Scoot Henderson finally returned from his lingering hamstring injury, giving Portland Trail Blazers fans plenty of optimism in the process. Although he was coming off the bench and on a minutes restriction, Scoot made a compelling case to enter Portland's starting lineup with his recent stretch.
He finally got that much-deserved opportunity in Portland's most recent 121-112 road win over the Chicago Bulls, as Donovan Clingan (illness), Deni Avdija (back), and Shaedon Sharpe (calf) were all sidelined. Unfortunately, another building block has to go down for another to get an extended run. Of their existing group, it's clear Portland's future starting lineup is Henderson, Sharpe, Avdija, Toumani Camara, and Clingan.
With Portland playing without its two highest scorers, we were eager to see how Henderson would look as a primary offensive initiator. However, that still didn't come to fruition, as Sidy Cissoko quickly replaced him after picking up two early fouls.
Portland was carried by veterans Jerami Grant and Jrue Holiday, which is great for their play-in race but not ideal for gaining more clarity. The Blazers still don't know what they have in their young backcourt.
Blazers still don't know what they have in Scoot Henderson
They saw enough out of Sharpe, who had a career year prior to his potentially season-ending calf injury. Now, it was Henderson's turn to earn the keys. He came up short in their matchup against Chicago, finishing with 12 points and four assists in 24 minutes.
Scoot will have a chance to right the ship in Portland's next matchup as they continue their road trip with an early tip-off (10:00 AM PST) Saturday against the up-and-coming Charlotte Hornets.
We don't want to put too much pressure or overreact to one stretch for Scoot. He continues to trend upwards at 22 years old, even though it's not as linear or as rapid as fans may have hoped. But this is a make-or-break stretch in terms of taking over the keys to the backcourt.
The Blazers lack a traditional point guard and need him as a primary offensive initiator now more than ever. It's only going to get harder to earn that role later on, when he has to compete with Avdija, Sharpe, and Damian Lillard all next season. Not to mention any external additions.
And if Scoot isn't utilized as a table setter or an offensive initiator in Portland's offense, what exactly is he? That's primarily where the curious case lies.
The Blazers invested a coveted No. 3 overall pick in Scoot, thinking they were getting a freak athlete who would be impossible to stop downhill or in transition. That's true to an extent, but certainly not the extent Portland would've hoped given the sky-high expectations surrounding the pick.
Henderson's small sample size has been strange this season. He's not getting downhill or utilizing his athleticism to the extent many had hoped, but he's almost emerging as a 3-and-D player. His on-ball defense is underrated, and he's quietly becoming one of Portland's most reliable floor spacing options.
We're hesitant to put Scoot in a box as he continues to become a more complete player. But his strengths and weaknesses aren't quite what we anticipated as a prospect entering the league, or even his early career in Portland. Defense, three-point shooting, finishing, and decision-making plagued him as a rookie. Those areas all look improved this season, outside of finishing at the rim.
Regardless of his role, Henderson is playing a style of basketball much more conducive to winning. That's encouraging and makes Portland optimistic about its long-term outlook. But every time we say he deserves a larger role and gets it, he doesn't do enough with it. The key for him lies not only in proving he deserves it, but consistently playing well enough to keep it.