Is Ayton really a ruler? The Blazers don t care because they have a ruler Klingen

Translator's Note: This article was originally published by Fansided, written by ReeseKunz. The data in the article are as of the time of publication of the original article (November 21, local time). The opinions in the article have nothing to do with the translator and the platform.

Donovan Klingen finally showed the dominant center style that everyone had been waiting for when the Portland Trail Blazers decided to buy out Ayton this offseason.

Another game the Trail Blazers lost in heartbreaking fashion ended with a buzzer-beating three-pointer. This time, it was Nikola Vucevic who completed the fatal blow. His key goal helped the Chicago Bulls narrowly defeat the Trail Blazers with a narrow score of 122-121. The Trail Blazers are in the midst of a severe personnel shortage. Judging from their book strength, they should not have had a chance to compete with the Bulls in this game. However, this tenacious team set off a wave of crazy counterattacks in the eight minutes of the fourth quarter, hitting a 31-7 attack wave and getting the game that had almost lost suspense back on track. In addition to the tenacity shown during the comeback, another positive sign was Klingen's performance.

The Trail Blazers' seventh overall pick in the first round last year had his best performance so far this season in this game. In the game, he hit 7 goals in 13 shots and contributed 17 points, 21 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal. He provided huge support to the team on both offense and defense. What is worth focusing on is that among these 21 rebounds, 10 came from the offensive end. This performance not only refreshed his personal rebounding record this season, but also made him the first player in the league to get more than 10 offensive rebounds and more than 10 defensive rebounds in a single game since Gobert in March 2025.

Klingen's performance proved that the Trail Blazers' decision to give priority to cultivating him was correct.

Klingen's performance this season is by no means bad, but compared to the expectations of the outside world after his promising rookie season, his start to the season seemed a bit slow. With Ayton leaving the team, Klingen has high expectations from the team and needs to assume a more important tactical role. In order to be qualified for starting-level playing time, he invested a lot of energy in the offseason to improve his physical reserves and physical condition. After several months of systematic training, his endurance and resistance ability have improved significantly.

Trail Blazers fans finally saw the results. Clingen also set a season-high 34 minutes of playing time on the field. Although the team lost, his plus-minus value was still +8. Previously, Klingen said in an interview that thanks to the significant improvement in his physical condition, he plans to play at least 30 minutes every night this season. This game is the first time he has successfully achieved this goal this season, and it has exceeded expectations, which also allows the outside world to see his potential for continued improvement.

Robert Williams, another inside player of the team, missed the game due to left knee injury management. According to the Trail Blazers' established plan this season, Williams will not participate in back-to-back events in order to protect the players. This situation leaves interim head coach Thiago Splitter with limited lineup options when arranging his lineup, as the Trail Blazers are once again short-handed. Fortunately, Klingen filled the vacancies in the frontcourt almost single-handedly, showing strong competitiveness on both offense and defense, and becoming the absolute backbone of the team's interior.

So far this season, this young player from the University of Connecticut has averaged 25 minutes per game, contributing 8.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.6 blocks to the team. Such performance is quite impressive for a young center who is still growing. If he can continue to compete at the level he did in this game and continue to have a positive impact on both ends of the floor, Splitter will have no choice but to increase his playing time beyond the 30 minutes per night he expected at the beginning of the season. After all, for a team that is rebuilding, such an inside core who is in good condition and can bring substantial help to the team should get more performance opportunities to accelerate growth.

Part of the reason for Clingen's relatively slow start to the season is that he lacks sufficient offensive aggressiveness. Standing 7 feet 2 inches (approximately 2.18 meters) tall and weighing 280 pounds (approximately 127 kilograms), he has unique physical advantages. He has not fully used his physical advantages to show dominance in the game before. Especially on the offensive end, he used to tend to wander around the outside, trying to find opportunities through long shots or passes, which undoubtedly wasted his advantage inside. In this game, his playing style has changed significantly. Both offensive and defensive ends have begun to show their presence in the interior, actively blocking positions and taking the initiative to attack. The 21 rebounds in this game that can be called a game-level performance are the best proof.

Now, Ayton's performance in Los Angeles is surprisingly good (at least for now). He has adjusted well with the new team and has made steady contributions on the court. But judging from Klingen's performance in recent games, the Trail Blazers don't have to care about Ayton's current situation at all. Their decision to buy out Ayton decisively and put the young Klingen as the core of the future center and focus on training now seems to be an extremely wise decision. As Klingen continues to improve in technology, physical fitness and game experience, we are finally beginning to see the positive results of this long-term decision. I believe that in future games, Klingen will continue to break through himself and bring more surprises to the Trail Blazers and the fans who support them.