The Portland Trail Blazers made a loud move by bringing in Ja Morant, but the quieter takeaway may be even bigger: Scoot Henderson no longer looks like the point guard Portland is building around.
That matters because Henderson was already drifting toward trade chatter before the Morant deal ever happened. With his looming extension and restricted free agency situation hanging over the roster, his future in Portland was never exactly settled. Now, with Morant in the mix, Henderson looks even more available than he did before.
On a recent episode of the Game Theory Podcast, The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie pointed to several possible landing spots for Henderson, including the Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies, Golden State Warriors, and Detroit Pistons. But the New Orleans Pelicans stand out as another logical fit, especially for a team that keeps adding young talent while still needing more clarity in the backcourt.
Portland also has the kind of pieces New Orleans could want. The Blazers have plenty of bigs to include in a deal, which is no small thing for a Pelicans team whose current starting center listed on ESPN is Herb Jones, a 6-foot-7, 206-pound wing.
New Orleans has also shown a willingness to place a high price tag on its own assets despite coming off a 26-win season, and that could make talks tricky. Joe Cronin has a reputation as a firm negotiator too, so neither side looks like it would blink easily.
Even so, the fit makes sense. The Pelicans need a lead guard and help in the frontcourt, while Portland has already shown interest in Trey Murphy III going back to February’s trade deadline. That’s where the real conversation starts.
Murphy could be the kind of wing Portland has been missing. He would give the Blazers another versatile defender alongside Toumani Camara and Deni Avdija, and he’d bring the shooting this roster has lacked throughout the rebuild. That need only feels sharper after Portland chose to add Morant, a paint-oriented guard who doesn’t solve the spacing issue.
Murphy would also bring something else Portland badly needs: legitimate co-star potential next to Avdija. The Blazers need more star power to keep pace in the Western Conference, and while Morant added name value, the fit is imperfect. The upside of that move is that Portland still kept its future assets intact, which leaves room for a bigger upgrade down the road.
For now, though, nothing suggests a Murphy deal is imminent. New Orleans has valued its pieces highly, and it would be surprising if something materialized before the start of the 2026-27 season. Portland, meanwhile, appears ready to enter the season with its backcourt mess still unresolved, which also signals that Jrue Holiday is not on the block.
That could leave both teams waiting until February to get a clearer picture. The Pelicans may eventually decide their young core doesn’t have a contender ceiling and be more willing to move Murphy for future assets. Portland, meanwhile, can keep sorting through its backcourt logjam and decide which pieces actually fit.
The fact that the Blazers are willing to move forward with Holiday, Damian Lillard, and Ja Morant suggests Henderson could be the odd man out. If that happens, a package built around Henderson, salary filler, and draft picks for Murphy is the kind of framework Cronin should already have in the back of his mind.
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Blazers Built A Dangerous Offense But One Flaw Could Decide Everything
Portland enters the 2026-27 season with an offense that could make life miserable for opponents, built around Ja Morant, Damian Lillard and Deni Avdija as central creators. The Blazers also have a new voice guiding the group, with Micah Nori stepping in to steer a roster that should be capable of putting up points in bunches and keeping the team in the playoff conversation.
The catch is on the other end, where a smaller guard rotation could leave Portland exposed possession after possession. That concern is why the Blazers are being projected more as a team in the 7-10 range in the Western Conference than as a true West heavyweight, even if the talent is enough to keep them in the play-in mix. [Read more 🡒]