It’s likely more than immaturity. I read about your father and I am sorry that happened. It seems like you handled the fallout well. However many people do not. Porter likely has a serious of conditions from his childhood such as PTSD and others. My understanding is Porter never received the counseling needed for such an event.
I support optimism but fans need to understand that “fixing” Porter to deal with his demons is something complicated. Some fans think just removing Porter and putting him in a new location will fix him, it won’t.
I didn't go to counseling at all , I was pretty young and tho I remember it , it was a blur ... but I can understand the PTSD part - that incident IS why I have a CHL and carry literally everywhere I go. I refuse to "Not be prepared". That isn't likely to be part of his bi polar / manic depressive issues tho. That's not "learned behavior" its chemical in the brain. (this was part of my studies in college before I decided to go a totally different direction). From what you described above , it appears he's more manic than depressive. Manics often have a heightened sense of self worth and treat those around them .... poorly. This explains a lot of the "misconduct" issues. (this is the root of the word maniac). I wonder what , if any mood stabilizing meds he's taking.
The more I've seen of KPJ, the more I think he fits in as a 6th man/Eric Gordon type of role as opposed to being this 20+ ppg starter. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's what his game feels like right now and a role he could probably fit into quite well.
Yes. People like to make the James Harden comparison on scoring and defense, but minus the passing, rebounding and health he would be closer to a young Eric Gordon (who was excellent in his own right).
He's twenty years old Just starting to scratch the surface of his immense talent. My question is if he has these issues and is handling them in the G-League, why cant he handle them in the NBA where Lucas could help him on a daily basis.
KPJ in the NBA at 19 scored more points on better efficiency than Harden in his rookie season at 20. Just for your information. And EG has never not even closely has ever had the ball handling and footwork skills that KPJ has not the height and athleticism. EG is shorter and stocky and his one advantage is strength. This comparison makes absolutely zero sense. And I'm not saying that KPJ will ever reach Harden's level of perennial top 5 MVP candidate as Harden had an astronomical jump when coming from the Thunder to the Rockets it's just the EG comparison is a head scratcher. Like that came out of no where.
The Eric Gordon comparison was a head scratcher. Like I don't see any resemblance. He's closer to Jamal Crawford than EG if you want to say he isn't going to pan out to be a top 20 or 10 level player.
Not really. They're both just shifty and crafty with attacking the basket, as Gordon was in his Clippers days. Of course there are differences, I'm focusing on impact/output. The main point is: production is the same as Gordon, if defense is bad (like Harden or young Gordon) then it will take more than 30ppg for this guy (without passing or rebounding) to have a franchise-level impact on the floor. He looks really promising, but Harden is a whole lot more than just being good at getting to the line. KPJ hasn't shown glimpses of being more than a Bradley Beal type, very one dimensional. Having said that, a young Bradley Beal is a great asset even if not a top 5 MVP candidate. I think the kid has a high ceiling and he's going to be doing this stuff in the NBA eventually. I think he should lead our bench unit soon and we should move Gordon into the starting line up. Truth is you need 2 top 10 MVP candidates to win a title (or 1 MVP and 2 All Stars) + you have to be top 10 in defense and offense. You can't be capped out before adding #1 and #2 salaries. Every other way of winning a title is an exception, and you shouldn't really plan for a Hakeem or Dirk-like journey. With KPJ/Wood/Tate we have a good core, but we still need at least 1 solid franchise piece.
What makes you say he's one dimensional? His footwork is immaculate for his age. He has a quick one motion jump shot off the dribble. His vision is good. He sees the lob pass well like Harden. He has the ability to be the primary playmaker and again, he had a more productive rookie year than Harden while also being a year younger at 19.
That's amazing man, I just don't think he's going to be better than Harden because Harden is an all time great scorer and playmaker. People with rookie seasons similar to Porter rarely end up a perennial MVP candidate. I know you have your qualms with Harden, but I'm not ignoring or diminishing Porter's potential, I just think the comparison to Harden is an unfair one for KPJ. That's a high bar to clear. KPJ certainly has the skills to be an elite creator, he is excellent at PG.
I said in an earlier post here that Harden had an astronomical jump when he got to the Rockets which makes his pace of improvement a bit abnormal. I said that Porter reaching Harden's level is a long shot because many things need to break his way.
“People with rookie seasons similar to Porter rarely end up a perennial MVP Candidate” This isn’t wrong but Porter’s Rookie season was better than Harden’s. No reason to downplay his upside regardless of the odds. The potential, talent and work ethic is all there. If he can get the right help for his mental health (particularly in the off-season and when he has to sit out for injury, basketball is his outlet) no one knows how far he can go. He’s 20.
I believe a reason to be optimistic is that he’s at his best when he’s playing ball. It’s therapeutic for him. Most likely he has his worst moments after long layoffs like this past offseason and while missing games due to injury. From what Ive gathered having things “taken away” from him basketball, his locker etc.. it’s a major trigger since his father was taken away. I think the best thing to do is to keep him on the court while he receives counseling and psychiatric help simultaneously. He needs to be pulled up immediately after the g league bubble.
It's been discussed and its been totally debunked as well and no it was not the reason we dd not get over the hump it was defense we could not stop GS down the stretch. Harden has never just stood at half court and that why your argument has zero merit, Harden had most unassisted points is because that's the kind of offense we ran and him running that offense made us one the most efficient and potent offense in NBA history. What has Wall won and why do we care what he has touched on? Its plain to see you don't know what you are talking about and just want to push a false narrative.
I’ll never understand the argument that you can’t compare a prospect to a star because that’s somehow implying the prospect will be as good as or better than the star. The way KPJ creates shots is uncannily similar to Harden. Doesn’t mean anyone expects him to become Harden.
Im not digging the vibe on keeping Porter Jr insulated and that he's some ticking timebomb and having reckless amatuer diagnosis flying around. He played 50 games as a rookie and there were not so many 'blowups' that it would give you the Royce White impression. The kid came back from practice one day and his personal belongings were moved to another locker. From what i've read among professional athletes thats a big no no. There was blame on both sides IMO, but KPJ should have handled it better - he allowed it to trigger him into a state of rage where he wasnt filtering what he should have been filtering coming out of his mouth. Has there been any reports of him being a nuisance or hindering the Vipers games and practices? Seems like to me he is doing his best to learn from what happened and mover forward. Rockets will have to take off the kid gloves soon - this guy could be the most talented guy in the G League he needs to be maturing vs the best players he can face.
