The Portland Trail Blazers will unfortunately be without Ja Morant for at least the next four weeks. Morant suffered a Grade 2 left hamstring strain in the Blazers' first loss of the season to the Grizzlies, ESPN's Shams Charania reported Friday.
You can add Morant to the list of unfortunate injuries that have already taken place around the league. It's a brutal injury for both Morant and Portland with how well the pairing looked early on. The silver lining for the Blazers is that at least this roster is deep enough to deal with adversity better than these other teams.
Scoot Henderson, in particular, should benefit from an increased role in Morant’s absence.
Scoot Henderson suddenly has a chance to step up in a make-or-break contract year
He's struggled through four games, averaging a career-low 7.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists. Henderson is also averaging a career-low 18.8 minutes per game. He seems to be struggling to find any rhythm, and it's resulted in 34.4 percent from the field and 11.8 percent from beyond the arc.
It hasn’t all been bad as the Blazers sit at 3-1, largely thanks to the strength of their guard rotation. Henderson has even contributed to that strength, giving them another ballhandler, decision-maker, defender, and floor spacer (even if those shots haven't been falling, he's still a threat).
Still, there's so much on the line for Henderson this season after Portland didn't reach a rookie-scale extension with him. Both he and the Blazers want to see improved play in this expanded role. Inconsistency has been a huge issue early in Henderson's career, which explains their lack of confidence in committing to him long term with an extension before the season.
There was also uncertainty with the small sample size of last season, seeing as Henderson was sidelined for the majority of it due to an untimely hamstring injury. Now, it's Henderson's time to step up in Moran'ts absence. He's always seemed to benefit from more minutes to find his rhythm in the flow of the game. That increased opportunity should come with significant injuries to both Shaedon Sharpe and now Morant in the backcourt.
November will be an important stretch for Henderson when it comes to solidifying his place long-term on this roster. Look for head coach Micah Nori to rotate the guard trio of Lillard, Holiday, and Henderson, especially since all three can play both positions in the backcourt.
Between them and Deni Avdija at point-forward, Portland will still have plenty of ballhandlers and playmakers. The only question is whether Henderson can be considered a part of that group going forward. If he can help initiate more of this offense instead of playing primarily off the ball, it will help fill the void left by this Morant injury.
It's an important role for Henderson, and a great opportunity to prove he belongs in this backcourt in the last year of his deal.
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