Trail Blazers 2023 NBA Draft Big Board 3.0: Final pre-lottery rankings

2. Scoot Henderson, G League Ignite

Big Board 2.0 rank – No. 3

Scoot went from unranked on Big Board 1.0 (strictly based on fit assuming that Lillard would still be in Portland), to third on version 2.0, and now jumps to second on the final pre-lottery rankings.

He’s too strong, explosive, and competitive to be placed anywhere else on this list – whether Dame, Simons, and Sharpe are all on the roster or all gone.

The biggest question mark for Scoot in Portland is his size. The Blazers really, really, really don’t need another 6-2 guard. But Henderson isn’t the same defensive liability as Lillard, Simons, and CJ McCollum before them, are. He’s stronger than any of those three, and with a 6-9 wingspan, won’t be a minus on that end of the floor, even against bigger guards or wings.

He’s the most explosive athlete in this class. If Sharpe is still in Portland, the Blazers would be building around perhaps the most athletic backcourt in the NBA.

Henderson wants to humiliate anyone on the floor if they’re standing between him and the basket, and he usually does. Moda Center would be rocking whenever Scoot has the ball in his hands. O’Connor refers to him as a cross between Russell Westbrook and Allen Iverson.

Other than being a shaky spot-up shooter, there isn’t much the 19-year-old can’t do offensively. He can beat defenders off the dribble in isolation and pick-and-roll situations, can stop on a dime and rise up for mid-range jumpers, and can contort himself to finish in just about any way possible at the rim.