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Elite recruit Michael Porter will follow his dad to Washington

Michael Porter Jr. (AP)
Michael Porter Jr. (AP)

One of the top prospects in the 2017 class is spurning higher-profile offers and following his father to Washington.

Michael Porter Jr., an athletic 6-foot-8 small forward, announced via Twitter on Friday evening that he has committed to the Huskies. Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and Missouri were among the other programs pursuing Rivals.com’s No. 2 prospect.

Washington emerged as the clear favorite to land Porter after Lorenzo Romar hired his father, Michael Porter Sr., as an assistant coach in May. Romar had already been heavily recruiting Michael Jr. for years and also previously secured a commitment from younger brother Jontay Porter last August.

While luring Michael Jr. was surely part of the impetus for hiring his dad, this isn’t quite as cynical a move as when Larry Brown hired Danny Manning’s father at Kansas or John Calipari invented a job for DaJuan Wagner’s father at Memphis.

Romar has been a close friend of Michael Sr. since they played together for Athletes in Action in the 1980s and he is godfather to Michael Jr. The elder Porter also has ample coaching experience, first as an AAU coach in Indiana and most recently as an assistant coach for the Missouri women’s basketball team.

“I’ve known him for many years and he will be a very valuable addition to our coaching staff,” Romar said in May. “Mike has a very high level of experience in player development and also provides a network of recruiting in the Midwest that we have not really been able to tap into. There’s no doubt he will help our program continue to grow and be a great mentor to our guys.”

Landing Porter Jr. is another huge recruiting coup for a Washington program that has attracted top talent in recent years. First-round picks Dejounte Murray and Marquese Chriss were the centerpieces of a decorated 2015 class. Markelle Fultz, maybe the top point guard prospect in the nation, arrives this fall. And Porter will headline a 2017 class that also includes point guard Blake Harris and top 100 shooting guard Jaylen Nowell.

The big issue for Washington of late has been molding its young talent into a winning team. The Huskies have not made the NCAA tournament since 2011, putting pressure on Romar despite his track record of success and his recent recruiting coups.

But with Fultz on his way next season and Porter coming the following year, the future is bright at Washington.

Two of the top players in their respective classes are Seattle-bound. Now it’s up to Romar to build around them.

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!