Trail Blazers General Manager: We wanted to choose Yang Hansen last year but he didn t run for his high ceiling

June 26, the 2025 NBA Draft that ended on June 26, Chinese player Yang Hansen, who just celebrated his 20th birthday today was selected by the Trail Blazers (from the Grizzlies traded) in the 16th pick in the first round. The general manager of the Trail Blazers said in an interview, "We wanted to choose Yang Hansen last year, and his ceiling was very high!"

At today's draft, the Portland Trail Blazers selected Cedric Coward with their 11th pick, and then immediately made a deal with the Grizzlies to send Coward to the Grizzlies in exchange for the Grizzlies' No. 16 and several future draft picks. The Grizzlies also have three future draft picks for this, including the first round pick for the 2028 Magic, the second round pick for the 2027 Hawks and the second round pick for the 2028 Kings.

The Trail Blazers immediately selected Chinese player Yang Hansen with the No. 16 draw, and this choice was beyond the expectations of many people.

In an interview with the media, Joe Cronin, general manager of the Trail Blazers, said: "In the 16th pick, we chose a player that we have been following for a long time and are excited - Yang Hansen. We will discuss him frequently next time, and we are really excited. We seem to be a very unique young talent. He is 7 feet 2 inches tall, and he is very young and will turn 20 tomorrow. His skill level is high, his passing ability, basketball IQ, low post, and ability to pull to the outside line. We think he will become a very outstanding free thrower and he can also hit outside jump shots.

Defensive end, he is a very smart player, and with his size and IQ, he can be very comprehensive at low posts. This is a player who is coming to the United States. We will focus on resources to make him reach his peak."

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Then, Cronin took the initiative to reveal, "We have actually been in-depth investigation of Yang Hansen for two years. One of our scouts discovered him during his U18 game. That fall, we sent two assistant general managers, Mike and Sergey, to China to inspect him. After they came back that time, they actually left a deep impression on Yang Hansen. We actually hoped that he would participate in last year's draft. He did not run for the last season, so we continued to inspect him last spring.

This spring, we did more research on him, we met him in the joint trial, and we could bring him here for a good trial, and we spent more time with him here. So from the early discovery of us scouts to some of our key decision makers meeting him early, we have a great advantage in scouting work and building his profile as a player."