Craig Porter Jr. Leads Cavs To Victory Over Bulls
Everyone on the Cleveland Cavaliers needed to step up on Saturday night. Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Donovan Mitchell were ruled out well before the game started, and then it was announced before the game that the duo of Caris LeVert and Sam Merrill would also be on the sideline.
This pushed everyone's favorite rookie guard Craig Porter Jr. into the starting lineup. Let's just say he looked like he belonged in that position.
J.B. Bickerstaff said before the game that he wanted Porter to be aggressive in his role as the starting point guard.
Dec 23, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Craig Porter (9) shoots against Chicago Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan (11) during the second half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
He was just that and finished the game with 19 points while shooting 57% from the floor (8-14) and dished out eight assists as well. The dynamic guard also grabbed seven rebounds as he was on triple-double watch by the end of the game.
Bickerstaff was very complimentary of Porter Jr.'s game following the win.
"It's triple-double watch, organizing a game, creating for everybody else, and then doing all of the little stuff, dirty stuff that he just has a knack for," said the Cavaliers' head coach.
"[Porter] just has a way to come up with the ball, rebounds gets deflections, steals, and he's a really good scorer. He can get to the midrange and make shots over the top of people - got a great touch around the basket. But we've talked about it before, he's just so poised. You never saw him get sped up. You never saw be rushed. He just got to his spot and did his thing. So, I thought he did a great job tonight."
Porter Jr. focused more on the team effort when talking to the media after the game. He said the win was "a total group effort" and that their defense set the tone for the entire game.
At the beginning of the season, Craig's emergence was exciting considering his underdog and undrafted story. Now it's pretty clear that Porter Jr. is just a darn good basketball player and deserves to be in this Cavaliers rotation full-time.
