Michael Porter Jr
- Thread starter funkykingston
- Start date
Just watched porter’s interview on ESPN. I know he’s a kid, but something I don’t really like about his demeanor. Also, it’s a little worrisome that he’s leaning vegan as I’m not sure it’s an ideal diet for all pro athletes. And he ended the interview by saying KD is the best player in the game. Made me want to vomit. Hard pass!
Too many red flags with Porter and as FunkyKingston has already mentioned, his highschool highlights really were not all that impressive in to how he would translate at the NBA level. Porter does have one elite skill in that he has a good shot and due to his height/length/jumping he can pretty much get a clean look over almost any defender. However he seems almost averse to driving to the basket and constantly settles for contested jump shots, his handle is not ideal for a player that will be a wing with the ball in his hands often. He doesn't seem too interested in creating for others either which goes hand in hand with his reluctance to drive to the basket. He's pretty quick and a great leaper but at the same time also stiff and plays way too upright. You then throw in the back injury (and recent hip injury) and he seems to be a guy that can run real fast and jump real high but not very flexible or a fluid athlete.
I highly doubt that Vlade is behind the Kings apparent fascination with Porter. MPJ is really not the type of player that Vlade would be into. This really reeks of Vivek Ranadive meddling and getting "his pick" again with a guy that has comparisons to Kevin Durant.
Vivek already took a shot at getting his Klay with Nik Stauskas. We also know that he loved Buddy and allegedly made some ridiculous comparisons to Steph. If the Kings draft Porter this is his shot at getting his version of KD.
With all that said, Luka Doncic is of a similar height and body type to Draymond Green. Like Draymond he is also a versatile jack-of-all trades type of player that can initiate the offense. Perhaps Vivek hasn't noticed yet that Luka can be his own version of Draymond.
Maybe if Luka starts running his mouth non-stop over the next couple days and gives someone a swift kick to the groin during Game 4 then Vivek will take notice and draft "his Draymond".
I highly doubt that Vlade is behind the Kings apparent fascination with Porter. MPJ is really not the type of player that Vlade would be into. This really reeks of Vivek Ranadive meddling and getting "his pick" again with a guy that has comparisons to Kevin Durant.
Vivek already took a shot at getting his Klay with Nik Stauskas. We also know that he loved Buddy and allegedly made some ridiculous comparisons to Steph. If the Kings draft Porter this is his shot at getting his version of KD.
With all that said, Luka Doncic is of a similar height and body type to Draymond Green. Like Draymond he is also a versatile jack-of-all trades type of player that can initiate the offense. Perhaps Vivek hasn't noticed yet that Luka can be his own version of Draymond.
Maybe if Luka starts running his mouth non-stop over the next couple days and gives someone a swift kick to the groin during Game 4 then Vivek will take notice and draft "his Draymond".
Luka Doncic and Draymond Green are definitely completely different types of players.
That said, just in terms of measurements, Green had a standing reach at the Draft Combine of 8'10" while Doncic was measured at P3 last summer to have a standing reach of 8'9.5"
Draymond's wingspan was 7'1.25". Luka doesn't have an official measurement that I've found but is reported to have a wingspan of 6'11".
So it isn't like they are world's apart and could even be closer if Luka grew any this last year.
What Draymond Green DOES have is a large wingspan & reach relative to his height. He's under 6'6" in his bare feet. And since in Europe they normally give a guys height barefoot, Luka might be 6'8" without shoes.
Draymond's length at his height, combined with good bulk allows him to challenge guys at the rim while also having a low center of gravity to battle in the post despite being undersized.
That said, just in terms of measurements, Green had a standing reach at the Draft Combine of 8'10" while Doncic was measured at P3 last summer to have a standing reach of 8'9.5"
Draymond's wingspan was 7'1.25". Luka doesn't have an official measurement that I've found but is reported to have a wingspan of 6'11".
So it isn't like they are world's apart and could even be closer if Luka grew any this last year.
What Draymond Green DOES have is a large wingspan & reach relative to his height. He's under 6'6" in his bare feet. And since in Europe they normally give a guys height barefoot, Luka might be 6'8" without shoes.
Draymond's length at his height, combined with good bulk allows him to challenge guys at the rim while also having a low center of gravity to battle in the post despite being undersized.
