Is it time to start to be worried about Scoot being a bust?

[DeBlazerRiddem]

If he puts up many more 20 point and 10 assist nights its gonna answer a lot of critics.

[monopoman]

His monthly splits are trending in the right direction:

October (4 games): 8.3 PTS, 2.8 REB, 4.0 AST, 4.3 TOV, 0.3 BLK, 4.5 PF on 0.373 TS
November (5 games): 8.4 PPG, 2.2 REB, 4.6 AST, 3.0 TOV, 0.0 BLK, 3.6 PF on 0.425 TS
December (5 games): 15.6 PPG, 3.2 REB, 5.2 AST, 2.8 TOV, 0.4 BLK, 4.0 PF on 0.468 TS

He's still getting acclimated to the NBA but the signs of improvement are already there.

Scoot finished December with 13 games played posting 14.9 PPG, 3.1 REB, 5.0 AST, 2.8 TOV, 0.3 BLK, 3.7 PF on 0.491 TS.

I'd like to see his shooting efficiency creep up toward 53% and his AST/TO ratio climb above 2, but his improvement throughout the season has been notable.

Biggest positive here is the shooting and also the TOV reduction he has went from 4.3 TOV to 2.8 in the span of 10 games. At the same time he also has increased his assist numbers so that AST per TOV has improved heavily.

The shooting is also very nice to see but I really want to see him master the PG position in general.

[DC_Melo]

His monthly splits are trending in the right direction:

October (4 games): 8.3 PTS, 2.8 REB, 4.0 AST, 4.3 TOV, 0.3 BLK, 4.5 PF on 0.373 TS
November (5 games): 8.4 PPG, 2.2 REB, 4.6 AST, 3.0 TOV, 0.0 BLK, 3.6 PF on 0.425 TS
December (5 games): 15.6 PPG, 3.2 REB, 5.2 AST, 2.8 TOV, 0.4 BLK, 4.0 PF on 0.468 TS

He's still getting acclimated to the NBA but the signs of improvement are already there.

Scoot finished December with 13 games played posting 14.9 PPG, 3.1 REB, 5.0 AST, 2.8 TOV, 0.3 BLK, 3.7 PF on 0.491 TS.

I'd like to see his shooting efficiency creep up toward 53% and his AST/TO ratio climb above 2, but his improvement throughout the season has been notable.

Biggest positive here is the shooting and also the TOV reduction he has went from 4.3 TOV to 2.8 in the span of 10 games. At the same time he also has increased his assist numbers so that AST per TOV has improved heavily.

The shooting is also very nice to see but I really want to see him master the PG position in general.

This is a nice improvement to see. It’s been a frustrating year with scoot. I was in Oregon over the holidays and took my son to Moda to watch the game we lost to the spurs… wooof… he looked bad lol. He’s still very reactive out there, unlike in G-league where he was much more proactive, and his defenders read his intentions pretty easily.

I thought he would be more NBA ready, but he still looks a step behind out there. But I agree the TO/AST ratio improving is nice to see. It shows signs that he is adjusting to the game speed. I think it’s fair to say he looked 2 steps behind at the start of the year, so him only being a step behind now as a good sign. He’s also improved month over month, let’s see if he can keep that up in January. He’ll be able to use athleticism much more effectively once his reads, reflexes, and instincts are at NBA speed.

He’s still too young to buy a beer and has shown steady improvement. I think it’s far too early to worry about labels. It’s tough to watch him go through these growing pains, but so far he has been growing. I’ll be much more concerned if the improvement hits a wall. At his age, year over year improvement will be the biggest indicator of future success.

[Blazinaway]

Scoot finished December with 13 games played posting 14.9 PPG, 3.1 REB, 5.0 AST, 2.8 TOV, 0.3 BLK, 3.7 PF on 0.491 TS.

I'd like to see his shooting efficiency creep up toward 53% and his AST/TO ratio climb above 2, but his improvement throughout the season has been notable.

Biggest positive here is the shooting and also the TOV reduction he has went from 4.3 TOV to 2.8 in the span of 10 games. At the same time he also has increased his assist numbers so that AST per TOV has improved heavily.

The shooting is also very nice to see but I really want to see him master the PG position in general.

This is a nice improvement to see. It’s been a frustrating year with scoot. I was in Oregon over the holidays and took my son to Moda to watch the game we lost to the spurs… wooof… he looked bad lol. He’s still very reactive out there, unlike in G-league where he was much more proactive, and his defenders read his intentions pretty easily.

