MARIETTA, Ga. — On a recent Sunday evening, Crystal Henderson sat down on the first row of a bleacher inside her family’s Next Play 360° gym and patiently waited for a surprise. Unbeknown to most of the 60 teenagers who had been practicing inside the four-court facility, her older brother Scoot Henderson, the uber-athletic star guard for G League Ignite, would be greeting them. Unlike the other players there, she knew he was coming. So instead of gathering at midcourt, Crystal — who her family and friends call Moochie — watched from a baseline across the floor as teens gushed over Scoot’s arrival.
Scoot, 19, has drawn comparisons to Allen Iverson, Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook and is an expected No. 2 pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. Two years ago, as a 17-year-old, he became the youngest American player to ever turn professional. But to Moochie, Scoot is just her brother, 18 months her senior, who she taught to tie his shoes and spell his birth name, Sterling.
To Scoot, Moochie is “definitely the most skilled” Henderson. “The best shooter in the family is her,” he says.
Though she might be 5-foot-6 and 17 years old, Moochie surpassed Scoot as Kell High School’s all-time leading scorer during her junior year, amassing more than 2,300 points and counting….
