Kevin Porter Jr. took only 26 minutes to reach a triple-double — 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 14 assists — in the Milwaukee Bucks’ 134-107 rout of the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday.
In doing so, the trade deadline addition from the Los Angeles Clippers managed to make a little history of his own on a night when teammate Giannis Antetokounmpo joined the 20,000-point club, center Brook Lopez moved into the #19 all-time spot for career blocked shots and Damian Lillard moved up to #41 on the all-time assists list.
Porter Jr. now ranks in a tie for No. 10 all-time in fewest minutes played with a triple-double. Among the seven other players who’ve matched that feat are three players with multiple MVPs: Karl Malone, Nicola Jokic, and Antetokounmpo.
“I’m just proud of him for that,” Lillard told reporters after the game. “I just love to see him getting this opportunity and him growing into it and helping our team.”
Earlier, Antetokounmpo had declared Porter Jr. the “steal” of the NBA Trade Deadline. It’s not a far-fetched claim. Porter Jr. came to the Bucks in exchange for little-used forward Marjon Beauchamp.
A month later, Beauchamp is now on a two-way contract with the New York Knicks after being waived by the Clippers. Porter Jr. has quickly earned the trust of Bucks teammates and coach Doc Rivers, averaging 9.2 points in 13.8 minutes a game. Porter Jr., whose previous stops were marred by off-court behavioral issues, has talked about how welcomed and embraced he feels by Milwaukee’s veterans and coaching staff.
Wednesday’s win also spotlighted the successful transition by Milwaukee’s two other main trade deadline pickups: forward Kyle Kuzma, who’s started every game since arriving in a trade for Khris Middleton, and center Jericho Sims, who’s seen significantly more playing time in the absence of Bucks’ stalwart Bobby Portis, who’s serving a 25-game suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.
“I love the way they’ve been playing,” said Giannis Antetokounmpo. “We need that energy from them. They’ve been doing that the last nine games.”
Up next: the Bucks have back-to-back home games against the Orlando Magic on Saturday night and against the East-leading Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.
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