A new basketball team is coming to Portland next season.
The Trail Blazers recently announced they’re going to create a team for the NBA’s G League — which is a developmental league for young players who hope to make it to the biggest arenas in basketball. Portland’s new team will play at the University of Portland’s Chiles Center.
Dewayne Hankins, the president of business operations for the Blazers, told OPB’s “Think Out Loud” the new team will be a great opportunity for the Blazers to develop talent both on and off the court.
The Portland Trail Blazers logo is visible on a flag waving during a National Basketball Association game against the Detroit Pistons at Moda Center in Portland, Ore., on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. The Trail Blazers defeated the Pistons 107-104.
Kaylee Domzalski / OPB
“We can develop staff who get their repetitions at that level and then can come on and work for the Blazers staff,” he said. “It can be a bit of a test ground for us. Let’s say our basketball side wants to try crashing four guys on rebounds every play. Well, you can try that in the G League with less risk than you could at the NBA team.”
Players can be drafted to the G League at 19 years old, but Hankins said there’s a reason some might choose to leave college teams and larger NCAA audiences.
“There’s 50 games in the G League season,” he said. “You’re getting to practice with NBA players pretty regularly and the exposure is just unmatched. ... You are getting the opportunity to play at probably a higher level than we’re seeing in college.”
Hankins thinks the new team will be a win for local audiences, too. Young, talented players drafted into the G League are likely to get much more court time than they might if they were on the Blazers.
“You get to see high-quality basketball at a certainly more affordable price,” he said.
As far as audiences go, Hankins thinks there’s plenty of basketball fans to support the G League, the Blazers and a potential new WNBA team in town.
“More sports fans, I think, is better for our entire business,” he said. “There’s certainly different games for different fans and different demographics for different events and, you know, we view it as not real competition, but just building love for the sport and for sports in general.”
Dewayne Hankins spoke to “Think Out Loud” host Dave Miller. Click play to listen to the full conversation:
