Haynes: Blazers Eye Trade Up For Indiana G Victor Oladipo?

Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com reports that the Portland Trail Blazers are considering a trade up in the 2013 NBA Draft to select Indiana guard Victor Oladipo.

Sources close to the prospect say the Trail Blazers, among a few others teams, "really like him" and are "considering moving up to get him."

When Oladipo was reached for comment, he acknowledged being aware of the interested teams that weren't in position to take him. If Portland did pull off the move, Oladipo is all for it.

"I would really love to go to Portland, and I'm not just saying that," he said convincingly to CSNNW.com. "I hope, and I don't think I'm dropping that far, but if they decided to move up somehow, I think that would be a great situation for me. It's a place where you can just concentrate on basketball."

Oladipo, 21, averaged 13.6 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists last season, shooting 59.9 percent from the field and 44.1 percent from three-point range. He earned first-team All-Big 10 and first-team AP All-America honors.

Oladipo currently ranks No. 6 on Chad Ford of ESPN.com's top 100 and No. 4 on DraftExpress.com's top 100.

Some thoughts from Ford.

Positives
Crazy athletic swingman
Explosive leaper
Tough, physical player
Excellent rebounder
Tenacious defender
Best motor in college basketball
Improving jump shot

Negatives
A bit undersized for his position
Can be turnover prone

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May 2 Update: Oladipo continues to be one of the more debated prospects at the top of the draft. I recently spoke with a number of NBA GMs and the question about his ceiling is the same: "Can he develop the skills and attitude of an NBA scorer?" If the answer is yes, then it's not out of the question that he could be a Dwyane Wade-type player. If the answer is no, someone like Tony Allen might be his best comparison.

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Apr 9 Update: Oladipo announced that he's declaring for the 2013 NBA Draft. Oladipo is the best perimeter defender in the country and an elite athlete who plays at a relentless pace. He's still a work in progress offensively, but he can guard three positions on the floor and is an elite finisher at the rim. His shooting has dramatically improved, as have his ballhandling skills, but they'll need to continue to improve for Oladipo to be a scorer at the next level. Look for him to go somewhere between No. 3 and No. 8 in the draft.

Here's a DraftExpress.com scouting video.

Some notes from Walker Beeken of DraftExpress.com.

As we've mentioned before, Oladipo's intrigue as an NBA prospect starts with his abilities as a perimeter defender. An elite athlete with a chiseled frame and solid size and length for an NBA shooting guard, Oladipo combines his outstanding physical tools with a relentless motor, often overwhelming players at the college level as an on-ball defender and causing havoc off the ball.

Oladipo makes his presence felt all over the floor defensively, playing with tremendous intensity and always finding ways to get his hands on the ball for deflections and steals, or flying in from out of his area to block a shot or come up with a rebound, thanks to his seemingly endless energy and outstanding speed, quickness, and leaping ability.

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With the ability to guard up to four positions at the college level, Oladipo projects to be able to defend all three perimeter positions at the NBA level, depending on matchups. He has the speed and quickness to cover point guards, and his athleticism, strength, and toughness should enable him to guard most small forwards as well. Coaches will likely value the flexibility Oladipo gives them on the defensive end, as they can cross-match and hide weaker defenders while putting Oladipo on the opposing team's top perimeter threat, regardless of position.

Michael Lee of the Washington Post on Oladipo from the pre-Draft combine in Chicago.

Noted for his notorious drive, Oladipo famously used his key card at the gym at Indiana so much for workouts that it stopped working and forced him to get a replacement. He would go to the gym for late-night training sessions - after watching West Coast NBA games conclude after midnight.

"I'm just abnormal," said Oladipo, who also took 19 credit hours his final semester in order to graduate in three years. "I'm a weird dude. I'm not going to lie to you."

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"I feel like I have another level every year that I start a new season of basketball. If I continue to keep growing, and make everything consistent, I'm going to get better and better each year. That's what I feel like I'll be able to do," Oladipo said. "Whoever picks me, I'm going to bring a high level impact. I feel like I'm going to be one of the best players I can be. A really solid player in the league, if not better."

Thanks to golfballer333 for getting to it in the FanShots first.

-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter