Houston Rockets: 3 reasons why Kevin Porter Jr can be the next James Harden

Houston Rockets: Kevin Porter’s scoring potential

After being drafted with the last pick in the first round of the 2019 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kevin Porter Jr was able to find success with a role off the bench for his team.

Porter was able to contribute immediately. In 50 games, averaging just 23 minutes of action per game, Kevin Porter Jr’s performance was impressive despite his limited time of playing.

Of rookies who logged at least 1100 minutes of game time or more, Porter was top-ten in scoring, ahead of PJ Washington who made the All-Rookie Second Team. Had Porter seen more action on the court, there would have definitely been a case to be made for him to be on an All-Rookie Team.

If we examine his shooting splits from last season, Kevin Porter Jr showed that he is more than capable of creating his own offense. 55.6-percent of his shots inside the three-point line were unassisted.

Not only could he create his own shot he was able to create high-quality shots with 29.5-percent of his shots coming at the rim, where he converted them 71.8-percent of the time. When compared to Harden’s career average of 64-percent shooting near the rim, Porter stands out.

The majority of Porter Jr’s shot attempts came from behind the arc last season but this will likely change once he suits up for the Rockets as he will have a significantly larger role with the team compared to last season playing a sixth man role for the Cavs. All one needs to do is watch him play to be optimistic about his offensive potential and his career-high 30-point performance against a great Miami Heat defense is evidence enough.

? @Kevinporterjr's career-high 30 PTS lead the @cavs to victory in OT.#BeTheFight #NBARooks pic.twitter.com/Z3UbPXjBzM

— NBA (@NBA) February 25, 2020

Porter finished the game by shooting 50-percent from the field on 18 field goal attempts along with eight rebounds. With the Houston Rockets seeking an offensive playmaker, Porter can fill this void when teams are busying trying to neutralize the Rockets’ other options such as Christian Wood, who has assumed the position of being their go-to scorer in Harden’s absence.

Next: No. 2