Personally I just don't see it. For me it's a little bit like Wiggins where when I first saw his tape he just didn't jump off the screen for me and I was surprised that people had him rated so highly. Now, there have been numerous guys whose tape I loved that turned out to be disappointments so I'm not pretending like I'm a draft savant, but I personally had enough issues with Porter's game film before the injury that I'm surprised that so many people think he would have absolutely gone #1 or #2 if healthy. There's also the chance that he would have struggled in college against higher level competition. Skal and Shabazz Muhammad were also top 1 or 2 ranked high school players. For the record I didn't love their tape either. But I DID love what I saw from Harry Giles, both before the first knee injury and when he came back from it but before the 2nd.
One other note about Porter that came up as I re-watched some games and highlights from him. Does anybody else notice how often he ends up on the ground? Going for rebounds, trying to get to the basket, getting fouled on shots, even sometimes on defense as he tries to close out or goes up for blocks. No real point here, just something I noticed. He hits the floor a LOT. I have to think that's due to him being so upright in his posture and having such a high center of gravity. In contrast, it's almost surprising when Doncic ends up on the ground. Part of it is that obviously Luka doesn't get off the ground as high so there's less chance of taking a spill in the air, but most of it is (I think) Doncic just being more thickly built and playing more under control. Just something I noticed.
One other note about Porter that came up as I re-watched some games and highlights from him. Does anybody else notice how often he ends up on the ground? Going for rebounds, trying to get to the basket, getting fouled on shots, even sometimes on defense as he tries to close out or goes up for blocks. No real point here, just something I noticed. He hits the floor a LOT. I have to think that's due to him being so upright in his posture and having such a high center of gravity. In contrast, it's almost surprising when Doncic ends up on the ground. Part of it is that obviously Luka doesn't get off the ground as high so there's less chance of taking a spill in the air, but most of it is (I think) Doncic just being more thickly built and playing more under control. Just something I noticed.
I just wonder what the hell NBA teams are seeing in a workout setting that's driving this narrative. Literally none of the tape I've seen suggests to me that Porter's "talent is prodigious." If I squint hard enough, I can almost see the vague outline of a Rudy Gay-esque career for Porter, but I have yet to see the Kevin Durant-level upside that gets reported by Woj and the like.
Now, perhaps it's a case where all of the publicly-traded tape on Porter is Porter at his least impressive. I'll absolutely grant that NBA teams have access to much better information and tools of evaluation than I have at my disposal. It's just so surprising to me to hear that Porter is this incredibly special talent when the available footage suggests an extremely narrow pathway to all-star success.
Now, perhaps it's a case where all of the publicly-traded tape on Porter is Porter at his least impressive. I'll absolutely grant that NBA teams have access to much better information and tools of evaluation than I have at my disposal. It's just so surprising to me to hear that Porter is this incredibly special talent when the available footage suggests an extremely narrow pathway to all-star success.
I noticed the exact same thing. Almost every drive, he winds up on the floor. Kinda reminds me of Kevin Martin. I think he is too light and gets knocked around too easily. It's going to get worse in the NBA. He's going to wind up on his butt or back, more often than not.
I bet he injured his back on one of those routine drives and then got knocked to ground, injuring his back.
I bet he injured his back on one of those routine drives and then got knocked to ground, injuring his back.
We usually agree on most things, but I've watched hours of film on Porter, and I love the kid. Let me emphasize that I never loved Wiggins. Wiggins suffered from the McLemore syndrome where he just disappeared in games. Say what you want about Porter, but he is one aggressive player on the court. Something that Wiggins never was. To me, that's a huge, and important difference. I always came away wondering if Wiggins really like playing basketball. I have never wondered that about Porter. Take that for what it's worth. And by the way, I'm not saying we should draft Porter, but I'll understand why if we do.
Personally, if I was doing the picking, and I wanted to take a gamble, I'd take Jaren Jackson..
Personally, if I was doing the picking, and I wanted to take a gamble, I'd take Jaren Jackson..
Agreed on Wiggins. I have never got the sense that he loves the game.
And I don't get that vibe from Porter. I think he loves to hoop. It's not a question of desire.
For me it's how often he relied on pull-up jumpers against low level competition. He's an athletic 6'10" wing and yet he often struggled to get by defenders at the HS level. That's a big red flag to me. He looks very tight without a lot of wiggle to me. He may get a lot better just by improving his handle but I think he's (if healthy) more Rashard Lewis than Kevin Durant. That's not a bad place to end up, I just don't think it's worth the 2nd pick. Add in the missed year of development and lack of tape against better competition and the injury risk and I think it's an easy call to pass on him.
