There was no reason to believe that the Denver Nuggets organization was in any sort of turmoil entering the 2023-24 season, especially with Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray leading the way. But this past Monday morning, Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth made waves when he explained away his rationale for trading away Bones Hyland to the Los Angeles Clippers in an interview with Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer, and in the process of doing so, appeared to take some shots at Michael Porter Jr.'s playstyle.

Porter, as one would recall, was an instrumental part of the Nuggets' run to the championship back in June, so it was a bit jarring to see Booth imply that MPJ was someone “who couldn't guard” and was someone who was more of a “me guy”. While Porter's shot-chucking ways and lackluster defense are well-known among fans, it was still odd for a general manager, of all people, to acknowledge that on the record.

Now determined to stifle the backlash that has come since then from those comments, the Nuggets general manager explained that he's not the kind of person who would make such comments in a public setting.

“Under no circumstances would I make or approve of those kind of comments for public consumption. That’s not my character, as a person or an executive,” Booth said on the ESPN2 broadcast, via Mike Singer of the Denver Post.

The Nuggets GM also stated that what he purportedly said in his interview with Kevin O'Connor “wasn't an accurate characterization” of both Michael Porter Jr. and Bones Hyland, and he then called the former a “core piece” of the franchise.

It's unclear what happened behind the scenes during Calvin Booth's interview with the Ringer that he had to retract his statements that were quoted verbatim. Did Booth not know that he was going on the record? It's difficult to believe that O'Connor would attribute a certain quote to a prominent personality without their consent given the repercussions of such a deed.

Whatever the case may be, it's clear that the Nuggets are limiting the damage that came from a piece that was supposed to hype up the franchise, as the last thing they need is to alienate Michael Porter Jr. and drive a wedge between him and the franchise.