Michael Porter Jr

[gunks]

I keep seesawing back and forth...

Every one of the top guys has immense potential, but none of them are perfect.

If we end up with Porter, I'll hope for the best. The back thing is worrying, I hear some reports saying it's no big deal, others saying his back is worse than he let's on. Please just do your homework, Vlade.

 

[Padrino]

Picking Porter at #2 would be such a Kings thing to do. I was okay with the idea of Porter at #7, should he have slid that far when the Kings were projected to be picking in that range... because why not? You swing for the fences at #7 when Ayton, Bagley, Doncic, Jackson, and Bamba are all likely off the board. But at #2?! With much more proven talents that have considerable upside of their own still available? To my mind, it’d be foolish to pick Porter there, and foolish to trade back to get him further down.

The Kings can compile young, intriguing assets all they want. They can take fliers on players coming into the league with major injury history. But at a certain point, you need to know who your guys are, and at least one of them had better be an all-star caliber talent. You can’t just hope. You’ve gotta go get one. The Kings lucked out in the lottery. Big time. Their job should be so easy on draft day. Ayton, Bagley, Doncic, and Jackson are all acceptable picks at their draft position. But watch them #Kangz up the place, because we the fans apparently can’t have nice things.

 

[ockingsfan]

Here is the thing about using high school film and ranking to draft in the NBA. They are playing against mostly 5'10" guys that won't even make it to play college ball, let alone the NBA.

I mean Skal was ranked #1-3 coming out of high school. If Skal would had got hurt and because of his high school film, some dumb team took him #2, that team would had been screwed. Take Skal at #27, then you might have a gem. At #2, he would be a huge bust. That tells you what high school film can tell and trick you.

I'm not saying that MPJ is going to bust, but selecting him #2 overall off his high school film is just too risky for me.

Especially when this draft has such high end talent to pick from, including Ayton, Doncic, Bagley, JJJ and Bamba. These guys have proven something in college and has just as much upside as MPJ.

If the Kings take MPJ at #2, they better make damn sure his back is 110% and he had better had blown them away in any workouts. His workouts are going to be a lot more important than for all the other prospects IMHO.

They better not take MPJ #2 based off his high school film.

 

[VF21]

Picking Porter at #2 would be such a Kings thing to do. I was okay with the idea of Porter at #7, should he have slid that far when the Kings were projected to be picking in that range... because why not? You swing for the fences at #7 when Ayton, Bagley, Doncic, Jackson, and Bamba are all likely off the board. But at #2?! With much more proven talents that have considerable upside of their own still available? To my mind, it’d be foolish to pick Porter there, and foolish to trade back to get him further down.

The Kings can compile young, intriguing assets all they want. They can take fliers on players coming into the league with major injury history. But at a certain point, you need to know who your guys are, and at least one of them had better be an all-star caliber talent. You can’t just hope. You’ve gotta go get one. The Kings lucked out in the lottery. Big time. Their job should be so easy on draft day. Ayton, Bagley, Doncic, and Jackson are all acceptable picks at their draft position. But watch them #Kangz up the place, because we the fans apparently can’t have nice things.

 

[SLAB]

If the Kings draft Porter I'll obviously give him a shot, I'll hope for the best, but man oh man would one of my feet already be out of the door again. They screw this up and I don't think I can take anymore.

 

[funkykingston]

If the Kings draft Porter I'll obviously give him a shot, I'll hope for the best, but man oh man would one of my feet already be out of the door again. They screw this up and I don't think I can take anymore.

That's where I'm at. With no draft pick next year this #2 represents the best opportunity to improve that the Kings will likely have for a while. You always want the best player from the draft but just not completely screwing it up is all I'm asking for right now.

 

[Blob]

That's where I'm at. With no draft pick next year this #2 represents the best opportunity to improve that the Kings will likely have for a while. You always want the best player from the draft but just not completely screwing it up is all I'm asking for right now.

It is a matter of risk mitigation at #2. I don't trust this GM not to be reckless and get enamored with Porter. I do think this guy Brandon Williams is impressive. I think (or hope) he can keep our GM in check and curtail any wild machinations.

