The Trail Blazers have selected G League Ignite star point guard Scoot Henderson with the No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft.
The Blazers were long rumored to be exploring a trade involving the No. 3 pick as they sought impact veterans to complement Damian Lillard, but it appears they ultimately didn’t find a deal they liked and opted to hang onto the selection.
It will be interesting to see now whether the Henderson pick signifies the beginning of the end of Lillard’s Portland tenure.
Henderson is considered by draft experts to have All-NBA upside, and it’s unclear whether or not Lillard will be content playing alongside a rookie point guard in a now-crowded backcourt that also features undersized shooting guard Anfernee Simons. It’s possible the selection of Henderson will be the first in a series of moves involving the Blazers’ backcourt this summer.
An athletic 6’4″ lead guard, Henderson averaged 16.5 PPG, 6.5 APG, 5.4 RPG, 1.1 SPG and 0.5 BPG across 19 regular season contests for the Ignite in 2022/23. He represents the rare high-level prospect who spends two seasons with the Ignite, having graduated high school a year early for the opportunity to get extra pro seasoning.
An explosive athlete with a quick first step, Henderson is a dangerous threat to score both in transition and the half-court. His long-range shooting continues to need work, as he has not converted more than 30% of his triple tries during either of his two G League seasons. He is a good rebounder for his size and is considered an instinctive passer.
How long before he is NOT a blazer?
Let’s see, I hope my math is right. His rookie deal is 4 years, his rookie max extension is 5 years. So 5+4 I think is nine years? At least.
I think he expects him to be traded.
If they were going to trade him chances are they would’ve done so before they picked him.
Maybe they want to be able to use his salary for matching purposes. Saves them including valuable depth.
can’t be long before Fame is gone. Maybe we get lucky and it happens tonight
*Dame
Poor guy. He went to basketball hell. To a team that will make half hearted moves to build a championship team around their superstar player. Hopefully he gets lucky & still gets traded. There’s still time but if they don’t, I hope he enjoys one of the least knowledgeable homerific fanbases, a crap city & an ownership that is only willing to do enough to fill seats to make money & not really go for it all.
Cool story bro
I’ve heard word that a trade to Miami could be delayed until Hero signs his new contract on July 1st, so he can be included in the deal.
Herro already signed a new contract
You ruined the fun.
Scoot is overrated. Field goal % around 45% and his 3pt% is under 30% got those stats as a volume shooter
He’s 19, has plenty of time to improve 3pt%
45% is sold for a guard’s FG%. He has time to improve his 3pt shooting but let’s not act like you need to hit 3’s to be an above average scorer. Jordan, Wade, Kobe, LBJ and Inverson. Guys who weren’t terrific 3pt shooters but were all-time scorers. We have to stop seeking perfection and appreciate efficient production.
None of those guys are true 1s though. Obviously Scoot would be the 2 guard if Dame stays but I’m not sure how much longer he can stand getting clowned for staying in Portland. The natural progression would be for Scoot to take over at PG and a PG who shoots 25% from 3 is not something any team is particularly interested in with todays game being what it is.
Little nugget for everyone saying he has time to develop a 3pt shot; I remember when Philly took a PG who could get to the basket as his primary scoring option. People said he’d learn how to shoot too…. at least he had the size and skill to guard 1-5. Scoot does not.
The Blazers are adding talent and will figure out how to use it all later. Dame I’m convinced isn’t going anywhere.