The long wait appears to be over. Portland Trail Blazers Head Coach Tiago Splitter has announced that injured point guard Scoot Henderson is ready to play for the first time this season. Henderson will debut in Portland’s game on Friday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Henderson tore his left hamstring in a preseason workout towards the end of September, 2025. Initially, it was reported that he would be out 4-8 weeks. On November 21, the Blazers indicated that Henderson would be re-evaluated two to four weeks later. We are now in February 2026, fully 132 days from when the injury was announced.
The Blazers have clearly taken every precaution in getting Henderson ready for NBA basketball, with good reason. [A study](https://www.mltj.online/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Eftekhari.pdf#:~:text=Of%20the%20players%20injured%2C%20171%20players%20suffered,Distribution%20of%20hamstring%20injuries%20by%20player%20age.) from A. Eftekhari, C. Cogan, N. Pandya and B. Feeley indicated that an astounding 81.4% of players with hamstring injuries in the NBA between 2016-2021 suffered reinjury.
Henderson averaged 12.7 points, 5.1 assists and 3 rebounds per game, shooting 41.9% from the field and 35.4% from the field in 66 games during the 2024-25 season. He’ll have 34 games left, plus the potential post-season, to make his mark his mark this year. The Blazers have Henderson under contract through the 2026-27 season, making him eligible for a contract extension before the 2026-27 season.
The Blazers have back-to-back home games against the Grizzlies on Friday and Saturday, followed by a tilt against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, February 9, also at home. While Coach Splitter has indicated that Henderson will play on Friday, it’s unclear whether he will be on a minutes restriction or whether he’ll be available for the second game of the back-to-back.