I thought he would be more NBA ready, but he still looks a step behind out there. But I agree the TO/AST ratio improving is nice to see. It shows signs that he is adjusting to the game speed. I think it’s fair to say he looked 2 steps behind at the start of the year, so him only being a step behind now as a good sign. He’s also improved month over month, let’s see if he can keep that up in January. He’ll be able to use athleticism much more effectively once his reads, reflexes, and instincts are at NBA speed.

He’s still too young to buy a beer and has shown steady improvement. I think it’s far too early to worry about labels. It’s tough to watch him go through these growing pains, but so far he has been growing. I’ll be much more concerned if the improvement hits a wall. At his age, year over year improvement will be the biggest indicator of future success.

For me it would be tough to watch if he wasn't improving, but he's shown me a lot after his horrid start, staying positive and willing to learn and go through the process and getting better week after week, not sure how good he's going to be but "solid starter" is sorta what I am expecting as a minimum

[Shem]

Watch on YouTube

[DusterBuster]

I’m very happy to be eating crow. Like I said, I wanted to be shown something, anything, from Scoot that was special and we’re starting to see it now.

His shot has went from looking almost completely broken to pretty respectable with a nice midrange touch and actually his 3pt shot isn’t as nonexistent as reported. Most impressive has been his speed and ability to get to the rim with ease. You’re really starting to see some of those Russ and DRose comps with that part of his game. He’s also reading defenses much faster. He’s impressed me with how far he’s come in a relatively short period of time.

[The Sebastian Express]

He just needs reps. Not easy coming in as the third pick and having two other point guards on the roster who need the ball in their hands. He's done so well, hasn't ever pouted, puts in the work, does whatever is asked of him. And has such positive energy and encouragement. To see that out of a (Just turned twenty today) young kid is imo incredibly important.

If nothing else it's encouraging him to move off the ball which is important for future development. For all we loved of Dame, he was not good at moving off the ball.

[m0ng0]

Honestly i am more concerned about Sharpe at this point.

[red_power]

He just needs reps. Not easy coming in as the third pick and having two other point guards on the roster who need the ball in their hands.

I think it's not a problem but rather an opposite. Scoot clearly isn't comfortable being a primary ballhandler and having Ant or Brogdon around actually helps him. At this point he's more like Bledsoe or an old Jason Kidd kind of player, I mean a severely undersized wingman.
But at least he managed to become a serviceable player and that's an encouraging sign.

[DC_Melo]

Scoot is starting to really make some nice strides, putting together his first real stretch of consecutive strong games. He’s aware of it too… calling it “stacking good days”. Here’s a link to an article about it in The Oregonian:

https://www.oregonlive.com/blazers/2024/02/trail-blazers-scoot-henderson-continues-stacking-days.html?outputType=amp

One thing Billups mentioned in the article was how Scoot’s decisiveness was key in his last 30 point game. I can’t believe I’m saying this… but I agree with Chauncey.

Scoot has looked a step or two slow all year. Not athletically as much as mentally (telegraphing passes, dribbling into help defenders, taking awkward shots at the rim against collapsing bigs, etc…). He’s clearly still processing the game and adjusting to how fast the NBA is played, especially by more experienced players who are used to the speed at which decisions are made at that level.

Given that he’s a PG tasked with running an NBA offense, it’s understandable this will be a major learning curve area. It’s very nice to see that he seems to be adjusting to the pace of the game. He will look like a whole different player when he instinctively anticipates what to do versus reacting to what to do.

I think the kid is gonna be just fine in the long run.

[Norm2953]

One has to think keeping Brogdon around to help Scoot's development might be in the best long
term interests of Portland as opposed to moving him for more 2024 picks.

Scoot's time will come towards the end of the season and in the summer for he missed last summer after
getting hurt in his only summer league game.

[kdawg32086]

Scoot and Shaedon as a starting backcourt, with Simons off the bench as a Jamal Crawford type bench scorer would be very fun to watch over the coming years.

[DeBlazerRiddem]

Scoot and Shaedon as a starting backcourt, with Simons off the bench as a Jamal Crawford type bench scorer would be very fun to watch over the coming years.

Simons is clearly better than both those guys, and probably will be a for a few years if not longer.

[PDXKnight]

Scoot and Shaedon as a starting backcourt, with Simons off the bench as a Jamal Crawford type bench scorer would be very fun to watch over the coming years.