I think the Rockets are going after LeBron. CP3 already put in the call. They have to unload Anderson (attaching two 1st rounders), and either Gordon or Capella to create the space and resign CP3. I wonder if we could pull off a WCS for Capella S&T so the Rockets get their replacement center and add LeBron? Morey likes to do deals for pending free agents to get ahead of the field as he did with CP3. Instead of losing Capella in the process of getting LeBron, he trades him preemptively. (For this to work I think Temple would have to opt-out).

As much as I like Julius Randle, Capella is better. If we are giving max dollars out I'd rather give to him. Then we draft Bagley and we are done. This team would be great. Hyper athletic and fundamentally sound. If we have space we add Mario to the play the wings. Capella would cover for the deficiencies of Bagley. Bagley would carry the front line scoring with a shooter along the wing to stretch the floor.

C - Capella
PF - Bagley
SF - Buddy
SG - Boggy
PG - Fox

Giles
Skal
Mario
Mason
#36 pick

It doesn't have to get more complicated than this. This should be Plan A. Then we need a backup Plan B, Plan C and Plan D but these plans should include drafting Bagley too (assuming Ayton goes #1). He's the lowest risk highest reward prospect for a team that needs to mitigate risk with recent history of draft flubs and having received the gift of #2.

Bamba could be better than Bagley. But there's more risk there. The risk is his lack of lower body strength and high center of gravity will make him susceptible to getting dislodged, injured or frequent foul trouble and vulnerable on the perimeter. The Kings cannot afford this degree of risk. If Bamba turns out better than Bagley you congratulate the team that drafted him. The other candidates at #2 (Porter, JJJ, Doncic) I would not project to be better than Bagley so it is easier to exclude them. These are the sweet nothings I hope Williams is whispering into Vlade's ear

 

[Blob]

Their job should be so easy on draft day. Ayton, Bagley, Doncic, and Jackson are all acceptable picks at their draft position. But watch them #Kangz up the place, because we the fans apparently can’t have nice things.

Jackson would be a #Kangz pick almost as much as Porter. He's a rudimentary offensive player with a high foul rate and low rebound rate. He's a shot blocker who makes more fouls than shot blocks. He has the vitals without the polish.

 

[burekijogurt]

It is a matter of risk mitigation at #2. I don't trust this GM not to be reckless and get enamored with Porter. I do think this guy Brandon Williams is impressive. I think (or hope) he can keep our GM in check and curtail any wild machinations.

I think the Rockets are going after LeBron. CP3 already put in the call. They have to unload Anderson (attaching two 1st rounders), and either Gordon or Capella to create the space and resign CP3. I wonder if we could pull off a WCS for Capella S&T so the Rockets get their replacement center and add LeBron? Morey likes to do deals for pending free agents to get ahead of the field as he did with CP3. Instead of losing Capella in the process of getting LeBron, he trades him preemptively. (For this to work I think Temple would have to opt-out).

As much as I like Julius Randle, Capella is better. If we are giving max dollars out I'd rather give to him. Then we draft Bagley and we are done. This team would be great. Hyper athletic and fundamentally sound. If we have space we add Mario to the play the wings. Capella would cover for the deficiencies of Bagley. Bagley would carry the front line scoring with a shooter along the wing to stretch the floor.

C - Capella
PF - Bagley
SF - Buddy
SG - Boggy
PG - Fox

Giles
Skal
Mario
Mason
#36 pick

It doesn't have to get more complicated than this. This should be Plan A. Then we need a backup Plan B, Plan C and Plan D but these plans should include drafting Bagley too (assuming Ayton goes #1). He's the lowest risk highest reward prospect for a team that needs to mitigate risk with recent history of draft flubs and having received the gift of #2.

Bamba could be better than Bagley. But there's more risk there. The risk is his lack of lower body strength and high center of gravity will make him susceptible to getting dislodged, injured or frequent foul trouble and vulnerable on the perimeter. The Kings cannot afford this degree of risk. If Bamba turns out better than Bagley you congratulate the team that drafted him. The other candidates at #2 (Porter, JJJ, Doncic) I would not project to be better than Bagley so it is easier to exclude them. These are the sweet nothings I hope Williams is whispering into Vlade's ear

The worst GM in all of sports hired an impressive deputy into the organization. Must be a lucky move .
Nice new avatar!

