Blazers' Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams III Made Clear Statement in Warriors Win

The Portland Trail Blazers do not have the personnel to play small successfully. They showed that in a 143-120 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans last week. However, the team's 136-131 win over the Portland Trail Blazers this past Sunday, where Steph Curry's historic 48-point outburst, powered by 12 three-pointers, showed that the team's identity is in its bigs.

With Tiago Splitter having taken over for Chauncey Billups, that's not the biggest surprise. The personnel matches the leadership.

Donovan Clingan and Robert Williams III made a world of difference on the floor against the Warriors, just from doing what an NBA center is supposed to do: grab rebounds and get easy buckets at the rim. Clingan made one of two shots around the rim while also drawing a shooting foul, but Williams was 4/4 from the field, with one spectacular alley-oop off an inbounds pass, in the win. Williams had an 11/11 double-double, while Clingan had 10 rebounds to go along with three points.

When Yang Hansen returns, it'll be on Splitter to slowly build him into the primary backup to Clingan, for now. The two aren't compatible yet, but maybe Yang could develop a jumper and change that narrative.

Yang Hansen Must Become Indispensable in Blazers' Identity

If anything, Hansen needs to be ready to fill in for Williams on short notice for the entirety of the 2025-26 season. Williams is a strong trade candidate this February, but even if he stays, he's always been injury-prone.

Long-term, the Blazers aren't planning on deploying three true centers who don't stretch the floor. Trading Williams is the team's likely path forward. For now, there's no reason the three can't coexist in the same frontcourt for a playoff run, though.

Portland could really benefit from Yang being playable. Imagine Yang developing a three-point shot and giving them a chance for five-out lineups? That'd be the cherry on top.

For now, the Blazers need Yang's role on the team to be more than just spot minutes and moral support for his teammates. Then, he can help define the team's identity, like the plan called for when he went No. 16 overall in the 2025 NBA Draft.