The Portland Trail Blazers still have to decide on Scoot Henderson's contract going forward, as he's currently eligible for a rookie-scale extension leading up to the start of the 2026-27 season. Maybe they let him enter restricted free agency, making this even more of a prove-it year. Regardless, it's clear Henderson has another chance to prove that he's the guard of the future for this young team.
It wasn't clear that this would be the case, as many viewed his make-or-break season as last year. But perhaps Shaedon Sharpe's injury opened the door for Henderson to prove himself.
Ironically, Henderson seizing that opportunity could be the very thing that pushes Portland to move on from Sharpe instead.
Shaedon Sharpe's injury could be the final nail in his Blazers tenure
Unfortunately, the Blazers' guard suffered a torn meniscus and will now be re-evaluated in six months. That puts a return date potentially around late February to early March, or likely right around All-Star Weekend.
Could that be a close enough return date for a team to pull the trigger on Sharpe at February's trade deadline?
Portland has made it clear they are open to star hunting under new owner Tom Dundon. That's not going to come cheap, likely costing at least one of their up-and-coming guards between Sharpe and Henderson (in addition to draft capital) as part of a package.
Sharpe may have inked that four-year, $90 million extension to stay in Rip City before the start of the 2025-26 season. However, his future has to be at least somewhat in doubt.
He's now fallen out of the rotations for two consecutive head coaches, between Chauncey Billups' midseason benching because of his poor defense and Tiago Splitter's more recent benching in their first-round playoff series loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
Sharpe played just 13.4 minutes per game in that five-game stretch against the Spurs. Wasn't the point of making the playoffs and sacrificing the lottery-protected pick to the Chicago Bulls in a strong draft class to gain valuable playoff experience for your young core?
Or maybe they did achieve just that, and don't consider Sharpe to be a key piece of that core? It makes you wonder, especially since Sharpe added that Splitter told him the reasoning behind the decision, though declined to share it with the media.
Things were potentially looking brighter with yet another chance in first-year head coach Micah Nori. However, the Blazers' offseason moves certainly didn't put Sharpe in a position to succeed as a focal point. If anything, he was the worst fit on a team suddenly full of playmakers. The two things they desperately need now are shooting and defense, two areas Sharpe comes up short as a one-dimensional guard.
There's still plenty of time to improve those aspects of his game at just 23. And the upside remains tantalizing, as you can't replicate Sharpe's physical tools. But question marks already surrounded whether that upside needed to be unlocked elsewhere. Between the playoff benching and Portland's designed backcourt logjam, Sharpe's future is even more uncertain.
Ultimately, it could depend on how the Blazers' backcourt meshes together to start the season. Nori will have a difficult choice in deciding who to start between Damian Lillard, Ja Morant, and Jrue Holiday. Holiday's versatility is the key to making it all work, especially in Sharpe's absence as they look for more shooting guard/wing help.
But should this messy backcourt actually turn out to be a working formula, it's increasingly difficult for Sharpe to climb his way back into this young core. You have to think Portland will look for ways to upgrade their current roster if they're in the playoff conversation come February. If Sharpe isn't a part of that success, it suddenly becomes much easier to move on from the former top ten pick to accelerate this rebuild.
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