Milwaukee Bucks fans couldn’t wait to get Kevin Porter Jr. back, and now the rest of the league can see why. In his return on Saturday, a blowout win over Brooklyn, he produced a solid 13 points, four rebounds, and six assists in 25 minutes on the floor. In his two games since, he’s averaging 28 points, six assists, and 2.5 steals on 61/57/89 shooting splits. He was a bit reckless with the ball early on against Detroit, resulting in seven turnovers on the night, but he cleaned things up after the first quarter and was a major reason the Bucks pulled off an improbable comeback win. He is every bit the spark this team so badly needed.
Porter adds shot of caffeine to Bucks offense
Indeed, it was Porter’s four-point play late in the first-quarter that really signaled a turning of the tide after the Bucks fell in an early 27-9 hole. The end result of a hectic sequence – Porter was initially stripped at the basket, then got the ball in the corner several passes later – his free throw cut the deficit to nine, 30-21, and Milwaukee hung around from that point on. It all set the stage for a fourth-quarter comeback after entering the final period down seven.
An electric shot creator, Porter has instantly injected life into a Bucks offense that had lapsed into clunky iso ball or otherwise stagnant possessions. Often it was just plain bad. Giving Cole Anthony the keys to the offense developed into a disaster – that train ran off the rails.
While Porter can be careless at times, too, he’s also a high-volume producer and relentless engine on either end of the floor. somewhat unconventionally, the Bucks have paired him with Ryan Rollins in the starting five, to great effect. As demonstrated last night, if Porter starts getting a bit unhinged, the younger Rollins can ironically be the one to slow things down and create a stable possession. For his part, he added 22 points and eight assists (on three turnovers). Porter led the way with 26 and seven.
Each of them can play off the other. Just having Porter on the floor makes Rollins more effective, as teams have another shot creator to focus on and he doesn’t have to shoulder such a heavy scoring load. He can operate more naturally off-ball, getting clean catch-and-shoot looks. He doesn’t have to force his way to the rim for contested lay-ins all the time. The more instinctive “point guard” between the two – both are really combo guards – Porter can take breaks from time to time by letting Rollins take the reins.
It’s a small sample size and the Bucks aren’t exactly in the green (10-13, plus Giannis drama), but Porter’s return undeniably gives fans something to get up for when tuning into games.
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