Jason Lloyd in The Athletic had this on Kevin Porter Jr.
On Thursday, Kevin Porter Jr. became the youngest player in NBA history to score 50 points and pass for 10 assists in a game. He eclipsed LeBron James. Let that sink in.
15. First of all, unfortunately, Porter could still crash. One sensational night does not make a career, and Porter still has a long way to go to prove he’s reliable and accountable. The same week he scored 50, he was fined $50,000 by the league for violating health-and-safety protocols when he visited a strip club in Miami. His comeback story is far, far from complete.
[Was he with J.R. Smith by any chance?]
16. But if Houston figures out how to stabilize Porter and unlock his mammoth talent, it’s going to be awfully embarrassing to the Cavs, who gave him away for a second-round pick that’s top-55 protected and likely never to convey.
17. He always had enough talent to be a star. And the Cavs tried hard to make it work with him, even through all of his personal issues. I wasn’t critical of the organization when it moved on from him because I do believe the Cavs tried everything and, at some point, the player has to be responsible for his own choices.
18. But if Houston can stabilize him and unlock his mammoth potential, the questions the Cavs will have to answer are: Why couldn’t they make it work? What is it about Houston’s system and culture that will allow him to thrive when theirs could not?
19. Again, we’re not at that point. Porter still has the capability of sabotaging his own future. But right now, it doesn’t look good at all for the Cavs.
I agree - it does not look good at all for the Cavs.
I think they handled it very badly. First of all, he was a member of the team and had been assigned a locker. They traded for a player, then took away KPJ's locker and gave it to the new guy, moving Porter to a spot with the G League and 10-day guys. It was a slap in the face and they didn't even talk to him about it beforehand and explain what they were doing and why. He just walked into the locker room and there it was - he had been moved from the adult table to the kids table.
Did it occur to anybody that he might react badly and that maybe they shouldn't do this, or at least talk to him before the fact and make sure there would not be a problem?
You could argue he deserved it from driving around in his Mom's car with her gun in the car and falling asleep at the wheel in the middle of the night. And for immature and erratic bahavior in general. But I would argue that you don't humiliate a person in front of his teammates. If Taurean Prince wanted to wear Porter's number would they have made him switch jerseys, too?
Yes, Porter overreacted. But he never should have had anything to react to in the first place. And the Cavs have placed such an emphasis on culture building that once Porter started screaming obscenities at team officials and throwing food around they either had to release him or admit the whole culture thing was a farce.
I hated it when I found out he was released just a few hours after the camera caught him on the team bench, looking happy and excited and cheering on his teammates. Reports were he was back in the gym and working out individually and getting closer to returning. Then he's gone and now he's playing for another team, inconsistently, but showing phenominal potential. The youngest player in NBA history to score 50 points with 10 assists in a game. And we gave him away.
The Porter giveaway and the Love contract are two decisions that could haunt this franchise for years.
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