They were believed in operation “Tanking” with the Wizards, but the Blazers are the very good surprise of this month from January to the west. The players of Chauncey Billups remain on six wins in seven matches, and that night, they humiliated the magic with a victory of 29 points (119-90). It is their broader success of the season, and alongside Deandre Ayton, Deni Avdija or Toumani Camara, another young riding, Henderson scoot.
Strolled by Anferne Simmons, the old n ° 2 of the draft progresses at the end of the bench, and over the last ten matches, it runs at 15.6 points on average with 5.5 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and especially a beautiful address: 50% in the Shots, including 44% 3-point. This night, facing the Magic, he was holder for 23 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 interceptions.
“Just being able to play, it's a chance” he answers his performance. “I think I generally played well on both sides of the field. I was focused and ready to defend, accelerate the game, try to take rebounds. It was a point of attention for us, we knew that they were going to be aggressive in the offensive rebound, so we had to be vigilant, place each other and go and get the rebounds while our interiors were fighting below. In attack, it was just a question of putting my teammates in rhythm quickly. I often had the ball, so I could control the game largely, doing what I had to do for the team. »»
Basketball gods watch over young Blazers
As he explains his rise in power on this month of January?
“The main difference is that I take more shots” he continues. “This is really what changes for me: take a little more shots, control what I can control. And it goes by being concentrated defensively, because that's how we save playing time. We must defend, try to do little things, go to the rebound. I am not necessarily the best rebounder, but I try to apply myself on these small details, to put pressure on the wearer of the all-terrain ball. It puts me in rhythm. »»
With Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson at the end of the bench, the Blazers have two jokers capable of bringing between 30 and 40 points each evening. This allows Chauncey Billups to rely on an eight to nine to almost interchangeable players.
“There are a lot of things that come into play. Each of us plays very individually, we are all invested and we make sure that we support each other” he concludes about collective progress. “It is one of the most important aspects on both sides of the field. Then there is our cohesion. It joins the first point a bit, but it's really the way we fight for each other. It doesn't matter if the ball is between or not playing together. And when we play this way, the basketball gods look at us and reward us. »»
| Henderson scoot | Percentage | Rebound | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | Lf | Off | Def | Early | PD | Fte | Int | COP | Ct | Pts |
| 2023-24 | Por | 62 | 29 | 38.5 | 32.5 | 81.9 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 3.1 | 5.4 | 3.1 | 0.8 | 3.4 | 0.2 | 14.0 |
| 2024-25 | Por | 40 | 27 | 43.1 | 35.7 | 76.3 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 5.2 | 2.7 | 1.1 | 2.7 | 0.3 | 12.3 |
| Total | 102 | 28 | 40.0 | 33.6 | 79.7 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 3.1 | 5.3 | 3.0 | 0.9 | 3.1 | 0.2 | 13.3 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = minutes; Shots = successful shots / tempted shots; 3pts = 3-point / 3-point attempted; LF = Successful free throws / tempted free throws; Off = offensive rebound; Def = defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; PD = assists; FTE: Personal faults; Int = interceptions; BP = lost bullets; CT: against; Pts = points.