 

[Blob]

The worst GM in all of sports hired an impressive deputy into the organization. Must be a lucky move .

What can I say even a blind squirrel sometimes finds a nut! Seriously, do we know if Vlade found him on his own or if his hiring was initiated by the ownership? I would not doubt the latter.

 

[sactowndog]

That's where I'm at. With no draft pick next year this #2 represents the best opportunity to improve that the Kings will likely have for a while. You always want the best player from the draft but just not completely screwing it up is all I'm asking for right now.

Yeah but whom to take....... This years draft class has a tough group of kids to project. All have qualities that are amazingly elite and could lead to be a 3 time all star but all have a potential fatal flaw....

Bagley- Elite quickness off the ground, but poor free throw shooter, extremely left handed, poor length
Doncic- Elite BBIQ but poor lateral quickness, poor vertical explosiveness, Length?-
Ayton- Elite athletic build, Polished offensive game but questionable motor, poor defensive instincts
Bamba- Elite shot blocking and length, but raw offensive game and rail thin
Porter- Most skilled 3 level scorer but back injury and no college game tape

I don't envy Vlade with this call. It will define the franchise but the chance to pick wrong is very high.

 

[funkykingston]

Bamba could be better than Bagley. But there's more risk there. The risk is his lack of lower body strength and high center of gravity will make him susceptible to getting dislodged, injured or frequent foul trouble and vulnerable on the perimeter. The Kings cannot afford this degree of risk. If Bamba turns out better than Bagley you congratulate the team that drafted him. The other candidates at #2 (Porter, JJJ, Doncic) I would not project to be better than Bagley so it is easier to exclude them. These are the sweet nothings I hope Williams is whispering into Vlade's ear

To me the bigger risk with Bamba is that he lacks the fire to be great. Bagley always plays hard which is why (despite his defensive deficiencies and lack of fit in today's NBA) I'd be happy with him at #2.

Bamba often comes out and needs to get pushed around a bit before he responds. That's a concern.

 

[bajaden]

Very few cars going the other direction... just compare mocks. Doesn’t mean I have particular respect for all “mock bloggers” but consensus is pretty strong. Add to that the ‘bad interviews’ in Chicago (could be a ruse by Chi to drop him I suppose).

I just think the Porter fetish is a recently contrived phenomenon and is artificial. Doesn’t mean I’m right... I just don’t believe in it.

I also admit I’m outside the mainstream in that I completely do NOT believe this is a “superstar or bust” draft. I think that is crazy talk. If the Kings become a solid .500 team it is a quantum leap and I would take it. I don’t think we have to come out of this draft with Kevin Garnett. I think that taking that approach year after year is stupid.

I’m not always right crab man and I really respect your talent analysis. If you think Porter makes sense over Ayton, Doncic, Bagley, Jackson, Bamba... then I respect that.

First of all, I agree with just about everything you said, except maybe implying slightly that I do favor Porter over those other players. I can take any of those players and make a case for or against them. And at the same time, I do believe that there is a star or two among them. Maybe more. I just haven't been able to find my crystal ball. I was merely trying to give Porter a fair shake. As to the mocks, I try to stay away from them until this time of the year. The last thing I want when I'm watching players play is some outside influence nudging me in one direction or the other.

So, that said, almost all of the opinions, unless stated otherwise, about a player are mine, and not a repeat of some mock draft somewhere. It's not that I don't value others opinions, but I'm particular about who those others are. In respect to Porter, you could be right. At this point, it just an educated guess as to how good he's going to be, short term, and long term. If drafted, it's the long term were betting on. At least that's where I'm coming from.

From that respect, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Bear in mind, I'm not the one getting fired if the Kings draft him and I'm wrong. By all accounts, the Kings now have a good scouting staff, and one would think that they've done their due diligence. So with that in mind, if they think that Porter is the guy, then have the courage of your convictions and draft him. If your right, you'll look like a genius, and if your wrong, well, I have another lounge chair waiting for you down here on the beach. Bring your own booze though!

