Start, Bench, Cut with recent No. 3 picks: Mobley, Smith, Scoot

Bench Scoot Henderson

The Portland Trail Blazers took advantage of a mistake by the Charlotte Hornets, who valued their team needs too highly over the talent of the players available in the NBA Draft. It’s an interesting turnaround from when the Blazers once made that same error in 1984, passing on Michael Jordan because they already had a talented shooting guard on the roster, one Clyde Drexler.

This time around it was the Charlotte Hornets drafting Brandon Miller for fit over need, and Scoot Henderson falling to the Blazers at No. 3. Henderson played the last two seasons at G League Ignite, flashing incredible athleticism, ball-handling, playmaking and scoring despite being one of the youngest players in the G League.

In fact, outside of shooting, Henderson has everything you would want in a point guard prospect, and he is confident in his jumper even if the accuracy still needs to catch up. Odds are, Henderson will not simply be an All-Star, he will be a perennial All-NBA guard who leads a new chapter of success in Portland.

Why does he get benched for Evan Mobley, then? It’s a very difficult decision, but the reality is that Mobley has already proven he is an amazing talent. Henderson is probably going to be awesome, but there’s a chance he’s not; that has to be factored in to some extent. Additionally, Mobley has two years of reps under his belt and is ready to contribute more now than Henderson is to a winning team. Both are incredible talents, and watching who ends up the best will be fun for all fans of the NBA.