The Perfect Second-Round Trade-In Target for the Portland Trail Blazers

The first round of the 2026 NBA Draft came and went without any sort of inclusion of the Portland Trail Blazers. 

On draft day, Portland opted against trying to trade back into night one, having already made one drastic move on Tuesday by finally filling its head coaching vacancy with former Minnesota Timberwolves lead assistant Micah Nori. 

But now that the Blazers have a man in place to lead the sidelines for — at least — next year, their front office can now turn attention to this evening's second round. 

Luckily for GM Joe Cronin and Portland's brass, a perfect trade-in target remains on the board. 

While UConn's Alex Karaban would've been the dream scenario for the Blazers before the Sacramento Kings scooped him up at the end of round one, a prospect capable of solving Rip City's perimeter shooting woes is expected to hear his name called at some point tonight. 

BYU's Richie Saunders. 

A polished offensive connector, Saunders thrives without needing plays called for him, using constant movement and floor spacing to gash opposing defenses. 

Portland's three-point shooting ability ranked near the bottom of the NBA in 2025-26 in spite of the Blazers' march back to the postseason. If Nori's scheme and Cronin's personnel decisions can coincide, the franchise could turn the weakness into a strength in just one summer. 

Saunders could — theoretically — be a major part of that transition. 

In his senior campaign with the Cougars, Saunders tallied 18.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.8 steals per game on 48.9%/37.6%/81.7% splits. 

But that 37.6% mark from deep doesn't tell the full story on Saunders. As a junior, the 24-year-old shot a scorching 43.2%. 

However, he's not just a shooter. 

Saunders is a connective passer who rarely makes mistakes by getting too cute. He's disciplined, likely due to his age, and while he is older for the average prospect, Saunders' extensive college experience in the modern NIL era makes him quite pro-ready.

The 6-foot-5 sniper could play either the two or three in Portland, depending on how Nori opts to deploy the rest of his chess pieces. Saunders possesses a high basketball IQ, which may become fully unlocked playing alongside a player of Damian Lillard's expertise. 

And considering the get-in price for Saunders could be as little as two future seconds, he'd be well worth the risk if he's still available towards the middle of tonight's second round.