Michael Porter Jr. brings in the new era of college basketball players. He is the clear No. 1 recruit in the 2018 class according to ESPN.com. We will see just how good he can be come November.
The 6-foot-10 superstar put up some absurd stats in his senior year to help him finish on top of ESPN’s top 100 high school players in the country. He averaged 36.2 points per game, 13.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 3.2 steals and 2.7 blocks. I guess you could say that’s how you fill up a stat sheet.
Michael Porter Jr. goes in for a dunk in his game in the state quarterfinals in March (Photo/ Johnny Andrews)
Porter, who was once a Washington signee, is now headed to Missouri. The switch happened after former Washington coach Lorenzo Romar was fired and replaced with long time Syracuse assistant coach, Mike Hopkins.
After former Washington assistant coach Michael Porter Sr. was awarded a position in Missouri’s coaching staff, his son Porter Jr. followed. This arguably was Missouri’s biggest recruit ever, and undoubtedly their biggest recruit in the past decade. Their highest ranked recruit before Porter was Montaque Gill-Caesar, who was ranked 41st in ESPN’s top 100.
Porter, who is already projected to go No. 1 overall in next year’s draft, comes into Missouri with scouts raving of his talents. Porter has an unbelievable combination and balance of physic and skill. The 18-year-old stands 6-foot-10, 215 pounds for a unique brew of size, length, bounce and skill that makes him the best player in the class.
He is versatile on the perimeter despite his size. He is able step back and tack the long jumper and can virtually get whatever shot off he wants because of his long frame.
Porter is also very comfortable in running the floor and in space, which is unique for a player his size. He has displayed the ability to shoot the 3-pointer or take a couple dribbles and pull up for a mid-range jumper. He has also shown a nice touch around the rim, and his ability to finish above the rim is greatly evident.
He’s basically got everything that entails a superstar, and that’s just on the court. Off the court, he is also one of the most interesting recruits in the country, starting with his family.
Porter was named MVP of this year’s McDonald’s All American game this year (AP Photo)
Porter has basketball in his blood. His father, of course, is now on the coaching staff at Missouri and was previously on the staff at Washington. His mother was also an elite basketball athlete in high school. As stated previously, Porter averaged 36.2 points per game in high school, which is 22.5 points fewer than his mother.
That’s right. Porter’s mother, Lisa Porter, averaged 58.7 points per game.
Not a typo.
She went on to play for the University of Iowa and scored over 1,300 points in her career. She also lead Iowa to their first Big Ten title.
On top of that, Porter is dating actress Madison Pettis, who is best known for her appearance as Dwayne Johnson’s daughter in “The Game Plan.”
Regardless of his off-the-court life, what most people should be concerned with is what he can do on the court. There is no question he is the best recruit this year coming out of high school and there is no question that the kid can hoop.
A talent like that could make Missouri relevant again in the win column and maybe help them to another tournament appearance. That is something that they haven’t seen in a long time.
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