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Northwest Notes: Gobert, Watson, Henderson, Hartenstein

March 30th, 2025 at 5:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Which team does Rudy Gobert believe is Minnesota’s toughest foe? The Timberwolves, he told Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

“We are our biggest opponent,” Gobert said. “We get a little complacent. When people start saying we’re good and when the odds are with us, that’s when we’re not as a good.”

As the postseason approaches, Gobert says his team’s success is predicated on preparation.

“We’ve been through it for the last few years, so by now we know that it’s just about us, our approach,” Gobert said. “It doesn’t just start at the tip-off of the game. It starts right now, how we recover, the work that we put in tomorrow. We all know the things we need to do to be at our best and try to be consistent.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

  • Peyton Watson calls himself a gamer. The Nuggets wing is embracing the challenge of being a defensive stopper, he told Luca Evans of The Denver Post. “I mean, I think just as – about as confident as any guy in the league right now,” Watson said. “I think that I have the ability, on a night-to-night basis, to slow a lot of guys down and cut their water off. And I’m just trying to get better at doing that as consistently as possible.”
  • Portland guard Scoot Henderson is in the NBA’s concussion protocol, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter link). He was among several Trail Blazers regulars who didn’t play against the Knicks on Sunday.
  • Thunder big man Isaiah Hartenstein missed the second half of their win over Indiana on Saturday with left hip soreness, according to Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. Hartenstein played 14 minutes, scoring four points. He recorded double-doubles in five of the previous six games. The veteran center is listed as questionable to play on Monday against Chicago, Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman tweets.
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Northwest Notes: SGA, Filipowski, McDaniels, Henderson, Billups

March 6th, 2025 at 8:14pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is fresh off his fourth 50-point game in the past seven weeks and currently appears to be the favorite for the league’s Most Valuable Player award. As Fred Katz of The Athletic writes, an unmatched motor and a strong summertime workout routine helped Gilgeous-Alexander take what used to be an unconventional route to superstardom (none of the top three presumed MVP vote-earners were top-10 picks).

“He’s ahead of his time,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “Intuitively, he’s where the scientific research is, which is you wanna be making decisions. You want randomness in your workouts. You want variability. You want interweaving in the workout. He kinda does that naturally.”

Gilgeous-Alexander is breaking through the trend of high-usage players seeing efficiency taper off. His 64.5% true shooting percentage and 34.6% usage percentage are both career highs and lead most guards in the league.

“It’s like LeBron [James] in his prime, Giannis [Antetokounmpo], the speed of [Ja] Morant, the speed and power of [Russell] Westbrook; he’s a great athlete, but he’s not an overpowering athlete, where those guys are,” Daigneault said. “And yet, he gets to the same places on the floor as they do. And to me, that says it all about the skill.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

  • Jazz rookie big man Kyle Filipowski is coming off two of the best games of his career, scoring 25 points on Monday and going for 23 and 13 rebounds on Wednesday. Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune explores whether Filipowski is better suited to be playing the four or the five for the Jazz moving forward. Larsen opines that, while Filipowski isn’t the strongest interior defender, he’s probably best suited for the center position. “The responsibility between a four and a three on offense sometimes [doesn’t differ] very much,” head coach Will Hardy said. “The responsibilities between four and five are very different, and so Flip has had to deal with a lot of change throughout the season … He deserves a lot of credit, because that’s a hard thing. We have a lot of guys who are trying to learn their responsibilities at one position, and Flip’s doing it at two.”
  • Jaden McDaniels offensive emergence is key to the Timberwolves‘ playoff push, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. In his last 12 games, McDaniels has averaged 19.2 points and 3.0 assists per game — in his first 52 games, he put up just 11.0 PPG and 1.7 APG. The forward’s three-point volume has also gone up — he launched a season-high nine outside attempts on Wednesday. He’s also on a different level now as a rebounder than he ever has been. “He can do a lot of different things, and he works his butt off,” teammate Julius Randle said. “We need him to play with that confidence because it gives us a whole different level as a team.”
  • Scoot Henderson is continuing to emerge as a more consistent player, but Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report (Substack link) doesn’t see the former No. 3 overall pick returning to the starting lineup soon. Because the Trail Blazers are still in contention for a play-in spot, a shake-up might not make sense at this juncture. If Portland is eliminated, the club may switch things up.
  • In the same article, Highkin explores the Trail Blazers‘ three options with Chauncey Billups this summer. Billups has shown he’s grown as a coach with Portland’s turnaround, Highkin writes, so they could either pick up the fifth-year option he has for next season, sign him to an extension, or mutually allow him to look for other opportunities.
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Blazers Notes: Henderson, Sharpe, Camara, Play-In

February 20th, 2025 at 8:10am CST by Luke Adams

Scoot Henderson‘s NBA career got off to a shaky start in 2023/24. As fellow top-three picks Victor Wembanyama and Brandon Miller shone, the Trail Blazers guard shot only 38.5% from the field as a rookie, making 32.5% of his three-pointers and turning the ball over 3.4 times in just 28.5 minutes per game.

