The Houston Rockets made a big gamble on Kevin Porter Jr.
It wasn’t only his volatile character but also his position on the floor, as coach Stephen Silas put the ball on his hands to switch him to point guard.
Porter Jr was used to playing off the ball at the two and the three.
But even though he’s not a natural play-maker, he’s making sure to improve his court vision and decision-making and keeping all his teammates involved:
“I’m the point guard, so it starts with me facilitating and getting my guys in the right spots,” Porter said as the Rockets beat the Bulls. “We had a very good game sharing the ball. We were phenomenal when it came to our chemistry, and we want to continue that. We have a lot of talent on this team. We don’t all have to dribble, dribble, dribble. We want everyone to touch it, get a feel for it, and stay in tune with the game. That is what we’ve been focused on. Even if we don’t run sets, swing, swing, swing, swing, make sure everyone’s involved and move the ball.”
https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1607582958243975170
Porter had one of the best games of his young career against the Bulls, dishing out 9 dimes to go along with a season-high 36 points.
The Rockets currently rank last in assists per game at just 21.7, so Porter Jr. knows it’s up to him to spread the wealth and get his guys going.
And even if that experiment with him at point guard doesn’t pan out, the trouble-making guard has sure taken a major step forward this season, and looks like a much more mature player, and that’s also a success for the organization.
