The Denver Nuggets made one of the NBA's most aggressive moves this summer. Following two consecutive second-round exits, they traded Michael Porter Jr. and an unprotected 2032 first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Cam Johnson.
Porter Jr. was an integral piece to Denver's 2023 championship run. However, he struggled last playoffs while playing through a shoulder sprain, averaging 9.1 points and 5.5 rebounds on 39/34/71 shooting splits.
The forward revealed on Tuesday at Nets media day that he could “barely lift his shoulder” during the playoffs. He added that he felt his struggles while playing hurt led to Denver trading him.
“When I had that injury, they told me it's a three or four-month injury, like you're probably done for the playoffs,” Porter Jr. said on YES Network. “But at that point, I didn't feel like our team was deep enough to compete for a championship if I wasn't at least out there as a decoy. I was putting myself in harm's way from the media, the fans who were seeing me struggle and seeing me not being able to perform. Eventually, I kinda got traded for it.”
Even with Porter Jr. injured, the Nuggets took the eventual champion Oklahoma City Thunder to seven games.
Michael Porter Jr. opens up on playing through injury with Nuggets, trade to Nets
Despite the Nuggets moving on from him this offseason, Porter Jr. has no regrets about playing through his injury.
“It was a risk, but it was a risk I was willing to take and something I would do all over again,” Porter Jr. added. “I feel like, as an NBA player, we get paid a lot of money to sacrifice our bodies. And even if you're not 100 percent, it's the playoffs. So I kinda felt like, ‘What am I saving myself for?' Even if I'm gonna get scrutiny from people, just go out there and risk it. And if it happens again next year and I'm in the playoffs and I'm not 100 percent, I'm going out there, regardless.”
While Porter Jr. feels his playoff struggles contributed to his getting traded, financials undoubtedly played a significant role in Devner's decision. Swapping Porter Jr.'s $38.3 million salary for Johnson's $21 million allowed the Nuggets to dip below the luxury tax and reset the repeater tax with a Christian Braun extension looming.
Johnson likely presents a slight upgrade over Porter Jr. Denver also added Tim Hardaway Jr. and Bruce Brown on minimum contracts and acquired Jonas Valančiūnas in a trade.
Porter Jr. feels Denver has everything it needs to win another championship. He added that he's looking forward to getting revenge during his first matchup against his former team.
“They can win another title. I'm not even gonna lie. You got Joker, you got Jamal. They're getting better. They got Cam Johnson, a great player. They got Bruce back. Julian Strawther's a year older. Peyton Watson, Christian Braun. Yeah, they could definitely do it,” he said on Respectfully The Justin Laboy Show. “But I do know, when we play them, it's going to be up, for sure. It's gonna be fun. I'm gonna go at them dudes. I know they're gonna go at me. It's gonna be really fun because I wanna show them like, ‘Yo, I'm in a whole different role now in Brooklyn.' When my shoulder's healthy and I'm feeling good, like that's going to be a fun game, for sure.”
