NBA All-Star Weekend: Although Scoot Henderson didn’t make a formal debut, it looks like he might be making an appearance soon.

NBA All-Star Weekend: Although Scoot Henderson didn’t make a formal debut, it looks like he might be making an appearance soon.

INDIANAPOLIS: “My mindset is to come out and hoop and just be myself.”

Just hours before the NBA’s Rising Stars Challenge, there was rookie Scoot Henderson of the Portland Trail Blazers. The four-team mini tournament for the evening began with him coming out, hooping, and scoring 10 points in a 40-35 loss. It was a microcosm of Henderson’s modest debut season, which has once again been eclipsed by colleagues.

Amidst the crowd of Tyrese Haliburton shirts on the snow-covered streets of Indianapolis, a handful of jerseys featuring Victor Wembanyama’s No. 1—corresponding with his pick in the 2023 NBA draft—were visible. The talk of first-year players has centered around his competition for Rookie of the Year against Chet Holmgren, and they were the major event on Friday.

Henderson is now somewhere behind other first-round selections Jaime Jaquez Jr., Dereck Lively II, Keyonte George, and Brandin Podziemski in the rookie rankings due to Brandon Miller’s recent ascent.

Henderson responded, “I like it,” when asked about the other rookie class members’ accomplishments this year. I will always be a loving person. Regardless of how attractive someone may seem to me, I will never hit on them. I simply strive to return the love and acknowledge that we are all in this together. It’s nice to watch how everyone else has grown.

As the sole performance in town for a single night, they were all assembled here to kick off the All-Star Weekend celebrations. Henderson was given the chance to not only prove he belonged on stage but also to reaffirm his status as a top student in the class of 2024 by showing up to hoop and simply be himself.

Henderson’s coming out party was not on Friday, but he feels as though he is getting closer to that day.

“I believe the majority of it is minor details,” he said to Yahoo Sports. “It’s about keeping up with the game, specific scenarios — the entire game.” You must watch the entire game as a point guard. I have to see to it that the large guy is okay. I believe it’s little things like that that will help me succeed as a point guard in this league.”

Henderson was once without a doubt the best American talent available in the draft. Henderson was passed up in favor of Wembanyama and Miller, and the Blazers were so sure of the selection that they moved legendary player Damian Lillard to create space for their future point guard. Henderson, a 6-foot-3, 200-pound brick of a young guy who is inventive and explosive, is made to be a hooper.