Trail Blazers Work Out Alabama's Brandon Miller

TUALATIN, Ore. — On Friday, six days before the franchise's most course-deciding day since the 2007 draft, the Trail Blazers wrapped up their predraft workouts with prospects who could be in play for the No. 3 overall pick if they choose to keep it.

In total, Joe Cronin's staff has conducted in-person workouts with five prospects projected to go in the top 10: G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson, Overtime Elite twin brothers Amen and Ausar Thompson, Villanova forward Cam Whitmore and, in a Friday solo session, Alabama forward Brandon Miller.

The fate of Miller may ultimately swing the rest of the draft as it relates to Portland's direction, as well as determining which possible upgrades are available for them.

Since the night of the lottery, buzz around the NBA has been that Charlotte, which holds the No. 2 overall pick, might favor Miller over Henderson. For most of the year, Henderson had been viewed as the clear-cut second-best player in the draft behind Victor Wembanyama, who will go first overall to San Antonio. But the Hornets are in a similar situation to the Blazers in that they already have a lead playmaker (LaMelo Ball) and may be more inclined to draft Miller, who profiles as the kind of prototypical 3-and-D wing every team needs.

But in recent days, buzz has picked up that the Hornets are still considering Henderson. Further clouding anyone's ability to predict how it will go was the Friday morning announcement that Michael Jordan had reached an agreement to sell his majority stake in the franchise to a group led by one of the minority investors, Gabe Plotkin.

Asked about this development on Friday, Miller admitted he hadn't heard about it yet. Interestingly, both he and Henderson plan to meet with Jordan in the next week before the Hornets make a final decision. And then whatever they do will have major ripple effects for what Portland does with the third pick, be it keeping it or trading it.

Much of the attention around Miller during the predraft process has been centered on his presence at a nightclub in Tuscaloosa in January when a woman was fatally shot, leading to one of his teammates and a friend both being charged with murder. Police say Miller drove the car to the crime scene that contained the gun, but prosecutors ultimately concluded there was not enough evidence to charge Miller with any crime.

In his Friday media session, the first he's done since the combine in Chicago last month, Miller declined to answer questions about the case due to it being an ongoing legal matter. He did say that he's been asked about it in his meetings with teams, but that he hasn't been able to say much about it for legal reasons.

Do with that what you will. The most thorough and fair independent reporting that I've read about the case has come from Patch.com's Tuscaloosa bureau, and it goes a long way in illustrating why Miller ultimately was not charged. Whichever team ends up drafting him—the Blazers, Hornets, or someone trading into that spot—will be asked about their own vetting of the situation, and everything that will go into their comfort level with the decision.

Miller was asked what he would say to fans who would be concerned about the Blazers drafting him due to his connection with the killing.

"I'm here to win ball games," he said. "One of my goals is to win a championship. I won the SEC championship, so I can finally say I have a ring under my belt. I didn't win a state championship [in high school], sadly. Just to win an NBA Finals."

I don't have a real feel at this stage for what the Blazers would do if they ultimately chose not to trade the third pick and Henderson was off the board. In their first draft last year, Cronin and his staff (which includes longtime ESPN draft analyst Mike Schmitz) swung on upside with Shaedon Sharpe at No. 7 overall. If they take the same approach this year, it may lead them in the direction of taking one of the Thompson brothers or Whitmore, who are much more explosive athletes than Miller is.

But Miller's combination of size, length and shooting ability puts him firmly in the mix, and in a scenario where whoever they draft is playing alongside Damian Lillard, Miller is a cleaner fit.

"I think I'd fit great," he said. "I see myself coming off a lot of actions with Dame. I know he's a great vet. For me to be under his wing, I think that's a good duo."