Michael Porter Jr. is fueling a Brooklyn Nets turnaround while playing the best basketball of his career. The supposedly tanking squad won its third straight game with Porter Jr. in the lineup on Saturday, blowing out the New Orleans Pelicans 119-101 at Barclays Center.
Porter Jr. poured in 35 points on 14-of-23 shooting from the field and 5-of-10 from three during the win. The game marked his third-straight 30-point performance after he scored 33 and 35 during victories over the Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls, respectively.
Porter Jr. became the first player in Nets history to record 30-plus points, five-plus rebounds, and five-plus three-pointers in three straight games.
“He makes his teammates’ lives better. He doesn’t play in a selfish way,” Jordi Fernandez said. “The shots he creates — one he’s able to make every shot possible — but when he spaces the floor properly, and when he cuts with pace, and he’s constantly moving, and then he rebounds the ball… that’s just very good for everybody else… So all those things are important, and they don’t go unnoticed. Him talking to all his teammates and the young guys, that shows maturity and adjusting to a new role. [Having] a smile on his face, all that positive energy is contagious. And I think that he’s been a big part of this team coming together.”
Porter Jr. was somewhat of an afterthought nationally after the Denver Nuggets salary-dumped him to the Nets this summer. However, the 27-year-old is playing at an All-Star level as Brooklyn's No. 1 option.
Will Nets trade Michael Porter Jr. amid declining draft lottery odds?
Over his last 13 appearances, Porter Jr. is averaging 28.2 points — the 10th-most in the NBA — on 51/42/83 shooting splits. His 65.2 true shooting percentage during that span leads the league among players attempting 19-plus shots per game.
“I just think the continuity of our offense [is improving]. Guys are just getting used to playing with each other. It’s leading to some good looks for me,” Porter said. “I’m getting a lot of easy looks at the rim, and then from there I’m able to make some jumpers. So I’m trying to focus on playing inside-out. And it’s easy playing with guys like [Nic] Claxton, Day'Ron [Sharpe], [Danny] Wolf, Egor [Demin]. They find me for easy looks.”
Most impressively, Porter Jr.'s career-best statistics have translated to winning. The Nets have posted a 6-7 record over the forward's last 13 appearances with a positive net rating (+0.7) during his minutes.
While the stretch is undoubtedly raising Porter Jr.'s value as an asset, it's pushing the Nets further away from top draft lottery odds and their goal of landing a transformational prospect next June.
Following a 0-7 start, Saturday's win dropped the Nets into a tie for fifth-place in the draft lottery standings. They're 3.5 games behind the Pelicans for the top spot, 2.5 behind the Washington Wizards for second and one behind the Indiana Pacers for third.
The Nets have looked like the superior team during their recent matchups with other tanking squads. They've won their last five games against sub-.500 teams with Porter Jr. in the lineup, posting a +14.8 net rating. Remove him from the equation, and they're 0-4 with two losses to sub-.500 teams, posting a -15.7 net rating.
Along with Porter Jr.'s stellar play, a revamped frontcourt is fueling Brooklyn's recent success. After losing their first seven games, the Nets pivoted to a starting front line of Porter Jr., Noah Clowney and Nic Claxton. That trio has posted a +3.37 net rating in 304 minutes together, according to PBPStats.com.
Following an injury-riddled sophomore campaign, Clowney has turned in a breakout stretch to start this season. The 21-year-old has averaged 16.6 points on 45/40/82 shooting splits over Brooklyn's last 16 games. Meanwhile, Claxton is also playing the best basketball of his career, averaging 13.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.4 blocks on 55.7 percent shooting.
Sean Marks should be feeling pressure to maximize Brooklyn's 2026 first-round selection. The GM traded four first-round picks to the Houston Rockets in June of 2024 to reacquire Brooklyn's 2025 and 2026 first-rounders. One of those four picks was the Phoenix Suns' 2025 first-rounder, which the Nets finished just two spots ahead of in June's draft after exceeding expectations last season.
Nets owner Joe Tsai all but admitted his team's tanking agenda entering this season during a podcast appearance.
“We have one pick in 2026, and we hope to get a good pick. So you can predict what kind of strategy we will use for this season,” Tsai said.
The Nets took steps to improve their 2025-26 tank outlook. They made an NBA-record five first-round picks in June's draft and entered the season with exclusively rookies at point guard. Yet, Porter Jr., Clowney and Claxton's high-level play — and the volume of dreadful teams this season — has once again left Brooklyn on the outside looking in for top-three lottery odds.
Porter Jr. and Claxton will generate trade interest leading up to the Feb. 5 deadline. However, without control of their 2027 first-round pick, the Nets will be trying to take a step back towards contention next season. Both players are young enough to be a part of the team's future plans.
Whether Marks decides to move off Porter Jr. and/or Claxton to maximize Brooklyn's lottery odds will be a top question surrounding the team over the next two months.
