Portland Trail Blazers star point guard Scoot Henderson found himself in a mild car accident on Thursday. This incident took place just before the club's 116 - 88 Friday loss to the Houston Rockets. Due to a back strain, he will be absent from the club's rematch with Houston on Saturday. Aaron J. Fentress of The Oregonian reported this news.
Impact on the Trail Blazers
Without Henderson's presence on Friday against the Houston Rockets, the Trail Blazers' bench scoring took a hit. In 15 healthy bouts, the G League Ignite product was averaging 11.3 points on shooting splits of.406/.285/.816, along with 5.2 assists, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per night. However, as Henderson was sidelined, reserve wings Deni Avdija and Kris Murray stepped up. They combined to score 23 points on 8 - of - 17 shooting from the field and 5 - of - 7 shooting from the charity stripe.The 6 - 10 Trail Blazers are now aiming to secure a win against the 12 - 5 Rockets and end their two - game losing streak. But without Henderson or injured starting center Deandre Ayton, this task seems quite challenging.Performance of Houston Players
Veteran Houston small forward Dillon Brooks led the way against Portland. He scored a game - high 28 points on 10 - of - 15 shooting from the floor (6 - of - 8 from long range) and 2 - of - 4 shooting from the charity stripe. He also pulled down six rebounds and dished out one assist in just 24:35. Reserve forward Tari Eason also made an impact, scoring 22 points on 8 - of - 14 shooting from the field and 5 - of - 5 shooting from the foul line. He added eight rebounds, two assists, and a pair of steals.Trail Blazers' Struggles
On the Trail Blazers' side, no player scored over 13 points or played over 27 minutes. The game quickly got out of their control, and head coach Chauncey Billups brought in most of his reserves in the late third quarter, leaving substitute starting center Donovan Clingan in. Power forward Jerami Grant had an underwhelming game, scoring just five points in 26:52 of action. His performance is hurting his trade value with such lackluster outings.Saturday's rematch between the Trail Blazers and Rockets tips off at 5 p.m. PT in the Toyota Center.More Trail Blazers: Portland Moves Jerami Grant, Land $16M Scoring Wing and Picks in Massive Trade Proposal