The Portland Trail Blazers suffered a 110-100 loss against the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night, but they were able to take some positives from the loss.
One is Scoot Henderson, who recorded 19 points and a career-high 15 assists in 41 minutes of action. Other than setting a new career-high in assists in his budding NBA career, Scoot Henderson also became the first rookie to have at least 10 points and 10 assists in a half since Lonzo Ball in 2017 when he racked up 12 points and 10 assists during the first two quarters.
“My performance was solid. I was trying to get guys involved, and they hit shots. Simple as that,” Henderson said after the game via Associated Press.
The other positive for the Portland Trail Blazers was Deandre Ayton, who received a handful of Scoot Henderson’s assists. Ayton finished the game with 30 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 15-of-22 from the field.
Scoot Henderson is only getting better for the Portland Trail Blazers
It hasn’t been easy for the former G-League Ignite guard, especially at the start of 2023-24, but Scoot Henderson has found his footing for the Portland Trail Blazers and is now averaging 13.7 points, 5.3 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game this season.
However, while he has shown glimpses of his superb playmaking and shot-making, Scoot Henderson’s turnover rate leaves a lot to be desired, as he’s averaging 3.4 turnovers per game. It’s worth noting, however, that Scoot Henderson just turned 20 years old, so he should be able to work on this.
Scoot Henderson is unlikely to win the NBA Rookie of the Year award this season because of San Antonio Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama. However, the Portland Trail Blazers and their fans can sleep well at night knowing they got their cornerstone point guard in the long run, especially after they traded away Damian Lillard last offseason.
The Portland Trail Blazers own one of the league’s worst win-loss records at 21-58, and they have three more regular-season games to play against the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets, and the Sacramento Kings.
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