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Suffice to say, this offseason is shaping up to be a less-than-ideal one for the 2023 NBA champion Denver Nuggets. Not only did they lose Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency after the 3-and-D wing signed a three-year, $66 million deal with the Orlando Magic, they also lost 2024 first-round pick DaRon Holmes II to a season-ending Achilles injury. The Nuggets, however, set their sights on a blockbuster move earlier in the offseason that could have changed the whole dynamic of the team.
The Nuggets reportedly “flirted with” the idea of trading away Michael Porter Jr. in an opt-in and trade scenario with the Los Angeles Clippers for Paul George, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. George would have provided an upgrade over Porter on the defensive end, while the 34-year-old wing also shot the ball better from beyond the arc last season. Clearly, however, a trade did not materialize, what with George signing with the Philadelphia 76ers on a four-year, $212 million deal.
Porter's contract will be worth around $35.9 million for the 2024-25 season, and it's his huge contract that continues to take up a considerable chunk of the Nuggets' cap space. His huge deal played a huge part in complicating the Nuggets' bid to retain Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, so it's understandable why they entertained the idea of trading him away in a bid to get a two-way upgrade.
At the end of the day, Fischer noted that the Clippers may not have been too keen on taking on Michael Porter Jr.'s contract anyway. The Clippers did not want to trade George to the Golden State Warriors so they could maintain financial flexibility. Acquiring Porter and his contract would have meant that they would exceed the second tax apron.
The Nuggets will still be one of the best teams in the association next season; this will be the case for as long as Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray are on the team. But it's evident that the team got around them worse. Can the Nuggets front office bounce back?
Is Michael Porter Jr. overpaid?
When the Nuggets signed Michael Porter Jr. to a five-year, $179 million extension in September 2021, he was coming off a very impressive season in which he averaged 19 points per game on 54/45/79 splits — stellar efficiency numbers. His true shooting percentage was at 66.3 — a marvelous number usually reserved for big men. Porter, meanwhile, is a perimeter player who took nearly half of his shots that season from beyond the arc, making that feat all the more impressive.
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Thus, the Nuggets were well justified in handing out that contract to Porter at the time. He was only entering his age-23 season; player progression may not be linear, but Porter was improving at a rapid rate, and playing alongside an all-time great playmaker in Nikola Jokic would only serve to make the game that much easier for him.
However, Michael Porter Jr. has a long history of back problems, which caused him to slide in the 2018 NBA Draft to the Nuggets in the first place. He missed the entirety of the 2018-19 season due to these back issues, and to start the 2021-22 season, Porter's injury woes resurfaced. His back problems limited him to nine games during that season, and since then, he hasn't been able to replicate the heights of his stellar 2020-21 campaign.
Porter is still one of the most efficient gunners in the association, which makes him very valuable in a league that remains heavily-reliant on outside shooting. But the other facets of his game haven't developed as much; he remains a shoot-first, shoot-second player, so his impact off the bounce is limited, and his defense, while he tries hard, isn't the greatest. Porter is not overpaid, per se, but he certainly has to do more for the team given the Nuggets' financial commitment towards him.
Assessing the Nuggets' roster
The Nuggets, in losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, will have to start Christian Braun. Braun is an athletic guard who can move his feet well defensively, but he doesn't have nearly as much gravity as Caldwell-Pope does from the perimeter. There will be less space for the Nuggets offense to operate in, although Braun is an eager mover off the ball, so it's not like the Nuggets' offense will be completely hamstrung. Teams can only do so much against a Nikola Jokic-led offense after all.
The bench, however, is a major concern. Peyton Watson figures to have a bigger role in Year 3, and Dario Saric should provide some playmaking and shooting, but aside from those two, there are plenty of question marks for the Nuggets. Is Julian Strawther ready to step up in his sophomore campaign? Will Zeke Nnaji prove himself worthy of the contract extension he signed?
