Season In Review: Scoot Henderson

"First and foremost, I want to say that I’m blessed to be here in Portland… They accepted me and it’s been fun to play here with the fans and even outside the court with everybody else. I’m just repping the Portland jersey, that red, white and black. It’s been a year full of experiences, learning experiences. It’s been fun though, I can say at least I have the best job in the world, and that’s being able to come here and do my job at a high level." -- Scoot Henderson

GP: 62 (32 starts) | MIN: 28.5 | PTS: 14.0 | FG%: 38.5 | 3P%: 32.5 | FT%: 81.9
EFG%: 44 | TS%: 48.9 | REB: 3.1 | AST: 5.4 | BLK: 0.2 | STL: 0.8 | TO: 3.4

According to Sportrac, Scoot Henderson, who is on a rookie scale contract after being selected with the third overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft, has a base salary of $10,259,160 for the 2024-25 season. His contract has a team option for the 2025-26 season.

Scoot Henderson, through no fault of his own, had a difficult start to his rookie season.

The 6-3 guard, selected by the Trail Blazers with the third overall pick of the 2023 Draft, suffered a shoulder injury three quarters into his first game at Summer League, ending his on-court time in Las Vegas and greatly diminishing his opportunity to participate in workouts during the run up to his rookie season. Then Anfernee Simons got hurt in the first game of the season, which opened up minutes for Henderson, but also took away a valuable on-court mentor, at least for a few months. Then Henderson suffered an ankle injury five games into the season that would cause him to miss the next nine games.

So through the most formative months of his rookie season, Scoot was either sidelined or thrust into situations in which he was yet ready. And that’s to say nothing of the pressure that comes with replacing a franchise icon.

But through it all, Scoot never lost faith. He never got down on himself, always showed up ready to work, addressed the areas in which he was deficient and was an enthusiastic supporter of his teammates. Things like shooting mechanics, finishing at the rim and change of pace and be developed -- all areas in which he made significant improvement over the course of his first season -- but confidence has to come from within, and when it comes to that skill, Scoot needs no additional reps.

And because of that confidence, which always comes across as assured but never haughty, Henderson was able to endure those difficult first days to finish his rookie season with considerable momentum. He played his best basketball in the last two months of the season while improving his shooting percentage and being more careful with the ball. He also played considerable minutes alongside Deandre Ayton since the All-Star break, setting an important foundation for their future partnership both on and off the court.

It is said that it’s not how you start that is important, but how you finish. So while Scoot’s rookie season might not have started off as smoothly as anyone would hope, the finish certainly gave ample cause to be optimistic about his future and that of the Trail Blazers.

Scoot’s 22-points on 56 percent shooting from the field and 57 percent shooting from three and the 10 assists he handed out in Portland’s 89-86 victory versus the Hornets in Charlotte on April 3 is right up there, but as far as his best overall game, I’m going with his 33-point, 9-assist, 7-rebound, three-steal effort in 40 minutes in a 127-116 loss to the Suns at Moda Center on January 14. The Blazers might have lost, but the Suns had to earn it in the fourth quarter, which is probably a better indication of quality than a late-season win versus the Hornets.