Portland Trail Blazers: 5 players to trade into the NBA draft for
By Ty Delbridge
Players the Portland Trail Blazers should trade into the NBA draft for: 5. Jericho Sims, Texas.
Coming out of the University of Texas, most NBA fans have probably heard of Greg Brown or Kai Jones, but Jericho Sims is a name they might not know.
Sims was in the same recruiting class as Mo Bamba and was his backup. He is 22 and played four years in one of the most competitive conferences in college basketball.
He is 6’10’, 245 pounds and has a 7’3″ wingspan. Sims has a fantastic leaping ability and is a strong rebounder on both ends of the court. He reminds me of Nerlans Noel and JaVale McGee.
On offense, he is a rim-running finisher who will do his work on lobs, putbacks and will try to dunk it whenever he can. Sims is a solid screen setter and uses his quickness well when rolling to the hoop.
On the defensive end, he was an excellent rim protector in college, and that should translate into the NBA with his athletic abilities and physical tools. He is an intelligent defender who tends to be in the correct position and makes life hard for offenses down low.
Sim’s low block numbers on the stat sheet don’t reflect his actual impact on the game because teams thought twice before attacking the hoop when he was down there.
He would fit nicely on the Blazers because they need some depth at center behind Jusuf Nurkic. He can probably come in and play right away if needed because of his athletic ability, physical tools and potential defensive impact.
The Blazers have got to find someone who can provide some defensive help down low off the bench after not having that in Enes Kanter last season. Even if Portland adds an experienced player behind Nurkic in free agency, adding a guy like Sims could be very useful for the roster this season and the future years, depending on what happens with Nurkic and Zach Collins.