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Blazers Notes: Nori, Henderson, Triano, Future In Portland

By | at July 19, 2026 7:54 am

Scoot Henderson is now playing for his third head coach in less than a year, and Micah Nori wants to make sure the 22-year-old knows what to expect well before the Trail Blazers open training camp. In an interview with Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report (subscription required), Nori discusses his plans to maximize the talents of the fourth-year guard, who has yet to reach the level of stardom that was expected when he was taken with the third pick in the 2023 draft.

“We’ve got to make sure we create space for him,” Nori said. “The thing he can do is attack the paint and get downhill and go where he wants to go. What we have to do is have good spacing, make sure the corners are filled and then we have outlets for him to get to the paint, and if he can’t finish, then the kick-outs are right there for him where he can see. He can go where he wants, and that’s a huge thing in this game.

“After that, it’s helping him with his decision-making and pace. Not slowing him down, but making sure that with the speed he plays with, it’s controlled and he can see exactly what he needs as the defense tells him what to do.”

It could be challenging for a lead guard to earn playing time on a team that just added Ja Morant to a backcourt that also features Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard. But Nori said he can envision using Henderson in an off-ball role and cited the advantage of having multiple players on the court who are experienced decision makers.

“The big thing that’s exciting to be about this group is, they’re all willing passers,” Nori added. “We don’t have guys that are selfish or are just coming down looking for themselves. They’re all looking to make the right play. So I have no problem thinking all these guys are going to be able to play together because they’re willing to pass the ball to each other to make the right play.”

There’s more on the Blazers:

  • Nori spent the past five years as an assistant in Minnesota, which frequently had two big men playing together, but he tells Highkin that he’s more likely to downsize lineups in Portland considering the roster differences. “With the group we do have, we have (Robert Williams) and Donovan (Clingan),” he said, “but there may be times we go the other way and go smaller and have Toumani (Camara) at the five, and even Jrue some at the four, just to have some different looks. But the good thing about this group is, we do have the luxury of playing two bigs.”
  • Paris Basketball reached out to new Trail Blazers assistant Jay Triano about its head coaching vacancy, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (subscription required). Triano committed to joining Nori’s staff earlier this month.
  • Portland officials submitted a draft term sheet to the Blazers this week, outlining the first proposal in negotiations to keep the team in the city, per Wright Gazaway of KATU. The report notes that Mayor Keith Wilson recently accused the team of withholding important information about the project, while commissioner Adam Silver described Moda Center renovation talks as off track. Portland’s City Council has a vote on a tentative term sheet for the project set for August 12.
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