The latest NBA Mock Draft from ESPN is out. The four-letter-network has the Portland Trail Blazers selecting Illinois point guard Kasparas Jakucionis with the 11th pick in the order. Writer Jeremy Woo explains the reasoning behind the selection:
The Trail Blazers are set up front for the foreseeable future with Donovan Clingan at center and don’t have an express positional need, but players such as Jakucionis, [Carter] Bryant and [Noa] Essengue could all be available here and bring broadly different skill sets.
Jakucionis’ unselfish style and ability to enhance ball movement would help Portland’s backcourt mix, with players such as Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons all more scoring-oriented.