Simons is clearly better than both those guys, and probably will be a for a few years if not longer.

depends how you look at it, to me scoot is our best on ball defender of the 3 gotf which might bridge that edge a bit that ant has as a scorer especially if scoots scoring becomes more consistent as well in a year or two. Even if scoots at, say 23 ppg/8 apg vs ant at 28 ppg/3 apg in a couple seasons that defensive impact would make him the more intriguing player to start moving forward unless we just start scoot/ant/sharpe all together (barf more small ball)

[PDXKnight]

One has to think keeping Brogdon around to help Scoot's development might be in the best long
term interests of Portland as opposed to moving him for more 2024 picks.

Scoot's time will come towards the end of the season and in the summer for he missed last summer after
getting hurt in his only summer league game.

I do like brogdan as a mentor but i suppose it depends on what we can land in return. an unprotected first a few years out would be hard to turn down, lotto protected would be a lot easier

[Norm2953]

One has to think keeping Brogdon around to help Scoot's development might be in the best long
term interests of Portland as opposed to moving him for more 2024 picks.

Scoot's time will come towards the end of the season and in the summer for he missed last summer after
getting hurt in his only summer league game.

I do like brogdan as a mentor but i suppose it depends on what we can land in return. an unprotected first a few years out would be hard to turn down, lotto protected would be a lot easier

His contract runs through next season and he would be a useful expiring contract

Sure, an unprotected FRP would be nice but he's likely headed for a contender, which means that FRP is
likely going to in the 20's and likely in the mediocre 2024 draft. If the trade offers are mediocre, I'd likely
we prefer we keep him

[PDXKnight]

One has to think keeping Brogdon around to help Scoot's development might be in the best long
term interests of Portland as opposed to moving him for more 2024 picks.

Scoot's time will come towards the end of the season and in the summer for he missed last summer after
getting hurt in his only summer league game.

I do like brogdan as a mentor but i suppose it depends on what we can land in return. an unprotected first a few years out would be hard to turn down, lotto protected would be a lot easier

His contract runs through next season and he would be a useful expiring contract

Sure, an unprotected FRP would be nice but he's likely headed for a contender, which means that FRP is
likely going to in the 20's and likely in the mediocre 2024 draft. If the trade offers are mediocre, I'd likely
we prefer we keep him

You never know what will happen over 3-6 years, a future unprotected would seem to hold more value than a 24 in this case

[DusterBuster]

Scoot and Shaedon as a starting backcourt, with Simons off the bench as a Jamal Crawford type bench scorer would be very fun to watch over the coming years.

Simons is clearly better than both those guys, and probably will be a for a few years if not longer.

Yeah, the idea of Simons ever being brought off the bench as a super 6th man is just not realistic.

[Dame Lizard]

One has to think keeping Brogdon around to help Scoot's development might be in the best long
term interests of Portland as opposed to moving him for more 2024 picks.

Scoot's time will come towards the end of the season and in the summer for he missed last summer after
getting hurt in his only summer league game.

I do like brogdan as a mentor but i suppose it depends on what we can land in return. an unprotected first a few years out would be hard to turn down, lotto protected would be a lot easier

His contract runs through next season and he would be a useful expiring contract

Sure, an unprotected FRP would be nice but he's likely headed for a contender, which means that FRP is
likely going to in the 20's and likely in the mediocre 2024 draft. If the trade offers are mediocre, I'd likely
we prefer we keep him

I'd rather we trade him. He wins us too many games and there won't be enough backcourt minutes when Shaedon returns. I don't want Shaedon playing SF...

Plus, I'd rather swing for the fences on a #20 pick and hope for the best than retain a really good vet whose window doesn't align with ours.

[DusterBuster]

I do like brogdan as a mentor but i suppose it depends on what we can land in return. an unprotected first a few years out would be hard to turn down, lotto protected would be a lot easier

His contract runs through next season and he would be a useful expiring contract

Sure, an unprotected FRP would be nice but he's likely headed for a contender, which means that FRP is
likely going to in the 20's and likely in the mediocre 2024 draft. If the trade offers are mediocre, I'd likely
we prefer we keep him

I'd rather we trade him. He wins us too many games and there won't be enough backcourt minutes when Shaedon returns. I don't want Shaedon playing SF...

Plus, I'd rather swing for the fences on a #20 pick and hope for the best than retain a really good vet whose window doesn't align with ours.

The Blazers have 15 wins out of 50 games... He's in no way shape or form winning the Blazers too many games lol.

I'm in agreement that Brogdon isn't a long-term fit, but I think they'd be better served finding a suitor for him in the summer than at this deadline.