 

[bajaden]

Yeah but whom to take....... This years draft class has a tough group of kids to project. All have qualities that are amazingly elite and could lead to be a 3 time all star but all have a potential fatal flaw....

Bagley- Elite quickness off the ground, but poor free throw shooter, extremely left handed, poor length
Doncic- Elite BBIQ but poor lateral quickness, poor vertical explosiveness, Length?-
Ayton- Elite athletic build, Polished offensive game but questionable motor, poor defensive instincts
Bamba- Elite shot blocking and length, but raw offensive game and rail thin
Porter- Most skilled 3 level scorer but back injury and no college game tape

I don't envy Vlade with this call. It will define the franchise but the chance to pick wrong is very high.

I don't disagree, but there's also the possibility, that there isn't a real wrong pick in that group. By that I mean, one may be better than the other, but all of them may well turn out to be very good players. So from that perspective, the chance to pick right, is very high as well.

 

[burekijogurt]

What can I say even a blind squirrel sometimes finds a nut! Seriously, do we know if Vlade found him on his own or if his hiring was initiated by the ownership? I would not doubt the latter.

For simplicity reasons in judging his performance, I consider all decision made by the franchise as Vlade's. Whether they were made under pressure from ownership, or because of advice from lower ranking members of the front office, etc. Otherwise it would be impossible to sort his moves into "Vlade's moves" and "Others' moves".

That said, found this interview of Brandon Williams. Its actually pretty interesting to see what he thinks. Here is an excerpt in which he talks about his interactions with Vlade in the hiring process:

https://www.sactownroyalty.com/2017/8/9/16119832/interview-kings-assistant-gm-brandon-williams


"It’s very clear what his direction, what his vision is for this team. He experienced it here as a player and fell short. Had a fantastic team, a fantastic run, but fell short of what their goal was, but what he felt was a chemistry and camaraderie, guys pulling for each other, sacrificing for each other and that’s very much what it takes from top to bottom – ownership, management, coaches, players, extended staff ...

He laid out for me, in very short order, with us spending time over dinners and meetings, what it is he is hoping to build and he needed people who thought positively, also. Like, this is something we can do. So, it didn’t take long, it was a fire lit pretty quickly."

 

[bajaden]

To me the bigger risk with Bamba is that he lacks the fire to be great. Bagley always plays hard which is why (despite his defensive deficiencies and lack of fit in today's NBA) I'd be happy with him at #2.

Bamba often comes out and needs to get pushed around a bit before he responds. That's a concern.

I certainly agree on Bagley. I'll admit that I tend to lean toward players that have a motor like Bagley. Many less talented players with great motors have outplayed more talented players. If you have talent, and the motor, well then the potential is something you have to take notice of. I believe Bagley falls into that last group.

I find that people tend to pick a player they like, and then commit to that player. As a result, they'll expound on that players strengths, and discard his weaknesses, saying that they're correctable. However, when commenting on other players, they only talk about that players weaknesses, and won't acknowledge the possibility of correction. I'm not referring to you of course! Personally, for the first time in a long time, I don't really have a dog in this hunt.

Had we stayed at seven, then I was totally on the Mikal Bridges bandwagon. But at number two, there are several players that I like who I would be happy with. So with that said, if I'm the Kings, I would go back to who of those players fits best with what your trying to build? I don't have that answer, but hopefully they do.

 

[sactowndog]

I don't disagree, but there's also the possibility, that there isn't a real wrong pick in that group. By that I mean, one may be better than the other, but all of them may well turn out to be very good players. So from that perspective, the chance to pick right, is very high as well.

Perhaps but historically most likely one will bust 2-3 will be 3 time all stars and one will be meh. I am just glad I don't have to pick because I wouldn't want to die on a hill for any of these guys.

 

[bajaden]

For simplicity reasons in judging his performance, I consider all decision made by the franchise as Vlade's. Whether they were made under pressure from ownership, or because of advice from lower ranking members of the front office, etc. Otherwise it would be impossible to sort his moves into "Vlade's moves" and "Others' moves".