But what I think doesn't matter.
We'll find out what Vlade thinks on Thursday.
And I don't get that vibe from Porter. I think he loves to hoop. It's not a question of desire.
For me it's how often he relied on pull-up jumpers against low level competition. He's an athletic 6'10" wing and yet he often struggled to get by defenders at the HS level. That's a big red flag to me. He looks very tight without a lot of wiggle to me. He may get a lot better just by improving his handle but I think he's (if healthy) more Rashard Lewis than Kevin Durant. That's not a bad place to end up, I just don't think it's worth the 2nd pick. Add in the missed year of development and lack of tape against better competition and the injury risk and I think it's an easy call to pass on him.
But what I think doesn't matter.
We'll find out what Vlade thinks on Thursday.
People who have seen him in person are simply infatuated with the kid. He doesn’t really pop on film, but I imagine seeing a legit 6’10” athlete splash 3s effortlessly, even against AAU defenses, is pretty electrifying in person. These are folks who have been seeing the “next KD” every year for the past ten years, and then along comes MPJ who seemed like maybe the genuine article. It’s hard to objectively recalibrate your mind to what you see on film after such an exhilarating experience in person.
This guy has been a fraud since Day 1. I said so before he declared for the draft. It is amazing how many have been fooled including those who still think he's a legitimate #2 candidate. I can see him going between picks 6-9 then taking the next 12 months off. If he plays he will score 5 PPG on 30-35% FGs.
I thought that Porter was just showing up in Chicago Friday since the MRI cleared his hip
but Friday was justa meet with Doctors and team reps for releasing Back specialist info
I thought the scheduled work out was canceled but was to be scheduled later
I also thought he was rescheduling indiv team workouts with teams this week leading up to the draft
I did not see any workouts set up this week for porter, Is he done until Thursday
Friday med info and that's it?
but Friday was justa meet with Doctors and team reps for releasing Back specialist info
I thought the scheduled work out was canceled but was to be scheduled later
I also thought he was rescheduling indiv team workouts with teams this week leading up to the draft
I did not see any workouts set up this week for porter, Is he done until Thursday
Friday med info and that's it?
For those who belive in Grant having inside info and selling the team line, Grant repeatedly said today that he thinks it is between Doncic and Bagley. Last week, he kept saying it was Porter if everything went well with the eval/workout. To me, that is the clearest signal that the Kings are cooling on Porter.
Fraud is a strong word but I'm beginning to agree with you there. His hype seems fraudulent for sure. It comes from people who say they have scouted him for years but I've yet to see any sort of evidence of this produced in a fair manner.
I question the kids IQ. Not his basketball IQ but his IQ in general. You've got the team picking #2 in the draft all over you and you cancel your big meet and greet and workout because of a sore hip? A sore hip that you claim wasn't really that bad but you wanted to take a couple days off to rest it? Either one of two things happened. His hip was really sore and he was unable to workout...which leads you to believe he's still very injury prone (sore hip from what, shooting over chairs?). Or....he is a prima donna that potentially cost himself a few million dollars because he didn't want it tough it out and work through some soreness. He had the #2 team drooling all over him and he more than likely threw it all away for whatever reason. I'm glad he did because I don't want anything to do with him but he just seems sketchy as hell to me. I'd stay far far away.
I question the kids IQ. Not his basketball IQ but his IQ in general. You've got the team picking #2 in the draft all over you and you cancel your big meet and greet and workout because of a sore hip? A sore hip that you claim wasn't really that bad but you wanted to take a couple days off to rest it? Either one of two things happened. His hip was really sore and he was unable to workout...which leads you to believe he's still very injury prone (sore hip from what, shooting over chairs?). Or....he is a prima donna that potentially cost himself a few million dollars because he didn't want it tough it out and work through some soreness. He had the #2 team drooling all over him and he more than likely threw it all away for whatever reason. I'm glad he did because I don't want anything to do with him but he just seems sketchy as hell to me. I'd stay far far away.
It’s weird I say stuff like this about doncic and I get banned from that thread. I guess you better like whomever vf21 likes. Been here almost 20 years I have never seen kings fans like this. If you don’t share the opinion of a mod they delete your post and kick you from thread about a draftee during the week of the draft