Michael Porter Jr. has thrown shade at coach Michael Malone in the wake of the Denver Nuggets’ two-point loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.

Porter Jr. had 23 points on 9-12 shooting in the loss, but despite that he sat for nearly the entire last 16 minutes of the game, with the exception of the Nuggets’ penultimate possession.

In the postgame locker room, Porter Jr. made his dissatisfaction relatively clear without explicitly stating as much. When asked about finding a rhythm, the 24-year-old responded, “(He) sat me the whole fourth quarter and put me in with 20 seconds left, I think. So, I mean it’s impossible to catch a rhythm then”.

After sitting down with 4:39 to go in the third quarter, Porter Jr. would typically have come back in during the early stages of the fourth. Instead, he was overlooked for Christian Braun, with the rookie guard’s ability to improve Denver's struggling defense likely a major reason why.

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The Nuggets have the second best offensive rating in the league this season behind only the Sacramento Kings. MVP favorite Nikola Jokic is the clear catalyst for that. Porter Jr.’s outside capabilities are certainly a contributing factor. Defensively, however, they are no more than a mid-tier side, mirroring Porter Jr himself, whose work on the defensive side of the ball is substantially inferior to what he can do at the other end of the floor.

With the playoffs in sight and the Nuggets set to most likely finish on top of the Western Conference, their defense will no doubt be a major focus for Michael Malone over the coming weeks. Michael Porter Jr will be an important part of their postseason run. But if his defense doesn’t improve, he can expect further frustrations with his coach’s lineup choices.