In a Blazers-Kings preview, Austin White highlights Portland’s shooting, Scoot Henderson’s control and the team’s rebounding needs.
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Portland’s first road game of the season comes against the Sacramento Kings, and in a preview Austin White listed three areas he’ll be watching: shooting consistency, Scoot Henderson’s play off the bench and how the Blazers handle rebounding.
On shooting, White points to Portland’s season-opening performance versus Phoenix, when the Blazers made 40% of their 3-pointers and the starters went 16-for-28 from beyond the arc for 57.1%. He said he doesn’t expect the same result nightly, but added that hitting closer to 40% would change Portland’s offensive dynamic.
White also focused on Henderson’s balance after his season opener, noting he scored 15 points off the bench but also had four turnovers in 19 minutes with one assist. White said the explosiveness is welcome, but that a cleaner game from Henderson will matter more when games tighten late.
The final focus is rebounding, after Portland grabbed 56 rebounds against Phoenix in its opener. White noted that Houston led the league last season with 48.1 rebounds per game and said Portland will be tested by Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis, who recorded 18 rebounds in a season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
In White’s preview, he said Donovan Clingan had 10 rebounds against Phoenix and Robert Williams also had 10 from the bench, but that Toumani Camara had two boards and Portland will need more to counter Sabonis at the glass.
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