Craig Porter Jr. Joins Cleveland Cavaliers on a Four-Year Contract
The Cleveland Cavaliers have signed rookie guard Craig Porter Jr. to a four-year contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports.
Porter Jr., a rookie guard from Wichita State who went undrafted, had a two-way contract with the Cavaliers. However, he has never played for the Cleveland Charge in the G League. Maybe never.
One of the greatest shocks of the 2023–24 Cavaliers season has been Porter Jr. The intention when the team recruited him was to develop him gradually and have him play in the G League. However, Ricky Rubio’s decision to leave the team for to mental health concerns and his final acceptance of a team buyout forced him into NBA action. In addition, guard Ty Jerome hasn’t played since suffering an ankle injury in Cleveland’s home opener. Darius Garland was also sidelined by an injury.
Porter Jr. appears calmer and more at ease than the typical rookie thus far. He has averaged 14.7 minutes per game, 6.5 points, and 2.8 assists in 32 games (five of which he has started). During his five starts as a professional, he played his finest game. In over 40 minutes on December 23, he scored 19 points and gave out eight assists as the Cavaliers defeated the Chicago Bulls 109-105. Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, and Donovan Mitchell were not present for the game.
With the club back to full health, Porter Jr.’s playing time has decreased recently. After playing 21 minutes against the Orlando MagicMAGIC -12.8% on January 22, he has only accumulated garbage time minutes. For the previous four games, he had not played. However, from now on, he will be available for minutes if needed and active for every Cleveland game.
Porter Jr.’s contract is a multi-year agreement with many non-guaranteed years, according to Chris Fedor of cleveland.com. Under Koby Altman’s leadership, the Cavs signed players like Dean Wade, Lamar Stevens, and Sam Merrill under similar deal structures. The Cavs have an affordable backup point guard if he stays. If the squad can be maintained intact, that would be useful as they attempt to budget for next season and beyond. Furthermore, Porter Jr. may be released with no financial consequence if he doesn’t improve. Porter Jr. benefits monetarily, at least temporarily, from his two-way agreement.
Cleveland currently has a two-way roster spot available. According to Fedor, they won’t sign a player to a two-way contract until after the All-Star break, when they will replace Isaiah Mobley and Emoni Bates in those positions. After Zhaire Smith’s 10-day contract ends, he might be a contender for that spot as he recently signed with the organization.
