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“He’s excited to be on a team with vets like Dame and Jrue, and he loves the young talent of Deni (Avdija), Scoot, (Donovan) Clingan, (Toumani) Camara … I mean, he mentioned them all by name,” Nori said. As they left the restaurant, Nori asked Morant what he needed from him. How could he help? “He just said, ‘Make sure I get some Trail Blazers gear as soon as possible so I can start wearing it,’” Nori said.

One thing has become certain about the Trail Blazers after Monday’s trade for point guard Ja Morant: Portland center Donovan Clingan is now essentially off limits in trade talks, according to a team source.
The Blazers have immediate needs at center and power forward. They are not expected to retain free agent center Robert Williams III, who is hoping to land a contract in the $15 million a year range, leaving only second-year center Yang Hansen as a backup to Donovan Clingan. The Blazers are also thin at power forward, with Deni Avdija and Toumani Camara their only options.
The Blazers have immediate needs at center and power forward. They are not expected to retain free agent center Robert Williams III, who is hoping to land a contract in the $15 million a year range, leaving only second-year center Yang Hansen as a backup to Donovan Clingan.

Trail Blazers All-Star forward Deni Avdija was not on the table in trade talks for Antetokounmpo, and he remains off the table in Brown discussions as of now, league sources told HoopsHype. Portland’s other young players, such as Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe, are considered available. With Boston considering center upgrades and needing to replace Brown’s position if he’s traded, Portland’s Donovan Clingan and 2025 All-Defensive forward Toumani Camara would both be coveted by Boston. However, neither has been put on the table at this time.
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The question for Boston with the Blazers will be what type of package they would demand from Portland. The Blazers have plenty of intriguing young talent across their roster but they would certainly want to retain the majority of it to compete in the Western Conference even after a Brown acquisition. All-Star Deni Avdija would not be on the table in any trade talks, league sources tell MassLive and it would be tough for Boston to pry away Donovan Clingan as well. The Blazers do not have strong center depth behind Clingan with Robert Williams set to hit free agency so trading Clingan for Brown would simply create another hole on the roster.

Sean Highkin: Donovan Clingan not happy with the All-Defense team selections, but not on his own behalf
Donovan Clingan not happy with the All-Defense team selections, but not on his own behalf
— Sean Highkin (@highkin.bsky.social) 2026-05-23T00:14:11.277Z

Sean Highkin: Donovan Clingan on Tiago Splitter: "I love Tiago. He's a player's coach, he understands the game, he's won at high levels. He never took any shortcuts or took it easy on us. He showed up every day at his best and I'll always appreciate him for that."

Sean Highkin: Donovan Clingan on his struggles this series: "Just got to learn from it. I'm going to try not to take away from the season I had. I know I didn't play at my best and didn't do what I did all year in this series, but it's definitely a learning experience."

Sean Highkin: Donovan Clingan on how he feels he played in the first two games of the series: “Eh.” Donovan on Victor Wembanyama’s status: “We’re coming in with the energy like he’s playing, and then I guess we’ll find out tonight whether he is or not.”
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MrBuckBuck: "I don't think I'm a gross foul baiter" -Deni Avdija talks drawing fouls with Donovan Clingan and Toumani Camara
"I don't think I'm a gross foul baiter"
— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) April 14, 2026
-Deni Avdija talks drawing fouls with Donovan Clingan and Toumani Camarapic.twitter.com/NcsMd497o9

Sean Highkin: "There are three guys that are definitely long, term guys you keep and build around: Donovan Clingan, Deni Avdija, and Toumani Camara. Then obviously Dame (Lillard)'s not going anywhere because he's got a no-trade clause. And we've talked about how the new ownership group views Hansen and how the front office is still really high on him. Outside of those five, I think everything is pretty much subject to change. Jrue (Holiday), I could see it going either way pretty easily."

Furthermore, the Blazers center ranked first - above Wembanyama - in contested shots for the season. Nobody else in the league has challenged more shots than the former UConn big man. Opponents shot 43.9 percent in March when defended by Clingan. Over the past 30 days, Clingan ranked second in blocks among qualified big men at 2.6 per game, while also cutting opponents' field-goal percentage by 5.8 percent, which tells you all you need to know about his status as an elite rim protector.