1) Portland may be geniuses
The Portland Trail Blazers were the butt of every draft night joke when they took China’s 7ft 1in Yang Hansen, who had been widely projected as a second-round pick, at No 16 overall. But it appears the joke may be on the rest of the NBA, at least if Vegas Summer League is any indication. Hansen was unequivocally the story of the week, impressing with his high-level offensive skillset, and, in particular, his aptitude for passing and facilitation, an unusual trait for someone his size that has garnered him comparisons to one Nikola Jokić. Despite a ton of attention from global media (Hansen is already getting massive amounts of press back home in China), the jovial 20-year-old appears to have a good head on his shoulders, too. He told Ben Golliver of the Washington Post this week: “There’s a saying in my heart, don’t worry about anything that’s more than eight hours away. And even if it’s within eight hours, don’t worry too much.”
