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Missouri Basketball: Tigers land nation’s number one prospect

By Matt Green

Feb 15, 2017; Columbia, MO, USA; A general view of the court as the Missouri Tigers warm up before the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 15, 2017; Columbia, MO, USA; A general view of the court as the Missouri Tigers warm up before the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports /
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Cuonzo Martin has only been on the job for a week and he is already elevating the talent level of the Missouri basketball team.

Michael Porter Jr. is the top-ranked high school basketball prospect in the country according to the ESPN100 rankings. Porter Jr. is listed at 6’10, 212 pounds and is projected to be a small forward at the next level.

He committed to Washington last summer, but after Lorenzo Romar was fired last week, he asked for a release from his national letter of intent, and Washington granted him his release on Thursday. And on Friday he committed to the Missouri Tigers.

If you want an idea for just how good this kid is, check out this highlight tape. I’m not saying Porter Jr. is the next Kevin Durant, but with his skill set and body type, he is sure to draw some comparisons to the Durantula.

Porter Jr. is from Nathan High School in Seattle, but was born in Columbia Mo. hence his latest tweet:

Family Affair

The Romar firing is likely the secondary reason he chose to decommit from the Huskies. His father, Michael Porter, has been on Washington’s staff since May of 2016. And now Porter is joining, you guessed it, Cuonzo Martin’s staff at Missouri.

Before joining the Washington coaching staff, Porter spent three seasons as an assistant coach for Missouri’s women’s basketball team. And before that he was the Tigers’ Director of Basketball Operations for three seasons.

And it will be a true family affair when the two arrive in Columbia. Porter’s sister-in-law, Robin Pingeton, is the head women’s basketball coach at Missouri. And two of his daughters, Bri and Cierra both play on the Missouri basketball team, as well as their other high school teammate, and team leading scorer, Sophie Cunningham.

When it is all said-and-done, they might have to build a statue for Porter in Columbia. Not only is he already responsible for the two best players on the women’s basketball team, he is about to give the men’s basketball team the best recruit in the history for a program.

And there’s eight kids in the Porter family, so who knows, he might not be done yet.

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