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Michael Porter Jr. Officially Considering Missouri Tigers

By Patrick Karraker

Jul 10, 2016; North Augusta, SC, USA; Mokan Elite player Michael Porter Jr. (1) looks to pass the ball during the first half of the Nike Peach Jam Finals against the PSA Cardinals at the Riverview Park Activity Center. Mokan won 93-65. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 10, 2016; North Augusta, SC, USA; Mokan Elite player Michael Porter Jr. (1) looks to pass the ball during the first half of the Nike Peach Jam Finals against the PSA Cardinals at the Riverview Park Activity Center. Mokan won 93-65. Mandatory Credit: Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports /
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The top basketball prospect for the Class of 2017 is officially considering Mizzou.

Michael Porter Jr., the top basketball recruit in the world for the Class of 2017, is officially a free agent once again. After the University of Washington fired the head coach he committed to play for, Lorenzo Romar, and his father, Michael Porter Sr., who served as an assistant on Romar’s staff, many assumed that Porter Jr. would ask to be released from the binding national letter of intent that he signed with Washington earlier this year.

After winning the Gatorade Boys National Basketball Player of the Year award on Wednesday, Porter confirmed that he does want out of his scholarship at UW, as USA TODAY‘s Jason Jordan reported. The 6-foot-10, 212-pound small forward said that he’s still considering playing for the Huskies this fall, but he’ll also consider Oklahoma, Virginia, and–to the delight of fans who have had a really rough go of it over the past four seasons–the University of Missouri.

There have been rumors that Porter’s father will surface as an assistant to newly-hired coach Cuonzo Martin this fall, and Porter confirmed on Wednesday that his dad has received an offer to join the staff. Though Porter Jr. says he didn’t even know who Martin was before he took the Mizzou job, he appears to be interested in coming to play at MU, as Jordan wrote:

"“That’s home for me and they reached out to my dad with a job offer so if he accepts that, not saying I’ll definitely go there, but it’d be big.” Porter did say that he saw new Mizzou coach Cuonzo Martin when Martin met with his father, but they were not allowed to speak because of recruiting rules."

Porter’s two sisters, Bri and Cierra, play for the Tigers women’s team, and his father was an assistant with that team for three seasons prior to joining the Huskies’ staff last summer. If Porter Sr. does indeed accept the offer to be on Martin’s staff, his brothers Jontay (a 6-foot-9, 225-pound junior) and Coban (a 6-foot-2 freshman) would likely move back to Columbia and play high school basketball there, with a good chance existing that all three brothers could eventually end up being part of the Mizzou program at one point or another.

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The addition of the eldest Porter brother obviously would be massive for the Mizzou basketball program and would likely put them right back into serious contention for an NCAA tournament berth next season. As Jordan wrote, however, Porter cautioned fans not to assume that he’ll automatically go wherever his dad decides to coach:

"Porter was adamant that what his father does won’t be the determining factor in his decision. “My dad has to do what makes him happy and it’s the same for me,” Porter said. “He knows that. That said, it would be cool to play under my dad because I love him and I trust him and I know he’s got my best interest in mind. I’m taking my time with this process though. I’m gonna look at everything very thorough and make the best decision.”"

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Porter won’t be allowed to have official contact with Mizzou staffers or to go on an official visit until Washington formally releases him from his NLI. With that in mind, it could be a while before he makes a decision on which school he’s going to attend this fall.

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