Cleveland Cavaliers: Michael Porter Jr. could be the best option in the draft
University of Missouri freshman, Michael Porter Jr. is arguably the most talented player in college basketball. The Cleveland Cavaliers should take a long look at the star athlete with their projected top-five pick (via Brooklyn) in the 2018 NBA Draft.
While he has only played two minutes in his college career, there’s more than enough reason to believe that he is the best player to take with the Brooklyn Nets’ first-round pick. The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired this pick, which is almost certainly going to be at the very least a quality lottery pick when they dealt Kyrie Irving to Boston.
Michael Porter Jr. certainly has quite a resume despite playing just two minutes in his college career. The 5-star recruit averaged 36.2 points, 13.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 3.2 steals, and 2.7 blocks as a senior in high school. ESPN ranked Porter No. 2 in their Top 100 player rankings, behind only Marvin Bagley III, who is another stellar prospect for Cleveland.
In addition to his remarkable stats, Porter’s accolades are just as impressive. In his senior year alone, Porter was awarded (breathe in) USA Today’s All-First Team, USA Today’s High School Player of the Year, Washington Gatorade Player of the Year, Gatorade Player of the Year, Naismith Prep Player of the Year, and the McDonald’s All-American MVP (breathe out).
While Porter was once regarded as an unquestionable top-3 pick, his back injury might have changed that. Porter injured his back, which required surgery, in his first collegiate game against Iowa State. Many people believed Porter’s injury would cause him to miss the rest of the season, however, that might not be the case.
According to ESPN’s Jeff Borzello, Porter could indeed be back sometime this season.
Michael Porter Jr. said at a press conference today that he's hoping to get cleared to practice next week.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) February 9, 2018
"If it were up to me, I would love to get a couple games under my belt before hopping into tournament play," he said.
“If I’m ready to go, then I’m ready to go.”
At 6-foot-10, Michael Porter Jr. is an absolute pure scorer.
While he hasn’t played in a full regular season game, his Missouri team did, in fact, scrimmage Kansas before the season started. In 23 minutes, Porter scored 21 points and grabbed 8 rebounds. Additionally, he shot 6-20 from the field and 2-9 from three-point range.
Whether Porter makes a return his season, or remains sidelined, it’s almost certain that he’ll enter the NBA draft. While his stock could drop due to his injury, it would be tough to pass a talent like him up. And with the Brooklyn Nets pick inching closer to the number one spot each day, Michael Porter Jr. could very well be the best option for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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With other capable bigs and scorers on the board, do you think Porter Jr. will be the top prospect heading into the draft night?