The Portland Trail Blazers held two practices over the weekend to prepare for the start of NBA Summer League play on July 13 in Las Vegas.

Blazers assistant coach Jonah Herscu will guide the team for the second consecutive summer. He will be tasked with guiding rookie center Donovan Clingan through his first taste of professional basketball, albeit the summer variety.

Expect to see a somewhat different version of Clingan than what was on display when he helped Connecticut win back-to-back men’s NCAA national titles.

The Blazers mainly selected the 7-foot-2 Clingan with the No. 7 pick in June’s NBA draft with the expectation that he would become a defensive anchor. However, Blazers coach Chauncey Billups raved about Clingan’s shooting abilities when the franchise introduced him on June 29.

On Sunday after practice, Herscu said Clingan would have more freedom to shoot from the outside in Las Vegas than he did at Connecticut.

“I wouldn’t say, like a ton,” Herscu said. “But I think he’s very unique. He can play in a lot of different ways. So, definitely, he’ll be on the perimeter some, he’ll be in the post some, be in the corner, some.”

Did “some,” at least mean more three-point shots in Las Vegas than the nine Clingan took in 74 games with the Huskies?

“It’s five or six games, so, potentially, for sure,” Herscu said.

The Blazers open summer league play on July 13 against the San Antonio Spurs.

Other key players on the roster will be second-year forwards Kris Murray and Rayan Rupert and third-year forward Justin Minaya.

Clingan told reporters Saturday after practice he was excited to compete in his first summer league and to start learning the NBA game.

“Really just understanding the style of play, how they play, how they see me being impactful on both sides of the ball,” Clingan said. “I’m really just trying to pick up on the little things. Pick up on how certain teammates play off certain reads ... Little things that can help build those connections in Vegas that help me and my teammates perform at a high level.”

Minaya said Clingan has been impressive during practice.

“I could tell why UConn was so good with him,” Minaya said on Sunday. “He can spread the floor. He protects the rim. I was really surprised by his passing. He found me on a couple of backdoor cuts.”

Minaya added that Clingan backed up Billups’ praise for his shooting during practice.

“I think we did a shooting competition on the first day, and he scored a very high number,” Minaya said. “I was surprised then. Just hitting from the top of the key. He was shooting it with confidence.”

SUMMER LEAGUE LINKS

Trail Blazers announce summer league roster

Trail Blazers announce summer league schedule

-- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook)