who was ranked No. 9.

He is a long, strong, and explosive athlete that has shown flashes of all-around basketball talent. Little opened a lot of eyes when he scored 28 points, played tight defense on Zion Willamson and was named the MVP of the McDonalds All American game.

At UNC, Little did not live up to his potential and had a disappointing freshman season based on the hype and projections he had going into the year. Little averaged just 9.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 0.5 steals and 0.5 blocks per game while also shooting only 26.9 percent from the 3-point line.

At times at UNC, Little showed why he was rated as one of the top prospects. In the NCAA Tournament against Washington, he put up 20 points, grabbed seven rebounds, had one block and shot 72.7 percent from the field. Guys with his physical traits, skill and previous accolades don’t usually slip this far in the draft.

Even if there are some concerns over Little’s overall feel for the game and disappointing college year, the Blazers got tremendous value at No. 25 and here are three reasons Little was a smart pick for the franchise.