#29. San Antonio Spurs (via Toronto Raptors) — Jontay Porter
Jontay Porter, the younger brother of Michael Porter, was widely believed to be a late lottery prospect in last year’s draft due to his young age, terrific feel and impressive upside.
However, Porter opted to return to school, which ended up being a tough choice as he tore his ACL not once, but twice, being unable to play a single minute for Missouri.
Now, Porter returns to the 2019 NBA Draft as a big-time sleeper pick with a lot of injury concerns. The Atlanta Hawks must hope that those concerns force Porter all the way out of the first round so they could take him in the second, but in this mock, the San Antonio Spurs make a typically brilliant draft decision by selecting Porter at 29th overall.
A true seven-footer with savant-level basketball IQ, Porter’s lack of athleticism does not diminish his impact in the slightest. On that front, despite being injured for much of the past year and a half, Porter came into the 2019 NBA Draft Combine in better shape than many expected he would after missing all that time:
Jontay Porter measured 8.5% BF at the Combine yesterday. He's down to 210. Last year almost 14% BF, 236 lbs. That's pretty great news.
— Evan Zamir (@thecity2) May 16, 2019
With LaMarcus Aldridge likely in the latter stages of his career (though still extremely effective), Porter could serve as the team’s big man of the future, depending on what they think of Jakob Poeltl. Head coach Gregg Popovich is usually a fan of smart players, and Porter might be among the smartest in this draft class.