That inconsistent play carried over to the start of his second season, but Henderson has been playing the best basketball of his young professional career since Christmas. The 21-year-old has averaged 13.8 points and 5.7 assists per game with a .475/.405/.798 shooting line in his past 25 outings, and Portland had a winning record in those games.

Speaking to Jason Quick of The Athletic, head coach Chauncey Billups referred to last season as a “humbling year” for Henderson, but said the team remained confident in the young guard’s ability to find his footing.

“He didn’t realize how hard it is to be good in the NBA and to do it every night,” Billups said. “He’d have a good game, but then, dang, here comes De’Aaron Fox tomorrow. Here comes Steph Curry on Thursday, then on to Trae Young. That’s one of the big surprises for a young guy.

“… I mean, everybody … I think (bust) came across their mind at some point. Not me. Not our staff. Because we live with him. We see the inside. We see what’s inside of him.”

For his part, Henderson says he never doubted his ability to eventually succeed in the NBA, but he admits he was frustrated it wasn’t happening right away.

“I’m blessed with the talent, and I did all the work, but I didn’t have anything to show for it,” Henderson said, per Quick. “That’s where I was disappointed.”

Here’s more on the Blazers:

  • In an in-depth feature story, Robert Ohman of Willamette Week explores the path taken to the NBA by Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe – the first player of note to emerge from the “hockey town” of London, Ontario – and explores the likelihood of the 21-year-old evolving into a star.
  • Over at The Oregonian, Aaron Fentress has published a similar two-part feature on Toumani Camara‘s NBA journey, from his early life in Belgium to the trade that sent him from Phoenix to Portland before his NBA debut to his emergence as a defensive ace for the Blazers. Camara was a 52nd overall pick and was viewed as a relative afterthought in a three-team blockbuster that also included Damian Lillard, Jrue Holiday, and Deandre Ayton, but the young forward has turned heads with his play on defense. “His ascension has been amazing in a short amount of time,” Billups said.
  • A three-game losing streak prior to the All-Star break has left the Trail Blazers five games back of the Warriors for the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference, but the club hasn’t given up on the idea of qualifying for the play-in tournament, as Fentress writes for The Oregonian. Starting forward Deni Avdija said that a stretch of 10 wins in 11 games in January and February gave the Blazers confidence that they’re capable of making a second-half run. “We have a chance to make the play-in, and we’re all in it,” Avdija said. “We’re preparing. We’re doing the best we can, and can’t wait to go back on the court.”
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Northwest Notes: Daigneault, Edwards, Camara, Henderson

February 16th, 2025 at 8:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Mark Daigneault made a meteoric rise from an assistant on Billy Donovan‘s staff at the University of Florida to being a head coach at the All-Star Game. The Athletic’s Anthony Slater takes a deep dive into the Thunder coach’s career, noting that his former boss is proud of his accomplishments.

“It’s crazy how life works,” Donovan said. “I remember when he was sitting there, and we were having camp (at Florida), and he’s waiting to meet me. He’s 24, 25 years old, just wants a job, and he’s willing to work for free. And if you just said, ‘Hey, you’re going to be an NBA head coach and coaching the All-Star game.’ Nobody would’ve believed that, right?

“So, I just think it speaks to him and the people in Oklahoma City and the players and his staff. I’m just really happy for him because he’s a great guy.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

  • Anthony Edwards has improved his three-point shot this season and now he’s using that threat to make him even more effective driving to the basket, Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune notes. After averaging 2.4 free-throw attempts per game in December, Edwards took an average of 8.1 free throws in January and 11 per game in February. The Timberwolves star averaged just 20.5 points per game in December, but pushed that figure to 30.3 in January. In six February games, he’s averaging 34.3 PPG.
  • Toumani Camara was included in a three-team blockbuster in 2023, moving from Phoenix to Portland ahead of his rookie season. He never got a chance to play for the Suns but he feels he would have thrived there, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets. Camara is averaging 10.1 points and 5.9 rebounds per game and has emerged as a defensive ace in his second season with the Trail Blazers. “I feel like the month I spent in Phoenix, a lot of people appreciated my game and stuff like that,” Camara said. “I was pretty confident in the space and environment I was in. I feel like the month I spent in Phoenix, a lot of people appreciated my game and stuff like that. I was pretty confident in the space and environment I was in.”
  • Camara and Scoot Henderson have become the best of friends, according to Jason Quick of The Athletic, and the Trail Blazers teammates have lofty goals. “Me and Tou, we have told each other: ‘We are going to do this. We are going to be great together … and we are going to do it here, in Portland,’” Henderson said. “We haven’t told anyone, but we have those conversations.” Henderson, the No. 3 pick of the 2023 draft, has mainly come off the bench this season. He’s averaging 12.4 points and 5.3 assists in 26.5 minutes per game.
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Blazers Notes: First Half, Billups, Cissoko, Clingan

