This coming season, it doesn’t appear that likely Craig Porter Jr. is going to receive a bunch of minutes with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Porter was an undrafted signing by the Cavaliers following the 2023 NBA Draft, and he’s one of their three players slated to be on two-way deals leading into next season, with Isaiah Mobley and Emoni Bates being the others.
Mobley and Bates would seem to have a higher likelihood of getting meaningful minutes in the upcoming campaign with the Cavaliers, and one or both could be candidates to eventually have standard contracts with Cleveland. One will have to see on that front for those players, of course.
As it pertains to Porter, though, his two-way abilities were on display at Wichita State, and despite being a junior college product prior to playing with the Shockers, Porter could prove to be a quality prospect for the Cavs to have. His all-around play was impressive for the Cavaliers in their run to a Summer League title in Las Vegas in July, too.
He had 12.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.8 blocks per outing with the Cavaliers’ Summer League squad in Vegas, and shot 47.6 percent from the field. The deep ball wasn’t falling for him, but he was affecting winning in a multitude of ways otherwise.
Granted, it’s probably unrealistic to expect much from Porter with the Cavs in 2023-24, and he could be getting more meaningful run with the Cleveland Charge in the G League, but he’s a player who could contribute in due time.
First we’ll first touch on his offense.
Porter had 13.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists per contest last collegiate season for Wichita State, and was one of the bright spots in an uneven campaign for the Shockers in 2022-23. Originally a junior college product, Porter is a player who gradually got better as an on-ball presence and shot creator, and last season, he was the primary playmaker for Wichita State.
Porter is an impressive playmaker, and if given the opportunities with the Cavaliers, he could open up looks for Cleveland’s bigs, and with his driving feel, could make plays for shooters on the weak side off of that. His pick-and-roll acumen was also one of the biggest takeaways from his play in Summer League, and at least with the Charge next season, he could hone in on that aspect of his game.
He’s continually gotten better as a shot creator and shot-maker over the years as well. He didn’t necessarily shoot lights out from three last season, but with so many of Porter’s shot attempts being on-ball looks off-the-bounce, including his threes, him hitting 36.3 percent of those was nothing to sneeze at.
Plus, as we hinted at, Porter is a nice driver, and his slashing, change-of-pace polish and mid-range pull-up game all enables him to get to his spots. If he can improve from range, that would only aid him in other ways.
On the other end, Porter is a heck of a defensive player, even for a 6-foot-2 guard. He has the potential to be a good two-way contributor if given the developmental looks as well.
If meaningful minutes were to come for him with the Cavs, he could give them some good minutes as a point-of-attack defender, where he does quality work containing primary playmakers. Porter’s screen navigation is a strength of his defensively as well, and with length behind him, he could be solid in that area for spurts, too, and against some bigger guards, with his attention to detail in staying attached.
In addition, Porter’s combination of timing, basketball IQ, athleticism and activity all could lead to him being an impact off-ball defensive player. As we alluded to, he’s not huge, at 6-foot-2, and as a player who would probably project as a combo guard.
That said, he had a whopping 1.5 blocks per game last season with the Shockers, and led them in total blocks at that size, and he tacked on 1.5 steals per game as well.
He can wreak havoc on opponents as a rotator, and despite his stature, he is a big-time vertical athlete, who has a 40.5 inch vertical leap, as pointed out by Alex Kennedy of BasketballNews.com. And Porter can make plays on the weak side to wipe away driving attempts, and he is always alert as a rotator in passing lanes. Cleveland has to have had that in mind when they signed him.
For his multifaceted play, Porter is a player who might be able to play minutes at both guard spots, if the chances were to arise this coming season and/or looking onward with the Cavaliers.
However, with a number of others involved, regardless of if Ricky Rubio eventually is in the fold again, regarding his mental health hiatus, Porter would seem to be on the outside looking in this coming season with the Cavs.
But, he helped his case in Vegas, and if he’s a training camp standout, that would continue to aid him in this situation. Porter is also an older prospect at 23, and that could lead to him maybe being able to contribute sooner than later within the Cavaliers’ rotation.
Either way, though, he could be a hidden gem for the Cavs to have in their organization, and could be a quality player for them to have for stretches in the near future.