Blazers Fined For Illegal Yang Hansen Tampering

The Portland Trail Blazers are being reprimanded by the league for contacting Yang Hansen too early in his pre-draft process, according to ESPN insider Shams Charania.

"The Portland Trail Blazers have been fined $100,000 for illegal contact with Yang Hansen two years ago, prior to the 2025 NBA draft -- and assistant general managers Mike Schmitz and Sergi Oliva have been suspended for a period of time, sources tell ESPN," Charania tweeted.

The Portland Trail Blazers have been fined $100,000 for illegal contact with Yang Hansen two years ago, prior to the 2025 NBA draft -- and assistant general managers Mike Schmitz and Sergi Oliva have been suspended for a period of time, sources tell ESPN.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 1, 2026

Blazers Contacted Yang Hansen Too Early

Yang, the No. 16 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, was selected by the Blazers after the team moved up in the draft and acquired the pick in a trade.

The league has specific rules on how and when they can reach out to potential prospects ahead of the draft and the Blazers reached out to Yang in 2024, far before he was ready to enter the league.

It remains to be seen how much more of a punishment the Blazers will face for this, but not having two assistant general managers under Joe Cronin for the foreseeable future could do some damage to the team's pre-draft process for the 2026 NBA Draft.

The Blazers have hopes that Yang can be a long-term piece of the puzzle, but he hasn't had much of an opportunity to get minutes with the NBA club this season. Yang has appeared in 41 games for the Blazers this season, averaging just 7.2 minutes per game. His scoring average is also small, clocking in at 2.3 points per contest.

His numbers in the G League with the Rip City Remix have been better, suggesting that he has potential to make some noise once his game improves over the next couple of years. In 14 games with the Remix, Yang is averaging 17.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.

When the Blazers traded up in the first round for Yang, many viewed it as a big surprise. Yang wasn't expected to be a high pick, and some analysts had him pegged for an early second-round target. Knowing that the Blazers were meeting with Yang well before he was a highly-touted draft prospect does add some context in why the team chose him when they did.

The Blazers hope Yang can get better over time, but with Donovan Clingan playing very well in his second season, it remains to be seen if he can be the player the Blazers expected him to be.