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The third-year guard didn’t puff out his chest about his stellar stats or the fact he was the decisive spark in Portland’s 131-111 no-frills win over the Indiana Pacers. He also didn’t exhale some big sigh of relief given the performance came on the heels of highly scrutinized struggles following his return from a hamstring tear that forced him out of the season’s first 51 games. “Nah,” said Henderson when asked if there was anything relieving or gratifying about his play considering his recent struggles. “ … That’s just me as a person, man. If shit don’t go right, I’m not tripping. I never get too high, I never get too low.”
An interesting thing happened while Scoot Henderson recovered: He recommitted to his faith. He says he has long been spiritual, and a devoted Christian. But those around him say they noticed a change this fall and winter. In previous years, Henderson would sporadically attend the pregame chapel sessions 60 minutes before tipoff. Now, Henderson estimates he has attended 80-85 percent of the sessions.
Henderson turned 22 on Tuesday, and his special day was greeted by a telephone call from his home state of Georgia. It was his grandmother, Essie, whom his family calls “Mom,” and she delivered a divine message. “It was my first call on my birthday,” Henderson said. “And she said: ‘He wakes you up every day, and He gives you the energy to do everything you are capable of.'” When Henderson took the postgame podium and addressed the media, he nearly recited his grandmother’s message word for word. “Like I keep saying, I’m blessed to be where I’m at right now. He wakes me up every day to give me the strength to move on,” Henderson said.
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He said the hardest part about his four-month recovery was “missing out on the game that I love.” When asked about the moments in Friday’s game that filled that void, the moments that restored that love, he didn’t mention his two 3-pointers, or his driving dunk or one of his nine assists. He brought up the collisions, the scraps, the fighting for loose balls. “The physicality of it, the getting a stop … getting a steal,” Henderson said. “But there is also finding an open guy at the right moment, and just making plays … basketball is really beautiful when you play it right. When you can find that beauty at a consistent pace, at a high level … man, it’s a beautiful sport. I love it.”
Trail Blazers PR: INJURY UPDATE: Deni Avdija and Scoot Henderson are OUT for tonight’s game vs. PHX.
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Joe Freeman: Injury notes tonight for the Blazers, according to Tiago Splitter: •Blake Wesley will return tonight vs. the Cavaliers, playing in his first game since Halloween. •Deni Avdija is expected to play. •Scoot Henderson should make his season-debut "very, very soon."
Sean Highkin: Scoot Henderson said today at practice that he feels “amazing” and today he went through everything and felt physically like he could keep going. Wouldn’t say whether he’s going to play tomorrow. That’s up to the medical staff.
Sean Highkin: Splitter on Scoot: "He's progressing. Everybody's a little frustrated, but it's a tough injury where people tend to have a second injury. So we've got to be careful with him. He's a big part of our franchise, so we've got to protect him. He's feeling better day by day."
