Jan 8, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (1) and center Robert Williams III (35) celebrate next to forward Kris Murray (24) during the first half against the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

Blazers Have Major Roster 'Wild Card' This Season, Says Insider

Originally posted on Portland Trail Blazers on SI
By Jason Fray | Last updated Aug 10, 2025 8:00 PM ET

The center spot in Portland is very intriguing as the 2025-26 season inches closer and closer.

Donovan Clingan flashed some real defensive chops in his first season. There's a world where he quickly becomes among the best shot-blocking/rim-protecting forces in the NBA sooner than later.

Yang Hansen completed the Trail Blazers' decision to double-dip with taking centers in the first round of back-to-back drafts. The young Chinese big man is more of an offensive player reliant on skill, positioning, and carving out space with a big frame. In short, when watching him compete, there's some NIkola Jokic to his game.

The Trail Blazers’ current projected rotation next season:

Starters: Scoot Henderson, Jrue Holiday, Toumani Camara, Deni Avdija, Donovan Clingan

Second Unit: Shaedon Sharpe, Matisse Thybulle, Jerami Grant, Yang Hansen, Robert Williams

Portland will be an elite defensive team. pic.twitter.com/Hq5ZyQEwEA
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) July 23, 2025

Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report recently participated in a mailbag Q&A with his readers. The center position naturally came up as it pertained to what a possible rotation may look like moving forward.

While Clingan and Yang undoubtedly will enjoy the lion's share of the minutes up front, another veteran player could stake his claim — and is even being billed as the 'wild card' by Highkin.

"I'd bump Clingan down and Yang up a bit, but you're generally in the right ballpark. The wild card is Robert Williams III, and how much he'll be able to play. As far as I've heard, he's healthy right now, but given his history you can't count on him being available for an extended part of the season. Even if he's healthy, he will likely continue not playing back-to-backs and have his minutes limited. But if he can play, he will, so that's another thing you have to factor in when thinking about center minutes.
Still, with Williams being a giant question mark with his health and [Duop] Reath not being the kind of center who can play in every matchup, it's going to be a lot of Clingan and Yang."

Williams, 27, is the most proven center on the roster. He's a former All-NBA defensive player with multiple years of experience competing at the highest level. Injuries have hindered his progress up to this point, and there are questions as to whether he can revert back to the pogo stick-level athlete he once was.

If healthy, Portland could most definitely flip him as a trade asset. Williams is an expiring contract (making roughly $13.2 million this year). With his contract being very movable, it wouldn't be shocking to see him wearing another uniform whether sent somewhere in a trade or eventually bought out down the line.