Cliff Alexander

Alexander entered Kansas last fall as a vaunted, top-5 recruit but struggled to make inroads, averaging 7.1 points (on 57 percent shooting), 5.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 18 minutes across 28 contests. An eligibility concern wiped away the final three regular season games and the entire postseason schedule, and rather than wait indefinitely for the NCAA to make a ruling, he opted for the NBA Draft, where the 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward was avoided entirely. Instead, the Nets trotted him out there at the Orlando and Las Vegas Summer Leagues, and his 11-game, five-start stint ended with averages of 7.5 points (on 38 percent shooting), 6.4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 23 minutes. With a non-guaranteed deal from the Blazers in his back pocket, Alexander will seek to show that he belongs among Meyers Leonard, Mason Plumlee, Ed Davis, and Noah Vonleh in the frontcourt rotation.