While Michael Porter Jr.’s decision to enter the NBA Draft and sign with an agent likely ended Missouri’s hopes of entering next season as a top-10 team, it gave head coach Cuonzo Martin and his staff a clearer view of how many scholarships will be at their disposal this offseason.
The only expected decision left on the table is that of Jontay Porter, Michael younger brother. Projected as a late first-round pick by certain mock drafts and not even listed in others, the possibilities of where the 18-year-old freshman could end up are numerous. Unlike Michael, who is regarded as surefire lottery pick, Jontay’s up-and-down freshman season leaves NBA executives with an interesting conundrum. On certain nights, he was the best player on the floor, no matter who Missouri was playing. On others, he was barely visible, chipping in a couple of points and a few rebounds here and there.
Following Missouri’s loss to Florida State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Jontay said he’d take spring break to relax at the beach with his family, which shown by his Instagram posts, he did. There was no certain timetable set for his decision, but the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NBA Draft is April 22, and the deadline to withdraw your name from consideration is June 11, leaving time for prospects to not only attend the NBA Draft Combine in May but to also visit with team executives and get feedback on where they could expect to be drafted.
The uncertainty around Jontay leaves Missouri with the possibility of two or three open scholarships to work with this spring. The Tigers expect to return six players from last year’s team — Jordan Geist, Mitchell Smith, Kevin Puryear, Reed Nikko, Cullen Vanleer and Jeremiah Tilmon. Three prospects have already — junior college forward K.J. Santos, post-grad guard Javon Pickett and Missouri’s Gatorade High School Player of the Year Torrence Watson — with Chicago Simeon guard Xavier Pinson committed but unsigned.
Should the younger Porter opt to leave, Missouri will have three available scholarships and will need another forward/center to either start alongside Tilmon or provide bench minutes. In the case of a full Porter exodus, here’s where we see Missouri trying to go with its three available spots.
Sunrise Christian (Kan.) top-100 forward Blake Hinson is the only true forward Missouri has an offer out to right now after he reclassified up to the 2018 class just a few weeks ago. Hinson might be pushing 6-foot-7, so he won’t be able to replace Porter’s length and shot-blocking ability, but his versatility and scoring prowess would give Missouri a lot of lineup flexibility and another player who can score at all three levels.
Webster Groves (Mo.) Courtney Ramey is still the Tigers’ most important target, but the top unsigned guard in the 2018 class isn’t short on suitors. Illinois, Oklahoma State, Texas look to be Missouri’s toughest competition, with SMU and South Carolina making late pushes in the last few weeks to get in the picture. With the late signing period opening next Wednesday and running through mid-May, Ramey is expected to take the rest of his official visits and make a decision in the coming weeks. His addition would give Missouri a true point guard ready to start from Day 1, and it would allow Jordan Geist to move back his more natural two-guard spot.
Missouri’s third scholarship is likely to be occupied by a transfer guard, and Missouri has been connected with a number of them. Maine graduate transfer Aaron Calixte, Illinois transfer Mark Smith, former Albany guard David Nichols and Evansville transfers Dru Smith and Ryan Taylor have all been contacted by Martin and his staff. Only Taylor, Calixte and Nichols would be immediately eligible to play next season, but Mark Smith has three years of eligibility remaining and Dru Smith has two.
And while getting just one year out of a player isn’t ideal, taking a graduate transfer does open another scholarship for Missouri in the stacked 2019 class that features nine Rivals150 players within 250 miles of campus.
Should Porter opt to return to Missouri for his sophomore season, not much in Missouri’s recruiting strategy will change, other than a likely cooling on Hinson and a ramped-up push for a graduate transfer to get the most out of what could be Porter and Tilmon’s final seasons in Columbia.