That said, found this interview of Brandon Williams. Its actually pretty interesting to see what he thinks. Here is an excerpt in which he talks about his interactions with Vlade in the hiring process:

https://www.sactownroyalty.com/2017/8/9/16119832/interview-kings-assistant-gm-brandon-williams


"It’s very clear what his direction, what his vision is for this team. He experienced it here as a player and fell short. Had a fantastic team, a fantastic run, but fell short of what their goal was, but what he felt was a chemistry and camaraderie, guys pulling for each other, sacrificing for each other and that’s very much what it takes from top to bottom – ownership, management, coaches, players, extended staff ...

He laid out for me, in very short order, with us spending time over dinners and meetings, what it is he is hoping to build and he needed people who thought positively, also. Like, this is something we can do. So, it didn’t take long, it was a fire lit pretty quickly."

Excellent article, and I agree with his and the Kings approach. He said a lot, so I won't go back and comment on all of it, but the part about working hard, but also having fun rang true for me. I started playing baseball when I was around 5 or 6 years old and I fell in love with the sport. I used to sit on the back porch with my great uncle and listen to the St. Louis Cardinals play on the radio. I became determined that one day Harry Carey would be saying my name on that radio. Didn't quite make it, but came close...

Point is, no one on gods earth knows how much work I put in trying to become a great player. I lived and breathed baseball from the time I got up in the morning, till I could no longer play stick ball under the street lights at night. I carried a glove and a tennis ball with me at all times so I could bounce the ball off of any steps I came across. I bet I went through a couple thousand baseballs if not more. One of which went through a church window. I figured it belonged to God at that point.

Thing is, it wasn't work to me, it was fun, and that's the kind of players you want on your team regardless of the sport. You want players that love to play, and as a result, love to work at their sport. Oh yeah, and they have to be talented as well. Minor detail....

 

[The Effort Police]

Apparently Porter laid an egg in his interview with Chicago and is now projected to fall to the 7-10 range.

And of course our genius GM and the shills in this organization's media are preparing us for him at #2. Wonderful. He was the flier I hoped to take when we were at #7. Not now. This is the easiest thing in the world to not **** up so of course they will.

 

[bajaden]

Perhaps but historically most likely one will bust 2-3 will be 3 time all stars and one will be meh. I am just glad I don't have to pick because I wouldn't want to die on a hill for any of these guys.

Perhaps not, but it's always better to defend the high ground. First thing they teach you in the Marine Corps. You want to find a Marine. look up toward the ridge line. How good are you at digging fox holes?

 

[Blob]

For simplicity reasons in judging his performance, I consider all decision made by the franchise as Vlade's.

After Vlade botched the Boogie trade, the ownership group knew he needed help. They couldn't fire him unless be exposed to more ridicule and instability. But they knew this guy was in over his head. Any one could see it. So they poked around to see who was available with high regard. I doubt this process was initiated by Vlade, effectively seeking his replacement should he continue to flounder. I think Vlade signed off the hiring after he met with Williams and found compatibility in terms of philosophy and personality. But the initiative to bring him aboard was not his. I would suspect there was distress and consternation after the paltry return for Boggy "the better deal 48 hours earlier" and sloppy manner in which the best talent in franchise history was peddled away while getting ready for an All Star game. Williams hiring was byproduct of amateur hour and resolve of the owners including Vivek who saw the primary decision maker as a flailing neophyte. Vlade will bear the burden of his moves going forward, but the hope is with Williams in his ear, correcting his worst impulses, he will not be so brazenly incompetent. He can start by drafting Bagley.

 

[sactowndog]

Perhaps not, but it's always better to defend the high ground. First thing they teach you in the Marine Corps. You want to find a Marine. look up toward the ridge line. How good are you at digging fox holes?

I'm not predicting anything in this draft. I am amazed at those who speak with such certainty about any of these players.

 

[bajaden]

Apparently Porter laid an egg in his interview with Chicago and is now projected to fall to the 7-10 range.

And of course our genius GM and the shills in this organization's media are preparing us for him at #2. Wonderful. He was the flier I hoped to take when we were at #7. Not now. This is the easiest thing in the world to not **** up so of course they will.

