Bobcats Giving Up on Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Already? Report Says They'll Draft Otto Porter [UPDATE]
By Jason McIntyre
According to Chris Sheridan, the Bobcats are looking to move MKG – 9.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg – because the Wizards are going to draft UNLV’s Anthony Bennett 3rd overall, and Georgetown’s Otto Porter will fall to Charlotte 4th.
[UPDATE: Charlotte Observer says it ain’t happening.]
Of course, it makes little sense to have both Porter and MKG, since they’re essentially the same player at the same position – long, defensive, and not very offensive-minded.
Sheridan says the teams most interested in MKG include Boston (should they cut Pierce), Milwaukee (doesn’t have one), and possibly Golden State, except the Bobcats want Harrison Barnes (!) and that’s obviously not going to work.
I like Otto Porter as much as the next guy. He’s probably a slightly better all-around player than MKG was coming out of UK, but Porter also just turned 20 and was the Big East Player of the Year; MKG is still only 19.
What’s wrong with keeping both players? Would it be the worst thing in the world to have two very good, very young small forwards? Yeah, the Bobcats would still have no power forwards and no shooting guards and – depending whom you ask, no point guards – but those blanks can be filled in later. It ain’t like trading MKG makes this team a playoff contender.
Porter’s not an awful 3-point shooter (42 percent), but I think he’ll end up an NBA small forward. How about this, Mr. Jordan – keep both players, hopefully their value goes up next season, and then unload one of them to better position the Bobcats in the 2014 draft?
Worst case scenario – you’re bad again, have a top 5 pick in a strong draft, and you’ve got a trade chip in Porter or MKG. [via Sheridan Hoops]