Michael Porter Jr. Declares For NBA Draft

Missouri freshman power forward Michael Porter Jr. has declared for the 2018 NBA Draft, per an announcement from his Instagram. 

“Man, it’s been a crazy year but I feel so blessed to be in the position I’m at,” Porter said in the video. “I want to thank Mizzou nation, my coaches and my teammates for the incredible support I’ve received ever since I committed to the university. I wish I could have been on the floor with my brothers every single night. But I’m so thankful to have been part of such a special group. A special thank you goes out to my family, y’all have been there for me through it all and I just want to let you know how much you mean to me. With that being said, after talking it over with my coaches and my family, I would like to announce that I’m declaring for the 2018 NBA Draft.”

Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets that Porter will soon hire an agent. Porter is widely expected to be a high lottery selection; some consider him a possible first overall pick, but his back injury could adversely affect his stock.

The 19-year-old entered his freshman year with a lot of hype, but suffered a serious back injury just two minutes into the season. The procedure –a microdiscectomy of the L3-L4 spinal discs — sidelined Porter until the SEC tournament. He played in two games this month, both losses.

In total, Porter appeared in three games with the Tigers, averaging 10.0 PPG and 6.7 RPG.

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