February 13th, 2025 at 8:34pm CST by Luke Adams

After winning just 21 games in 2023/24, the Trail Blazers have surpassed that total by the All-Star break this season. Their 23-33 record doesn’t put them in the mix for a playoff spot, but they’ve won 10 of 14 games since going 13-28 in the first half and are pleased with where they’re at heading into the break, writes Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report (Substack link).

“I’m very happy with where we are right now,” head coach Chauncey Billups said. “I’m happy with where we are as a group. Our young guys continue to take steps.”

“Happier than last year, for sure,” forward Toumani Camara added.

The Trail Blazers went 10-1 from January 19 to February 6 and have since lost three consecutive games as injuries sidelined multiple starters. Even in those losses, Billups likes the effort he has seen from his team.

“I’m so proud of these dudes,” Billups said after 132-121 defeat at the hands of the Nuggets on Wednesday. “This is a game that, in December or November, could be a 40-point loss. But our dudes fought their butts off. I was so happy for them.”

Here’s more on the Blazers:

  • Has Portland’s strong play over the past month – and positive player development over the course of the season – put Billups in position to earn a new contract with the team? Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian considers that question, noting that Billups is in the final guaranteed year of his current deal, with a team option for 2025/26. The Blazers’ coach said he wants to see the rebuild through and believes he’s made a strong case to stick around. “Me personally, I definitely think that I’ve done enough,” Billups said. “But I’m also not about to petition for that. I’m not gonna do that. I feel like I’ve done enough. I feel like I’ve developed a ton myself, which needed to happen.”
  • As Highkin writes for the Rose Garden Report (Substack link), the Blazers long had interest in Sidy Cissoko before signing him to a two-year, two-way contract last week. The team brought Cissoko in for a pre-draft workout in 2023 and assistant GM Mike Schmitz projected him the French wing a first-round pick during his previous job as a draft analyst for ESPN. “They were interested in me since I got to the league,” Cissoko said, adding that he’s excited to reunite with former G League Ignite teammate Scoot Henderson. “The Spurs drafted me, but we still had a good relationship. The day I was waived, my agent talked to them and they said they wanted me.”
  • On Wednesday, having returned to the starting lineup following Deandre Ayton‘s calf injury, first-year center Donovan Clingan became the first Blazers rookie since Sam Bowie in 1985 to grab 20 rebounds in a single game, Fentress writes. Ten of those 20 rebounds came on the offensive end. “I loved these couple games (in Denver) for DC,” Billups said. “I thought it was excellent. He’s gotten himself back to where he was when he was playing at a pretty high level early before he got injured.”
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Julian Strawther Replaces Scoot Henderson For Rising Stars

February 12th, 2025 at 11:48am CST by Luke Adams

Nuggets guard Julian Strawther will participate in the Rising Stars event at All-Star weekend on Friday, the NBA announced today (via Twitter).

According to the league, Strawther is replacing Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson, who won’t be available to take part due to a sprained right ankle.

Henderson suffered that injury on Monday in Denver and has been ruled out for Wednesday’s rematch with the Nuggets. It sounds like he’ll probably miss Thursday’s game vs. the Lakers too before taking the All-Star break to rest that ankle.

Strawther, 22, has emerged as a regular part of Denver’s rotation in his second NBA season, appearing in all 54 of the team’s games and averaging 9.6 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 22.5 minutes per night. He has posted a shooting line of .435/.362/.827.

Strawther will take Henderson’s spot on the Rising Stars team drafted by former NBA star Mitch Richmond. The seven-player team features the Thompson twins (Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson), as well as Wizards teammates Carlton Carrington and Bilal Coulibaly, among others. The rosters for the event can be viewed here.

