The Portland Trail Blazers continue to put together the best season that they possibly can. Portland has looked much better this year, especially over the past few weeks and it has vaulted them toward playoff contention.

However, the team still remains five games back of the final Play-In spot within the Western Conference standings. At this point, it’s unlikely that the Trail Blazers will be able to reach the playoffs but the team will still compete nonetheless.

Many fans have been putting the focus on the upcoming NBA Draft as Portland could potentially have a high draft pick. Duke star forward Cooper Flagg is the prize of this year’s draft class but Portland may have won too much this season to have a realistic chance to land him.

However, just last season, the Atlanta Hawks had poor odds and ended up landing the first overall pick. So anything can happen.

Read more: Blazers Top Draft Choice Cooper Flagg Hints at College Return in 2025

But in a new mock draft, the Trail Blazers don’t land Flagg but they do get a nice scoring win from the SEC Conference. That would be Collin Murray-Boyles from the South Carolina Gamecocks.

In this mock, Portland holds the No. 9 overall pick in the first round and it lands them to draft Murray-Boyles. This would be a good pick for the Trail Blazers in this spot as Murray-Boyles could give them a legitimate scoring wing to pair with their other young players.

The sophomore forward has averaged 15.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game this season for South Carolina. The wing is also shooting 57.3 percent from the field this year.

Murray-Boyles has shown great promise on the offensive end but what makes him special is on the defensive end of the floor. The Athletic‘s Sam Vecenie explained what makes him such a great prospect for the NBA.

“Just an unbelievable defensive playmaker,” Vecenie said. “Unbelievable defender. Processes the game at such a high level, it’s obscene. Shooting 57% from the field this season. I don’t really buy him shooting threes yet. I don’t know that that’s going to be a thing but maybe it gets there.”

This would be a very solid pick for the Trail Blazers and could help them grow more into a powerhouse in the league. We have a good amount of time between now and the NBA Draft but fans could be learning some of the prospects that Portland could be interested in.

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For the latest Portland Trail Blazers news and notes, stay glued to Portland Trail Blazers On SI.