Portland Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson arguably played the best game of his NBA career in Game 2 against the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday. Henderson dazzled with 31 points behind 11-for-17 shooting, including 5-for-9 from deep, to lead the Blazers to a 106-103 upset of the second-seeded team in the Western Conference playoffs.
After the game, Henderson responded when asked about his performance in the Blazers’ pivotal win:
“Basketball gods always gonna repay the ones that play the game right.”
Henderson’s words prompted reactions from fans. One fan wrote:
“Playing alongside an IDF soldier talkin abt Gods repaying them.”
Another fan added:
“That’s 100% a shot at Wemby’s ‘ethical’ comments from IST.”
One more fan continued:
“Saying this with DENI AVDIJA on ur team is hilarious.”
Another fan commented:
“Bro, can’t we just assume he’s talking about himself here? I’m happy for the dude.”
One fan tweeted:
“He who thought he would be the first pick fell to 3rd choice.. Clown.”
Some of the comments about Henderson dragged his Israeli teammate, Deni Avdija, who served in the IDF as a mandatory requirement. Although the NBA star had a non-combat role, some fans often mention his stint in the Israeli military, which has been accused of genocide and other humanitarian crimes in Gaza and Lebanon.
A few of the fans also thought Scoot Henderson’s comment was a subtle jab at Victor Wembanyama, the NBA’s biggest proponent of “ethical” basketball.
While fans have different interpretations of Henderson’s comments, the combo guard could be just happy he is playing elite basketball again. The No. 3 pick of the highly touted 2023 NBA draft, headed by Wembanyama, has been hounded by consistency and health issues.
In the series against Wembanyama and Co., Henderson might have turned a corner, a reason for his comment.
Blazers Badly Needed Scoot Henderson To Step Up
The San Antonio Spurs lost Victor Wembanyama to a concussion early in the second quarter, but the home team still looked poised to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Deni Avdija couldn’t replicate his sizzling Game 1 display due to the Spurs’ stifling defense.
Scoot Henderson gave his team a much-needed lift in front of a raucous pro-Spurs crowd at the Frost Bank Center.
Henderson picked up the scoring slack from Avdija, who was limited to 14 points on 5-for-13 shooting. The athletic guard also displayed poise in helping run the offense and do his part on the defensive end.
Whether Wemby returns or not, the Blazers need Henderson to sustain his play for Portland to have a chance of advancing to the next round.
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