Cuonzo Martin Hire Could Set Stage For 5-Star Michael Porter Jr. At Missouri


Cuonzo Martin was formally introduced as Missouri head men’s basketball coach on Monday. Now, Tiger eyes shift toward the potential recruitment of five-star prospect Michael Porter Jr.


Missouri athletic director Jim Sterk decided to retool the school’s basketball program after an 8-24 season, dismissing Kim Anderson and poaching Cuonzo Martin from Cal. The former Golden Bears head coach was formally introduced as the new program-builder in Columbia on Monday.

“This is a special day to me,” Martin declared. “It feels like home.”

When Golden Bears AD Mike Williams released a statement confirming the news of Martin’s departure, he noted that the former Purdue star had a “strong desire to move closer to home.” Martin, who is a native of East St. Louis, IL, has no plans to go elsewhere any time soon.

“If Missouri plans to keep me for 20 years, then I plan to be here for 20 years,” he said. “This is it for me.”

Martin’s contract at Mizzou is for seven years and $21 million guaranteed.

While Tiger fans should be excited about potential stability and a brighter future for the hoops program, many want to know whether Mizzou can land arguably the best player in the Class of 2017—and they could be getting a big clue when Martin starts assembling his coaching staff.

Cuonzo Martin will try to make Missouri an annual NCAA Tournament contender. (Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports)

Per his contract, Martin will be allowed to spend $1.1 million on his staff, which includes support positions. That figure is expected to be dispersed among six positions. Perhaps the most important spot is being reserved for Michael Porter Sr., most recently an assistant under Lorenzo Romar at Washington. Romar was fired last week after a long stint in Seattle. Porter Sr. just so happens to be the father of Michael Porter Jr., who won the Naismith Trophy High School Player of the Year award on Monday.

The 6-foot-9 forward from Nathan Hale (Seattle), whom many consider the No. 1 recruit in the nation for the 2017 class, averaged 34.8 points and 13.8 rebounds per game in his senior year, which culminated with a 28-point, 17-rebound effort in the Raiders’ 68-51 victory in the Washington state 3A title game.

If Martin hires Porter Sr., many recruiting analysts believe that Michael Jr. and brother Jontay, also a forward who is expected to reclassify to the Class of 2017, could follow because both players intended to play at Washington for Romar, who is Michael’s godfather, before he was axed. And while Michael signed a letter of intent with U-Dub, school officials have said they would release any player who asked for it following Romar’s firing. Meanwhile, Jontay announced late last week that he has reopened his recruitment.

When asked about the Porter family on Monday, Martin remarked that he could not discuss recruiting, citing NCAA rules.

“One thing I try to do is respect everyone’s privacy,” Martin said. “Not trying to be evasive, but out of respect to the current coaches and out of respect to my guys, I want to be careful there. But being that he was a coach at Washington, I do know who he is, yes.”

If the Tigers are able to land the Porter brothers, particularly Michael, it would be a real boost to a program that has fallen on hard times, which has resulted in a general lack of interest from some fans and alums.

Attendance has been way down at Mizzou Arena, so newfound energy was needed for the program. Martin is a nice start, and a quick bounce back is possible considering the team’s facilities are good, and the SEC is fairly wide-open outside of Kentucky’s dominance. There are annually very good prospects in the St. Louis and Kansas City areas, so Martin is expected to do much better than Anderson did on the recruiting front. Of course, the biggest fish would be Porter Jr.

If off-the-court issues that have caught the eyes of the NCAA come to pass, Missouri basketball could be in for a major upswing under the 45-year-old Martin. He has taken Tennessee and Cal to the NCAA Tournament after a successful first head-coaching stint at Missouri State, and he has proven to be a good recruiter. Former Golden Bear Jaylen Brown went on to become the No. 3 overall pick in last year’s NBA Draft, while current Bear Ivan Rabb could be a first-round selection this year.

Perhaps Michael Porter Jr. will be next in line to make the jump to the NBA after getting tutelage from Martin. It’s rare that the hiring of an assistant coach would be so high-profile, but that’s exactly what the case will be if Porter Sr. lands in Columbia.

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