The Portland Trail Blazers have added a very interesting player with potential to their roster through the 2023 NBA Draft.
With the No. 3 pick, they took Scooter Henderson, a point guard who spent the previous season with the G League Ignite.
That selection has created an interesting dilemma, as the Blazers are now loaded with Henderson, Damian Lillard, Anfurni Simmons and Shaddon Sharpe in the backcourt.
Portland Backcourt Depth:
damian lillard
scooter henderson
anfernie simmons
shaydon sharpdeep. pic.twitter.com/YHFCnIyGQi
— Statmuse (@statmuse) June 23, 2023
Could drafting Henderson be a prelude or precursor to the Lillard trade?
Lillard has certainly been mentioned in trade rumors recently, and the team most linked to him is the Miami Heat, who reached the NBA Finals for the second time in four seasons, but lost to the Denver Nuggets.
He is one of the best guards in the business in terms of scoring and facilitating, and Miami may need him to win it all.
He certainly deserves a real shot at the world championship, and it has become clear that he will not get that shot in Portland, a team that has reached the Western Conference Finals only once since 2000.
Henderson is a very explosive true point guard, and at 6-foot-2 inches tall, his athleticism has been compared to Russell Westbrook and Ja Morant.
He is not a good 3-point shooter, but he can both score and assist, and he averaged 16.5 points and 6.5 assists per game in the G League last season.
If Lillard does indeed end up being traded soon, the Blazers will have a very good starting backcourt in Henderson and Simmons to build on immediately.
next:
Analyst details what kind of contract Jeremy Grant could be asking for this offseason