Should Whitecaps trade up in draft?

Could the Whitecaps take a swing at landing the No. 1 pick in this year’s MLS SuperDraft? There’s logic to it. Carl Robinson needs a right back to replace veteran Steven Beitashour, who the Caps traded to Toronto for the 27th overall pick two weeks ago.

The Caps balked at Beitashour’s contract option — believed to be around $220,000 — and Toronto was hungry to rebuild a leaky back line.

Robinson signed Costa Rican right-back Jordan Smith on loan last summer but needs competition at the position, where centre back Tim Parker can also fill in when needed.

Vancouver picks 16th in the Jan. 14 draft in Baltimore, Md., but there’ll be temptation to move up with a trade.

Georgetown junior defender Josh Yaro, a Ghana native who attended high school in California, is expected to go No. 1 if he enters the draft.

Yaro was in positive talks with MLS, according to the Washington Post’s Steven Goff. There’s also interest from Europe.

Yaro was a centre-back in college but many project the 5-foot-11 defender as a right-back in MLS.

The Chicago Fire hold the first pick after a dismal 2015.

Vancouver has a possible asset in Darren Mattocks, the Jamaican international who is further down the depth chart after last week’s signing of Japanese striker Masato Kudo.

The Caps also have picks and allocation money to play with, as well as the right of first refusal on Canadian international Simeon Jackson, who trained with the Fire last summer and seems eager to join MLS not having his contract extended at League One club Barnsley.

If the Caps can’t trade their way up on Jan. 14, it’s at least a draft deep in right-backs.

Louisville’s Tim Kubel is also deciding whether to enter the draft or test Europe, while Georgetown’s Keegan Rosenberry and North Carolina’s Jordan McCrary are possible first-round picks.

Yaro and Kubel, if they sign Generation Adidas contracts with MLS, wouldn’t count against the salary cap for a couple of years.

Steve Han, who reports on Korean soccer, says the Whitecaps have appointed former fullback and South Korean legend Y.P. Lee as a club ambassador for 2016.