Porter was the 3rd overall pick in the 2013 draft by the Wizards, and struggled a lot during his first two seasons. Last year he had some good stretches, but was pretty inconsistent. This summer, the Wizards took a wait-and-see approach, not offering him an extension (although given David Falk is his agent, there probably wasn't much room for negotiation to begin with.)
This year, he's taken a huge step forward. He's shooting terrifically -- 53%/40%/80%. His eFG% is 5th in the league at .598, which is the highest for any non-center. His True Shooting percentage is 17th. He's also grabbing over 7 rebounds per game as a 3/4 hybrid, and is 12th in steals per game. On the other hand, his usage is still a bit low, since Wall and Beal take up a lot of shots. He also turns 24 in June. So is this a young guy who's finally putting it all together, and primed to become a star, or at least a top-tier #2 option? Or is this a good two months in a walk year from a #3 guy on a mediocre team?
I'm leaning towards thinking he'd be a deserving max player myself. And despite his restricted free agent status, he might be acquirable in free agency next summer. The Wizards have a lot of money tied up next year -- $97 million guaranteed to only 9 players. If Porter is maxed, that could push them to well over $120 million -- maybe even $130 million. Certainly they would be pushing into the luxury tax territory. Meanwhile, the Wizards are one of only three teams to have never paid the luxury tax, and their team might not even make the playoffs this season. Ownership is very cheap -- I find it very hard to believe they'd pay the luxury tax in almost any year, and certainly not one in which they just missed the playoffs. Fans aren't turning up either, as the team is bottom-5 in attendance. And finally compounding their financial matters is the new "designated veteran extension rule." John Wall could be eligible, and he's not happy with his current contract He doesn't like that Beal makes so much more, and if Porter were to also eclipse him, that could be even more problematic. While Wall is still under contract for two more years after this, it would not shock me at all to see him get an extension this summer. I don't know that Washington has the budget to max Porter and Wall in July.
Accordingly, it's conceivable that the Wizards could shy away from matching a max offer sheet for Porter. Should we start adding him into our hypothetical summer of 2017 targets? I say "yes."
Topic: Should Otto Porter be a potential max FA target? (Read 8876 times)