For Charlotte Hornets, Kevin Porter would be a gamble at 12, but he intrigues

If the Charlotte Hornets choose shooting guard Kevin Porter Jr. in the first round of the NBA draft, it will be a bold move with the 12th overall pick.

Porter turned pro after a single season at Southern Cal. He averaged under 10 points in 21 games, finishing fourth in scoring on his team at 9.5. Trojans coach Andy Enfield suspended Porter two games for conduct issues.

However, Porter has the size (6-foot-6), ability to create space for a shot, and shooting stats (47 percent from the field, 41 percent from the college 3-point line) that make him intriguing in a high-potential manner in a draft weak in depth.

Porter worked out for the Hornets on Saturday. He has also auditioned for the Brooklyn Nets, Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs and has more workouts scheduled with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic and Washington Wizards.

Based on those teams’ interest, Porter could go anywhere from the back end of top 10 to the late teens in the June 20 draft, so it’s logical the Hornets would check him out.

It’s also logical because the Hornets have an unsettled situation at shooting guard. Jeremy Lamb, second in scoring last season at 15.3 points per game, is an unrestricted free agent. Malik Monk, who the Hornets drafted 11th overall in 2017, hasn’t established himself, slipping in and out of the rotation his first two seasons.

Porter is young, having turned 19 in May. But he believes his game is suited for the NBA, where there is that much more of a premium on the ability to create space and shots.

He doesn’t figure to end up a point guard, but the ability for a shooting guard to help facilitate the offense — the way Klay Thompson does with the Golden State Warriors — is of growing value in the NBA.

“My decision-making off the pick-and-roll and transition,” Porter said, when asked what he most wanted to show the Hornets.

“I was play-making for teammates or finishing at the cup. Quick decision-making. That was the best thing I showcased. And my handle.”

Two NBA guards, Jamal Crawford of the Phoenix Suns and Dejounte Murray of the Spurs, have mentored Porter. Crawford, one of the NBA’s top sixth men, has advised Porter since he was in the eighth grade in Seattle.

“More mental than physical,” Porter said of the advice from Crawford and Murray. “They know I can play; they want me mentally locked in for every single workout.”

Porter believes the spacing created by so much 3-point shooting in the NBA fits his ability to create offense. But it also means facing ever more complex and exotic defenses at the pro level.

“(Defenders) sit in gaps and there’s a lot of help defense now. There are a lot of scorers, but to be able to play-make, too, out of the pick-and-roll, to be able to drive, is a big upside.”

His jump shot probably will need some fine-tuning. He thrusts his 3-pointer up from his chest, similar to a shot-put motion. It went in in college, but in the NBA, the arc is that much farther from the rim.

“That NBA 3 is really far,” Porter said. “It’s different.”

This story was originally published June 8, 2019 at 4:45 PM with the headline "For Charlotte Hornets, Kevin Porter would be a gamble at 12, but he intrigues."