The winner of the four-team Rising Stars mini-tournament on Friday will advance to Sunday’s All-Star event and fill out the field for that four-team mini-tournament. The NBA announced on Tuesday (via Twitter) that the winning Rising Stars squad will have a semifinal matchup against Shaquille O’Neal‘s All-Star team, which is headlined by Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Stephen Curry.

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Blazers GM Cronin On Quiet Deadline: ‘We Just Didn’t Find The Value’

February 7th, 2025 at 5:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers were viewed for much of the season as a likely seller at the trade deadline, with veterans like Jerami Grant, Anfernee Simons, Robert Williams, and Deandre Ayton among the players believed to be available.

However, Portland was one of just five NBA teams that didn’t make a single trade in the week leading up to Thursday’s deadline. Speaking on Thursday to reporters, including Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian, general manager Joe Cronin explained why the club’s inactivity.

“We know a lot of fans, and probably a lot of people in here, prefer a little bit of action,” Cronin said. “Often, we do too. We’re always looking for ways to participate in these windows and find guys who can help us be better. But this time around, we just didn’t find the value. So, we decided to pass.

“… I would say we got fairly close on a few things. Nothing that dragged out all the way through (Thursday). Some of the stuff was exhausted over the last couple of weeks. There are a few that made some sense for us and for the other team, but just didn’t happen.”

Grant, Simons, Williams, and Ayton aren’t necessarily part of the long-term core in Portland, which is headlined by younger players like Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, and Donovan Clingan. But Simons, Williams, and Ayton have one more year left on their respective contracts, while Grant is locked up for at least two more seasons beyond this one, so there was no urgency to move them right now — there will be opportunities to do so in future transaction windows.

Cronin said on Thursday that he likes having those veterans around for their leadership and their “functionality on the court.” The Blazers’ GM noted that he also “had to consider not rocking the boat” during the team’s recent hot streak. After an uninspiring 13-28 first half, Portland has unexpectedly won 10 of 11 games since January 19 and is suddenly within 2.5 games of a play-in spot.

“I think it would be unfair to take (the chance to reach the postseason) away from them,” Cronin said. “I’m so proud and so excited about these guys that the sky’s the limit. Go win. Let’s see what you can do.”

Head coach Chauncey Billups said he was appreciative of the opportunity to keep working with this roster.

“I love what we have,” he said. “I love what we’ve been working on. I love how we’re developing. Right now, we’re learning a lot about each other. It’s been a lot of fun.”

Here are a few more Blazers-related items:

  • Jason Quick of The Athletic details how a series of four meetings – including one in which Billups directly challenged Henderson and two in which he delivered “brutally honest assessments” to Sharpe about his defense – helped spur the Blazers’ turnaround.
  • The Blazers hold an option on Billups’ contract for the 2025/26 season, according to Quick, who hears from agent Andy Miller that team ownership has yet to talk to the head coach about his future in Portland. “I have not had any discussion with them regarding his option and possible extension,” Miller said. “We are completely confident with his development and body of work as a coach. He is well-respected league-wide as both coach and a leader.”
  • While there was a widespread belief earlier in the season that Billups was unlikely to remain in his current role beyond 2024/25, he deserves a lot of credit for pushing the right buttons in recent weeks, writes Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report (Substack link). “Nobody on the team wavered on Chauncey’s message [early in the season],” Simons said earlier this week. “It can be frustrating at times when you don’t see the results. But we stuck with it. We’ve been sticking with how we want to play. It took some time to get adjusted to playing faster now, getting to know each other. But he’s been preaching the same thing all year. We’re seeing the results of the things he’s been preaching.”
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Northwest Notes: Strawther, Westbrook, Thunder, Garza, Henderson

February 1st, 2025 at 8:16am CST by Tristan Tucker

Nuggets guard Julian Strawther is establishing himself as a reliable part of Denver’s rotation and an outside scoring threat, Bennett Durando of The Denver Post writes. The second-year Gonzaga product is averaging 9.4 points per game while shooting 37.9% from deep, giving the Nuggets a clear-cut eighth option for their rotation.

For Strawther to maintain his role in coach Michael Malone‘s rotation heading into the playoffs, Denver will need to ensure his development continues at a steady pace, Durando writes.

