Craig Porter Jr. plays thankless role for Cavaliers this season

Craig Porter Jr. has earned his keep with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The former Vincennes University and Wichita State basketball standout went undrafted in the 2023 NBA Draft before signing a two-way deal with the Cavaliers just months later.

Through his three years in Cleveland, he has been assigned back and forth between the main roster and the G-League team. No matter where he's been, Porter Jr. has welcomed each challenge and opportunity.

"I was challenged by the head coach, so that was a big thing for me," Porter said ahead of the 2025-26 campaign. "And really just my whole career, I feel like it's based off of how I accept challenges and how I attack. So this being a big one — I mean, conditioning is a part of basketball — but I feel like people play their best … when they can fight that fatigue."

To start the 2025-26 NBA season, the Cavaliers have been without two critical guards, Darius Garland and Max Strus, due to injury. In their place, Porter Jr. has risen to the occasion night in and night out.

On Monday, Oct. 29, the Cavaliers traveled to Detroit to take on the Pistons and he looked exceptional. He scored four points, hauled in seven rebounds, dished off three assists and recorded three steals. That type of night goes thankless, especially in a world where people want to see 50+ point games, but what Porter Jr. did was critical for the team.

He played a season high 23 minutes of action and took use of his chances.

Back on Friday, he had another really good outing. He scored 14 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field and 2-for-2 from deep. He also brought down two rebounds, dished off two assists and grabbed one steal. The Cavaliers went on to win that game, 131-124.

His season averages are now popped up to 6.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 58.8% from the field and 37.5% from three-point range. Currently, Porter Jr. is playing a career-high average of nearly 16 minutes a night.

While that number will take a hit when the rest of the Cavaliers return from injury, Porter Jr. is carving out a nice role for himself.

But it's also what he does on the court that doesn't end up in the stat sheet. He has been flying up and down on both ends, showing a knack for conditioning and being a hustle player off the bench.

"Man, the work paid off," head coach Kenny Atkinson said about Porter Jr. "It starts with his body. It really starts with his conditioning. I'm not saying he was a poorly conditioned athlete [before]. He was probably in the average range, and now he's pushed himself to the 90th percentile of conditioning … so credit to him."

The Cavaliers, unfortunately, lost guard Sam Merrill to an injury on Monday against Detroit, so Porter Jr. may get a big jump in minutes where his conditioning will come in handy.

Up next, the Cavaliers look to take on the Boston Celtics on the road from TD Garden. The two sides will clash on Wednesday, Oct. 29, with tip-off slated for 7:00 p.m.

Then, the NBA Cup will begin just days later for the group stage, beginning on Friday, Oct. 31, against the Toronto Raptors.,

With a busy week ahead, Porter Jr. and the rest of the Cavaliers' bench will be heavily relied upon to provide relief to this break-neck pace that the starters are playing at.