In the 2013 NBA Draft, the Washington Wizards used their third overall pick on Otto Porter Jr. from Georgetown. At the time, the young man was viewed as the most NBA ready player to come out of the draft. Unfortunately for Porter Jr. and the Wizards, his rookie season was decimated by injury and he was unable to make an impact.
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At the beginning of this season, many people were still optimistic about the young forward, and felt that he would reassure the Wizards that they made the right choice using their high draft pick on him. Unfortunately, Randy Wittman had been reluctant to provide his young player with enough playing time to develop. With so many veteran players on the roster, Otto Porter Jr. became a forgotten man on the Washington Wizards roster.
With very little opportunity to prove his worth, Porter Jr. was being viewed as a possible bust.
Now that the Wizards have secured their playoff spot, Wittman has been giving some of the more seasoned veterans some nights off. This has given Otto Porter Jr. the opportunity to receive an increase in minutes, and he is taking full advantage of them.
In Sunday afternoon’s loss to the Houston Rockets, Porter Jr. played 17 minutes, and contributed 15 points and six rebounds. Then on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers, Randy Wittman really let the kid play, giving him 38 minutes of action. In those 38 minutes, Porter Jr. scored 15 points and racked up seven rebounds. Otto was then given 28 minutes of playing time Friday night against the New York Knicks.
His numbers were similar to the two previous games as he recorded 17 points and eight rebounds.
Say what you want about the quality of opponents he faced, Otto Porter Jr. has demonstrated that he can be a valuable asset to his team when given the opportunity to play. With Paul Pierce’s career pretty much over, the Wizards need to continue to give this get kid quality minutes. Washington would be better off making Otto Porter Jr. their permanent starting small forward, and have Pierce come off the bench.
This would most likely benefit the both players, as Pierce would experience less exhaustion each game.
Porter Jr. will never be a star in the NBA. However, he can be the type of player Washington imagined him to be when they selected him third overall in 2013. By forcing players to acknowledge his presence on the court, some pressure will be taken off John Wall and Bradley Beal.
When I look into the future and see the Wizards starting lineup consisting of John Wall, Bradley Beal, Marcin Gortat, and Otto Porter Jr. (PF to be named at a later date), I can’t help but envision a force to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference. If Randy Wittman is unable to see the same thing, he should be fired!
Next: Why John Wall Should Be MVP
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