Unlike Alexandre Sarr and Zaccharie Risacher, two of his compatriots, Melvin Ajinça is not expected at the top of this 2024 Draft. In their latest forecasts, our colleagues at ESPN even announce it in the second round, in 49th position. A trend which is confirmed since the Frenchman will do a workout with Portland this Thursday.
The Blazers, owners of the 7th and 14th picks in the first round, will also have the 40th in the second round. Perfect therefore to select Melvin Ajinça, who finished top scorer for the French U19 team during the last World Cup, concluded with a silver medal, with 19.3 points per match.
This season, in Betclic Elite, the full-back/winger from Saint-Quentin (2m03 and who will be 20 years old on June 26, the first evening of the Draft) has shown off his athletic qualities and his aggressiveness. He averaged 9.3 points in 25 minutes, including a 37% 3-point success rate.
His “3&D” profile could clearly attract NBA teams and why not push Portland to bet once again on a French player in the second round, after Rayan Rupert in 2023.
5/30 Pre-Draft workouts in PDX
Melvin Ajinca (Saint-Quentin)
RAdm Christie (Minnesota)
Thierry Darlan (G League Ignite)
Malik Hall (Michigan State)
Harrison Ingram (North Carolina)
Keshad Johnson (Ariz.) pic.twitter.com/rDFPD58mpe— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) May 30, 2024