“What I love about that kid is his work ethic,” Malone said. “He was in our gym every day this summer. And I’m not making that up. Sometimes you hear these stories. They’re inflated. Julian Strawther was in our gym every day this summer.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

  • Russell Westbrook exited Denver’s game against the Sixers on Friday night due to hamstring tightness and did not return, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps reports. Westbrook didn’t appear to have a limp and it’s unclear if he’ll miss any additional time due to the injury. If he does, Christian Braun would reenter the starting lineup in his place.
  • If the Thunder make a trade at the deadline, it should be a move on the margins and not one that impacts the team chemistry of a squad that has a real shot at winning a title, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman opines. Mussatto comes up with three potential trades, including one for Nets forward Cameron Johnson. Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado and Hawks guard Garrison Mathews are two lower-cost targets suggested by Mussatto.
  • Timberwolves backup big Luka Garza has a history of big performances against Utah, Chris Hine of The Star Tribune observes. In five career games against the Jazz, Garza holds career averages of 12.2 points per game on 58.8% shooting from three, his most against any team. On Thursday, Garza stepped up with Donte DiVincenzo, Mike Conley and Julius Randle dealing with injuries, scoring 16 points.
  • Trail Blazers second-year guard Scoot Henderson is putting together more and more good-to-great games and he’s growing as a leader for Portland, Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian writes. In 16 games in January, Henderson averaged 14.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 48.4% from the field and 43.8% from three. “His energy has been crazy,” teammate Deandre Ayton said. “He’s becoming a true point guard, being very vocal, talking to everybody.”
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NBA Announces Player Pool For 2025 Rising Stars Event

January 28th, 2025 at 2:25pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has officially revealed the 10 rookies, 11 sophomores, and seven G League players who have been selected to take part in the 2025 Rising Stars event at All-Star weekend in San Francisco next month.

The following players made the cut, as voted on by NBA assistant coaches (rookies and sophomores) and selected by the league office (G Leaguers):

Rookies

Sophomores

G League Players

* Note: Players marked with asterisks are on standard or two-way contracts with NBA teams.

As usual, the Rising Stars event will consist of four teams and three games. The seven G League players will comprise one team, while the other 21 players will be drafted to three squads on February 4.

The four teams will be split into two first-round matchups and the winners of those two games will face one another for the Rising Stars championship. The two semifinals will be played to a target score of 40 points, while the final will be played to a target score of 25 points.

All three contests will take place on Friday, February 14 as part of All-Star weekend’s opening night. The winning team will compete on Sunday in a similar four-team tournament, with the three other rosters made up of NBA All-Stars.

A handful of injury replacements will be necessary, with McCain, Lively, and Brandon Miller among the players who won’t be available to suit up. Additionally, since players selected as All-Stars won’t play in the Rising Stars event, Wembanyama will almost certainly need to be replaced.

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Trail Blazers Notes: Sharpe, Ayton, Avdija, Henderson

January 20th, 2025 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe came off the bench Sunday night as coach Chauncey Billups removed him from the starting lineup due to frequent defensive lapses, writes Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian. When Billups informed Sharpe of the decision before the game, he included a clear message about the need to improve on that end of the court.

“It was a good convo,” Sharpe said. “He basically just told me what I needed to do. And today, I think I took a big step in doing what he said. So, I just got to continue to do that, and we’ll be all right.”

Sharpe responded by playing 33 minutes in a win over Chicago, slightly more than he usually sees as a starter. He scored 23 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter, and Billups was happy with the effort he displayed on defense.

“I was proud of him,” Billups told reporters. “I thought defensively, he was locked in. which is where he needs to be. … I think with him when he’s locked in defensively, it helps his offense. It makes him go.”

There’s more from Portland:

  • Deandre Ayton, who sat out Saturday’s game with low back soreness, and Deni Avdija, who missed three games with an ankle issue, both returned to the court on Sunday night, Fentress adds in a separate story. The extra size helped the Blazers post a 50-36 advantage in rebounding, which led to 17 fast break points. “When we can get out and get our guys going and play fast and move the basketball, we’re pretty tough to play against,” Billups said.
  • Scoot Henderson continued his recent stellar play with 25 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in 38 minutes. The past four games have marked one of the best career stretches for Henderson, who was selected with the third pick in the 2023 draft. “It’s starting to become so consistent with Scoot,” Billups said (Twitter link from Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report). “I thought he did a good job of picking his spots but continuing to be on attack the whole game. Because we need it. He’s at his best that way. He’s playing really well. I’m proud of Scoot.” Anfernee Simons sat out Sunday’s game with a right elbow strain, so Sharpe may remain in a bench role when he returns if Henderson keeps playing well.
  • The Rockets, who won at Portland on Saturday night, could provide a good blueprint for the Blazers, Highkin states in a full story. They were recently in a similar position, but were able to make a quick turnaround due to the development of their young players and an aggressive approach to free agency. “It’s the stage Houston was in before I got there, where they were trying to figure out who is who with a stockpile of lottery picks,” coach Ime Udoka said. “They’re in that same mode right now, with some of those young guys.”
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