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Following the 2020-21 season, the Denver Nuggets had high hopes for Michael Porter Jr. In his first full season as a starter, Porter averaged 19.0 points and 7.3 rebounds on an uber-efficient 54.2 percent shooting from the field and 44.5 percent from beyond the arc on 6.3 attempts per contest. Deservedly, Porter signed a five-year, maximum contract extension with the Nuggets as he looked like the third star the team needed to get over the hump.
Since then, however, a few difficulties have slowed down Porter and his ascent. In 2021, just nine games into the season, Porter injured his back and proceeded to miss the rest of the season. After that unfortunate injury, he hasn't yet reclaimed the heights he reached during his stellar 2020-21 campaign.
Now, the Nuggets have had to make difficult decisions to maneuver around Michael Porter Jr.'s huge contract. They had to let the likes of Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope walk as a result. But for Porter, carrying the weight of expectations that comes with his hefty price tag has also been wearing him down.
“Man, the money almost honestly sometimes makes it a little bit harder to enjoy the game because with a max contract comes a lot of expectations on consistency, on you’re supposed to be an All-Star, you’re supposed to be this, that, whatever they say,” Porter said in an appearance on the Off Guard podcast with Austin Rivers, via HoopsHype.
Such is the reality in the business that is the NBA. A player's salary must be commensurate to their impact for their respective teams. Has Michael Porter Jr.'s play been a disappointment relative to his contract? Not really; after all, the Nuggets won a championship with him playing a crucial supporting role.
But there are fans who feel as though Porter hasn't reached the potential he displayed during his first full year as a starter for the Nuggets. He has mostly settled in as a third banana catch-and-shoot guy who provides some shot creation off the dribble instead of being a star scorer on the wing.
Make no mistake about it, however; the Nuggets forward loves the game with all his being even though the outside noise surrounding the job can be a distraction from time to time.
“I would play basketball, you know, before my injuries. You know, now it’s a little different, like it sometimes feels like a job, but I love basketball so much. I would have played this game for free as long as I could eat. I loved it. So like, the money—that was never my goal. My goal was to be like, take this as far as I could take it, be as good as I could be,” Porter added.
The Nuggets will need more from Michael Porter Jr. next season
In consecutive offseasons, the Nuggets lost crucial wing pieces in Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope via free agency. Denver is heading into the 2024-25 season in dire need of an emergence from the likes of Christian Braun and Julian Strawther, while they will also need Russell Westbrook to reel in the recklessness and play within the system.
But Michael Porter Jr., as the third-highest earner on the Nuggets, should take initiative and seize a larger role in the offense alongside Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. Head coach Michael Malone should also be more proactive in utilizing Porter's skillset more as the best floor-spacer on the team.
