Not too long ago, the question surrounding the Portland Trail Blazers' rebuild was whether to build around Scoot Henderson or Shaedon Sharpe. In 2023, we predicted that Sharpe would be the Blazers' best player in five years, with Henderson or Anfernee Simons as the other most likely candidates. In other words, the strength of Portland's rebuild lay in its backcourt, especially after investing consecutive top-10 picks in guards.
Fast forward to 2026, and that roster strength has surprisingly become a weakness in terms of their long-term outlook. Simons was traded for Jrue Holiday due to his defensive limitations and expiring contract. Henderson has shown flashes of his star potential, but those flashes have been far outweighed by concerning performances and inconsistent play. Sharpe was having a career year before injury, but it remains to be seen how a score-first guard with an average three-point shot fits into the scheme of things when Portland looks to take that next step as a title contender.
Blazers still face uncertainty in the backcourt
A main reason behind trading Simons was to prioritize the Scoot-Sharpe backcourt, but unfortunately, things haven't gone according to plan this season. There was only one game the perceived backcourt duo of the future shared together, coming on Feb. 6 against the Memphis Grizzlies. That was supposed to be the turning point, as Portland, a team that has been top five in players being out this year, was going to get back arguably their most important duo.
For whatever reason, the Scoot-Sharpe backcourt hasn't worked out to this point, whether due to injuries or inconsistent play. The timing just hasn't been right, and unfortunately, Portland is running out of time to properly evaluate whether it will ever be its long-term solution.
Deni Avdija has taken over in a point-forward role, and the Blazers offense has been better with the ball in his hands compared to Henderson. Both have their turnover problems, but at least Avdija gives Portland an advantage in terms of his positional size and ability to put pressure on the defense.
Where do Sharpe and Henderson fit into Portland's plans?
This is not to say the Blazers should give up entirely on Henderson or Sharpe individually. The former's stock is likely at an all-time low, while Portland just recently invested in the latter with an extension prior to the season. But it's still unfortunate in the sense that this was always going to be a transitional season for Portland, meaning their priorities should be player development and evaluation. They haven't been able to achieve that in their backcourt with one injury after another, and it's made both their rebuilding and offensive approach much more complicated.
We viewed this as a make-or-break year for Scoot, yet he's been injured for the majority of the season. And when healthy, he's shown enough to both make and break his career in Portland. That hasn't left us with any clarity since the season began, making it a failed year from that standpoint.
There have been other positive takeaways, with Deni Avdija and Donovan Clingan's respective breakouts. But now, Portland -- a team that previously prioritized guards in the draft -- has answers in the frontcourt with questions in the backcourt heading into the summer.
That's not the position anyone expected them to be, and it's because the high-upside duo of Henderson and Sharpe haven't been able to share the court.