The 26-year-old has had this day circled on his calendar from the moment he read disparaging comments in the media by his former Saints boss, Nick Mills.
"Expect a big game from me," he told the Otago Daily Times.
"The way Nick Mills reacted didn't just hurt me, it hurt my whole family. It felt a bit too personal for me," Henry said, "I'm ready to give it to the Saints. It is a big game for me."
Late last year, Mills told the Dominion Post he was shocked by Henry's decision to sign with the Nuggets.
"We basically picked him up from Auckland when no-one else wanted to know about him, when he was a kid," Mills said.
"I think Leon wants to be the big dog and it's very hard to be the big dog on the Saints." The Nuggets have a mathematical chance of reaching the play-offs. The franchise has not been sighted during the post-season since 1997.
But coach Alf Arlidge said the slim hope of reaching the play-offs had not played any part in motivating the side for its double-header against the Saints and the Taranaki Mountain Airs in New Plymouth tomorrow.
"We just want to finish strongly," Arlidge said.
"We want to finish strongly for each other and for the fans who come out each week and support us.
"We just want to keep performing and build a platform for next year." Since it last featured in the play-offs 15 years ago, the franchise has had a rather lean run. The Nuggets have won four games this season, which is their best result since 2004.
In 1998 they won eight games, and 2003 was relatively successful by their own standards with seven wins.
The Nuggets sat out the 2009 season because of financial reasons and endured a winless season in their comeback year.
They snapped a 33-game losing a streak with a win against the Manawatu Jets last year and results have improved steadily since.
The Nuggets suffered two major setbacks this season, when Tall Blacks point guard Mark Dickel was ruled out with a knee injury eight games into the campaign, and fellow international BJ Anthony missed the tournament due to an ankle complaint.
Imports Akeem Wright and Antoine Tisby have carried a heavy load. The pair are the most potent scoring combination in the league. Tisby leads the league in scoring with 22.7 points and Wright is in fourth spot with 22.4 points.
Both feature high in the rebounding stakes with Tisby in second place with 12 boards a game and Wright in fifth spot with 8.8 rebounds.
It is a lack of depth which has prevented the Nuggets achieving better results. Undoubtedly, the Saints will look to press their advantage in that area.
Classy point guard Jason Crowe and forward Casey Frank are the most obvious threats.
But the roster is deep with the likes of Troy McLean, Jeremy Kench, Arthur Trousdell, Ernest Scott, Martin Iti and Damien Ekenasio all accomplished players.
Nuggets v Saints
Wellington, tonight, 7pm
Nuggets: Antoine Tisby (captain), Leon Henry, Akeem Wright, Riki Buckrell, James Ross, Mike Fitchett, Sam King, Matt Trueman, Ethan Carruthers.
Saints: Casey Frank, Ernest Scott, Jason Crowe, Troy McLean, Jeremy Kench, Arthur Trousdell, Martin Iti, Damien Ekenasio, Jordan Mills, Ross Taurima, Jordan Ngatai, Hayden Whelan.
Nuggets' record
The barren years
1998: 8-12
1999: 4-12
2000: 4-12
2001: 3-13
2002: 5-11
2003: 7-11
2004: 4-14
2005: 2-16
2006: 3-15
2007: 2-16
2008: 2-16
2009: Not in league
2010: 0-18
2011: 2-14
2012: 4-9 (three matches remaining)
