The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Porter Jr. wants to star in his role
Wichita State product fighting for job on end of bench
Don’t sleep on Craig Porter Jr of the Cavaliers. That free advice isn’t for fans. It’s for opposing NBA guards.
Porter is a 6-foot-2, 23-year-old guard from Wichita State fighting for a job at the end of the Cavaliers’ bench. He is in training camp under contract as a twoway player, meaning he is under contract to the Cavaliers and their G-League affiliate, the Cleveland Charge.
Porter played 20 minutes for the Cavs on Oct. 16 in a preseason game with Ra’anana Maccabi Ra’anana from the Israeli National League and finished the night with 12 points and six assists. He was 1-for-1 on 3-point tries, blocked a shot and turned the ball over twice. The Cavaliers won, 120-89.
“He’s played a lot of basketball, but he knows who he is,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He doesn’t get sped up. He plays at his tempo. It’s a pace, but there’s an explosiveness at the end of it.
“He has a strange knack at that size for blocking shots. He stays in front of guys, but being on the side and being able to recover and then explode vertically to challenge and contest and block shots. It’s something he’s accustomed to, but it catches offensive players off guard.”
NBA rosters must be trimmed to 15 by 5 p.m. Oct. 23. Teams can also carry two two-way players. Porter, Emoni Bates, and Isaiah Mobley — Evan Mobley’s brother — were under two-way contracts with the Cavs at the start of training camp.
Porter led Wichita State in rebounds, assists, steals and blocked shots last season. Notice scoring isn’t on the list, but for a 6-foot-2 player to lead his team in rebounds and blocked shots shows Porter is more than
a finesse player who likes to shoot the ball the first chance he gets.
Bickerstaff talked about Porter exploding vertically to block shots. Porter has a 40-1/2 inch vertical jump. He has honed his defensive skills in practice going against Cavaliers star guards Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell.
“I want to contribute any way it is, whether it’s a minute or 30 seconds, just make winning plays,” Porter said after the game with Maccabi Ra’anana. “I’ve always been a role player my whole career, so I understand what it takes. Winning is the big thing in my mind. Whatever it takes to win is what I’m going to do.”
Many NBA teams were interested in Porter before the draft in June. He worked out for the Celtics, Warriors, Wizards, Cavaliers, Pistons, Magic, Heat and Clippers, No team selected him, so the Cavaliers signed him as an undrafted rookie.
Whether his age worked against Porter (23 is old for a rookie) or it was something else, the Cavaliers are happy he is wearing wine and gold. Lamar Stevens went undrafted and ended up playing three productive seasons for the Cavs, primarily in a bench role. Stevens is currently on the Celtics’ roster.
“Guarding the guys we have on this team every day in practice has definitely shown me what the NBA is all about,” “I feel that’s my NBA Welcome moment. Those guys can do everything.
“Darius and I are the same age. He’s been doing this since he was 19. He has that mileage I want to learn. When he first was brought in, he had to lead right away. I’m trying to pick his brain and see the different things he sees in a game I might not see. He’s been great.”
The Cavaliers close their preseason on Oct. 20 in a game with the Pacers in Indianapolis. They open their regular season on Oct. 25 in Brooklyn and play their home opener at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 27 against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.