Top Recruit Otto Porter Succeeds Without Summer Ball

Summer basketball has forever changed the high school basketball landscape. Sentiment is divided as to whether the overall impact has been negative or positive, but few would argue the path to major Division I basketball leads through the summer circuit.

However, one athlete has defied the odds in earning a spot amongst the top 50 players in the country. Otto Porter, the 6-foot-9 forward from Scott County Central in Missouri, has received major college offers from Missouri and Georgetown having played basketball only for his high school.

And while one could point and say, "There's an example of a player doing it the right way," let's take a look at just how "right" Porter had to be.

• Missouri record holder for career final four points (191).
• Missouri state championship single game record holder for rebounds (35).
• Star player for team that won three consecutive state championships

If anything, Porter serves as an example for just how hard it is to be seen without summer basketball. I commend Missouri and Georgetown for aggressively pursuing Porter first, but one is left speculating if Duke or North Carolina would be in the mix had Porter played the circuit.