You of course have quotes for Vlade and others in the Kings organization validating what your saying? No? Yes? Or are you just taking the opportunity to bash Vlade and the organization because of some rumors that are floating around? Never lets a good rumor go to waste, right?

 

[206Fan]

Apparently Porter laid an egg in his interview with Chicago and is now projected to fall to the 7-10 range.

And of course our genius GM and the shills in this organization's media are preparing us for him at #2. Wonderful. He was the flier I hoped to take when we were at #7. Not now. This is the easiest thing in the world to not **** up so of course they will.

There's a ton of smokescreen around this period right? In the 2013 draft, there was an eastern conference executive who said Embiid wasn't worth a top 10 pick because of his injuries. Many have speculated that to be Danny Ainge who was picking at #6.

 

[Blob]

Apparently Porter laid an egg in his interview with Chicago and is now projected to fall to the 7-10 range.

And of course our genius GM and the shills in this organization's media are preparing us for him at #2. Wonderful. He was the flier I hoped to take when we were at #7. Not now. This is the easiest thing in the world to not **** up so of course they will.

Flubbing his interview would not surprise me! I heard this SI.com guy say there are questions about Porter being a good teammate. I will try to find the details and post. If he has personality and character issues they would be exposed in an interview.

 

[The Effort Police]

You of course have quotes for Vlade and others in the Kings organization validating what your saying? No? Yes? Or are you just taking the opportunity to bash Vlade and the organization because of some rumors that are floating around? Never lets a good rumor go to waste, right?

Hell yeah.

In all seriousness, I'm just reading the clues as best as I can based on Ham and Grant, like Blob said.

 

[206Fan]

This picture is from 8 months ago, but Bagley looks at least one inch taller than Porter, su


Flubbing his interview would not surprise me! I heard this SI.com guy say there are questions about Porter being a good teammate. I will try to find the details and post. If he has personality and character issues they would be exposed in an interview.

That's all smokescreen.

 

[bajaden]

I'm not predicting anything in this draft. I am amazed at those who speak with such certainty about any of these players.

Don't disagree about the certainty. I certainly don't have any, other than what I've already stated. I doubt that Vlade and company are sitting around wringing their hands and singing oh woe is me. I think they have a very good idea of who they want, and in what order they would take them based on what the one team in front of them does. Of course they haven't brought in anyone of note for a workout yet, and when they do, it may give us a clue as to who they might be interested in.

Getting Doncic in probably isn't possible, but I would expect them to try and bring in Ayton, Bagley, Jackson, Bamba and yes, Porter. There are question marks about all of them, and to some degree, those questions can be addressed in a workout. For instance, you can get a good feel for the ballhandling abilities of Jackson in a workout. Maybe not in a defining way, but enough to remove most of your worries about it. In Porter's case, you can put him through some athletic testing to test his back.

 

[The Effort Police]

There's a ton of smokescreen around this period right? In the 2013 draft, there was an eastern conference executive who said Embiid wasn't worth a top 10 pick because of his injuries. Many have speculated that to be Danny Ainge who was picking at #6.

I hope so. I do like Porter to an extent; he was #4 before the injury but he's dropped after and with some new revelations.

This picture is from 8 months ago, but Bagley looks at least one inch taller than Porter, su

Flubbing his interview would not surprise me! I heard this SI.com guy say there are questions about Porter being a good teammate. I will try to find the details and post. If he has personality and character issues they would be exposed in an interview.

I don't know the details of why he flubbed it, just that he did.

I just assumed that he didn't check out medically was the main reason, but I think I did hear about teammate concerns like a week ago but I didn't really dig deeper since I assumed that Porter wouldn't be drafted by us so it didn't matter.

 

[Ozymandias]

Are there any recent reports on his back?


MP Jr. Is a major wild card in this lottery, i'm almost hesitant to comment on his stock or possibilities til we hear more as the draft approaches.

He could play for the kings and put up damn good stats as a rookie though. At 6'11 he's gonna be mostly at PF but he can play SF too. His shooting mechanics are PURE. Projects as a top option offensively. He could actually vie for the ROY in the right fit.