NBA draft combine: Where will Scoot Henderson and Brandon Miller go?

CHICAGO — When Tuesday’s NBA draft lottery decided the order that teams will draft come June 22, it changed some of the conversation at the combine.

Of course everyone knows that consensus top prospect Victor Wembanyama will be taken No. 1 overall by the San Antonio Spurs, but after that things aren’t as certain.

Where will Scoot go?

Prior to Tuesday, you would have been hard-pressed to find anyone who thought G League Ignite star Scoot Henderson would not be the No. 2 pick. But, when the Charlotte Hornets were awarded the No. 2 pick, the conversation shifted.

The Hornets already have LaMelo Ball as their primary ball-handler. Charlotte is in need of star talent outside of the point guard position, not to load up on more of the same. But then Portland lucked out in the lottery moving up to the No. 3 pick.

During the Trail Blazers exit interviews, Damian Lillard said he wasn’t interested in building the team through the draft and continuing to work through development rather than winning. Also, Lillard has four more years on his deal and working with an additional smaller backcourt guard has not worked for the Blazers.

Does that mean that Henderson could potentially fall all the way to the fourth pick in the draft?

Many believe that the Blazers are more likely to trade the No. 3 pick to a team that will want Henderson in exchange for a more experienced player who could help Portland win now. That seems like the course of action that makes the most sense for the Blazers, unless they decide to completely change course and move away from Lillard, or if they believe Henderson, who said this week that he’s certain he could play alongside Lillard.

Of course, Henderson also said that he believes he has the ability to be the No. 1 overall pick when speaking with reporters at the combine this week. Sure, if this was any other year, but respectfully, no one is passing on Wembanyama.

No matter what though, this whole thing leads us back to the No. 2 pick.

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Brandon Miller

Alabama’s star forward is an incredible athlete with great size, defensive versatility and is the kind of athlete that any team would love to have. There’s no reason to think that anything on the court would lower Miller’s draft stock — it’s what has happened off the court that will be considered.

Though Miller has not been found to be guilty of anything criminal or illegal, he is at least linked to a tragic story. A gun that was later allegedly shot and resulted in the death of Jamea Jonae Harris in Tuscaloosa on Jan. 15 was brought to the scene in Miller’s car.

The gun allegedly belonged to Miller’s Alabama teammate Darius Miles and was used by a friend, Michael Lynn Davis, after Miller drove the gun to the area where the shooting took place.

Miller cooperated with police fully and has been cleared of any legal wrongdoing.

This story has been extensively covered and reported on and you can read about the incident in question in depth with ease with a quick internet search, and I strongly suggest reading David Aldrige’s column in The Athletic to understand things from an NBA angle.

I’m not here to pass judgment on Miller, but to let you know what I’ve heard regarding what NBA teams have said about him.

I spoke with multiple NBA executives this week and not a single person I spoke with believed that the January incident would have any impact on where Miller is drafted. In general, the belief is that Charlotte will take Miller with the second pick without much hesitation, if any at all.

Interviews with Miller this week have resulted in some mixed reviews. There are some teams that have been impressed with Miller, and some that feel like he wasn’t as forthright as he needed to be about the January shooting.

Even so, that didn’t seem to change the fact that teams are certain he will be an NBA star, and that’s enough for them to work with.

So it seems that the top three picks in the draft will end up being Wembanyama, Miller and Henderson. But final decisions on Miller and what team Henderson will play for have yet to be determined.