Mar 17, 2025; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson (00) shoots over Washington Wizards small forward Justin Champagne (9) during the second half at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-Imagn Images Soobum Im-Imagn Images

Blazers News: Scott Henderson's Reaction to Damian Lillard Signing Revealed

Originally posted on Portland Trail Blazers on SI
By Ryan Stano | Last updated Jul 24, 2025 5:00 PM ET

The Portland Trail Blazers were able to bring back Damian Lillard on a three-year deal worth $42 million. It was a surprising signing for a lot of people around the NBA.

Instead of making the decision to sign with a contender, Lillard wanted to go back home to his family. Despite the Trail Blazers having plenty of guards, they brought him back anyway.

Scoot Henderson is a point guard that they hope will take them into the future. There were some thoughts that bringing Lillard back could anger Henderson, as it brings another point guard into the fold.

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In fact, Henderson had the opposite reaction. According to Zach Lowe, Portland let him know exactly what was going on and was enthusiastic about the signing.

Zach Lowe confirms that Scoot was clued in before the Dame signing happened:

"He was super enthusiastic about it, not threatened at all. There was this undercurrent of 'if I'm Scoot I'm going to be angry'...Scoot's gonna have all the runway in the world."

(Via Zach Lowe Show) pic.twitter.com/vou4GjbVb2
— Blazers Lead (@BlazersLead) July 21, 2025

"He was super enthusiastic about it, not threatened at all. There was this undercurrent of 'if I'm Scoot I'm going to be angry'...Scoot's gonna have all the runway in the world."

Henderson understands that he is going to be the future of the Blazers. He hasn't developed quite as fast as some in Portland might have hoped, but they are not giving up on him by any means.

Lillard is also going to be out all of next season. Henderson will have plenty of time to show that he can still develop into an All-Star. The Blazers are going to do everything they can to help facilitate that leap.

Henderson also understands what Lillard means to the city of Portland. He knows how much he means to the fans and to the city in general.

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Portland will decide what to do with Henderson after next season is over. They hope that he and Lillard can co-exist in the backcourt, along with Shaedon Sharpe.

Those three guards are going to be the focal point of what the Blazers do on the offensive end of the court. They proved that they can be a pretty good defensive team, as well.

This past season with the Blazers, Henderson averaged 12.7 points, three rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game. He shot 41.9 percent from the field and 35.4 percent from beyond the 3-point arc.

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For more news and notes on the Portland Trail Blazers, visit Portland Trail Blazers on SI.

This article first appeared on Portland Trail Blazers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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