The Portland Trail Blazers will be well represented at NBA All-Star Weekend no matter what happens with Deni Avdija.
Donovan Clingan and Yang Hansen have been selected to participate in the Rising Stars event, the league announced Monday, giving the Blazers two entrants in the annual exhibition tournament featuring the top rookies and sophomores in the league.
Clingan joined the pool of sophomores, while Hansen was picked for the G League roster.
The annual event will feature 28 players split evenly into four teams and they will compete in a mini tournament on Feb. 13 at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. Eleven sophomores and 10 rookies will comprise three teams and join a fourth featuring seven players who have played in G League games this season.
The trio of NBA teams will be determined by a draft on Tuesday, when honorary coaches Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady select their favorite seven players regardless of position, conference affiliation and age. Former NBA player Austin Rivers will serve as honorary coach of Yang and the G League team.
Clingan has been vital to the Blazers’ rise from lottery afterthought into the top nine in the Western Conference, emerging as a consistent, durable and impactful force at center after spending the offseason overhauling his body and improving his stamina. The 7-foot-2 second-year player is averaging 11.3 points, 10.9 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 42 games, during which he has blossomed into a relentless rebounder, defensive anchor and budding three-point shooter.
Clingan ranks fourth in the league in rebounds per game, third in offensive rebounds per game (4.4) and first in contested shots per game (12.8), and he’s one of just seven players currently averaging a double-double. All the while, he’s significantly expanded his outside shooting, making 38 threes — 24 more than he made during his entire rookie season.
Yang has split his time between the Blazers and the G League Rip City Remix after arriving with much fanfare, but has not had much of an impact in the NBA during his rookie season — he’s averaging just 2.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in 26 games.
But he’s excelled in eight games with the Remix, averaging 17.0 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.4 blocks and 30.8 minutes.
Will Clingan and Yang be joined at All-Star Weekend by Avdija, whose breakout season has thrust him into contention for a spot as a reserve in the All-Star game?
Western and Eastern Conference reserves will be announced Sunday at 3 p.m.