NBA Rumors: 1 Concerning early-season trend that could doom every team

Portland Trail Blazers

1 Concerning trend: Scoot Henderson's continued struggles

Fair or not, Scoot Henderson is forever going to be connected to the decision to trade Damian Lillard. That's the truth that will be remembered in the basketball universe. So when Scoot does struggle, it's naturally going to be pinned on the Portland Trail Blazers. And through the first few games of the regular season, it doesn't appear as if Scoot has improved all that much in terms of his comfort level in the league. And if that doesn't change quickly, the talk of "bust" is naturally going to arise. It may not be completely fair but that's what comes with the territory of being such a high pick.

Scoot is still extremely young and hopefully, he will begin to hit his stride as he did in several different moments during his rookie season. However, and I can't sugarcoat the early returns, it hasn't looked all the better this season. And if the Blazers are going to take the next step in their progression as a franchise, there is much pressure that falls on the shoulders of this team's young core. For better or worse, Scoot is kind of the face of their rebuild at the moment.

Sacramento Kings

1 Concerning trend: Keegan Murray hasn't made the star leap

Part of the hope surrounding the Sacramento Kings heading into the start of this season revolved around Keegan Murray taking the next step in his progression as a player and making that leap to stardom. At least through the first few games of this season, we haven't seen that just yet. At this point, you can't help but wonder if that's because DeMar DeRozan is eating up a good portion of his shots. Compared to last season, Murray's numbers are down across the board. In his third season in the league, that can't be considered a good thing.

But this was always the risk with acquiring a player like DeRozan. The lack of patience for the Kings was always going to result in the possibility of stunting the growth of some of their young players. In this instance, most of that impact could be falling on Murray. The season is still young and he could be feeling his way through the start of it, but Murray has the talent to take the next step into stardom. And if he isn't able to do so this season, you have to wonder if he's in the best spot that will help him reach his full potential.