Kevin Porter Jr. can become Cavs’ best defender in near future

Porter’s recognition as a helper is especially encouraging

Porter’s defensive play again in some respects at first glance, hasn’t suggested he’s been really locked-in, but when watching games, that’s not been the case.

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Porter does seem to have some mix-ups, and he’s still learning when it comes to getting through to contest under control in terms of off-ball screen situations. At times, he seems to be unsure of when to double/stunt.

That sort of thing also seems to apply to Collin Sexton, who I believe could be an impact defender in due time with more experience on the perimeter and has shown more and more glimpses of that as the season’s progressed, too.

Porter having 1.6 deflections per game this year in only 23.2 minutes per outing has also been a pretty robust number to me, and the way he’s been getting deflections and/or steals has been especially encouraging.

The youngster has been able to time up passes on the weak and strong side on a considerable amount of occasions, and even though it’s not always leading to deflections/steals, the more active he is in that regard, the more opponents will be thinking about his presence in passing lanes.

That will, in turn, cause his on-floor impact in the team sense to be more constant game-to-game in coming years, and his ability to time up passing lanes is not something we see regularly this early on in a young players’ career. That’s especially when considering the Cavs’ defense, by and large, has been anything but spectacular around KPJ.

Thus far going into the NBA’s season suspension, Cleveland has had the league’s second-worst defensive rating.

To me in the near future, though, with his ever-improving feel as a rotator and with him already often splitting opponents on the weak side with ease to contest and deter drivers, I believe the more Porter plays in coming years, the better Cleveland’s team defensive metrics will be.

Plus, when KPJ’s out there being a factor in passing lanes, the Cleveland Cavaliers are ever-willing and able to take advantage in transition. That’s even more so when adding in a speedster in Sexton and a player with terrific team defensive instincts and a much-improved handle in Nance, who is an outstanding finisher on the break at the rim, too.

Moving on, the other part of why I believe Porter can become the Cavs’ best and most impactful defender in the near future is more in regards to the individual sense.