Denver Nuggets rookie Michael Porter Jr. continues to struggle with an ailing back injury. According to a report from Harrison Wind of BSNDenver.com, the 20-year-old forward underwent surgery of the lumbar spine last week at The Carrell Clinic in Dallas, TX.
Michael Porter Jr. has undergone surgery of the lumbar spine at The Carrell Clinic in Dallas, TX. The Procedure was performed by Dr. Andrew Dossett. There is no timetable for his return to basketball participation, Nuggets say.
— Harrison Wind (@HarrisonWind) July 19, 2018
Porter Jr. is a promising young player, to be sure. However, injuries have kept him out of commission for quite a while. In fact, he missed all of this year's Summer League tournament due to back issues, and hip spasms nearly caused him to miss a pro day before the Draft, though he was cleared to participate after passing an MRI check.
Injury concerns prompted most teams to pass on Porter in the Draft, but the Nuggets felt good about taking the former McDonald's All-American with the 14th overall pick.
Steve Aschburner of NBA.com reports that this latest procedure led to a “greater understanding” of his herniated-disks condition, and it is not “their plan” for Porter to sit out the upcoming season.
Porter appeared in just three games with the Missouri Tigers last season due to injury complications, averaging 10 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 33.3 percent.
Via Khadrice Rollins of Sports Illustrated:
“During his one season at Missouri, Porter spent most of the year recovering from a spinal surgery that was initially supposed to keep him out for the entire year. He left two minutes into the season opener due to a hip injury that led to him undergoing a microdiscectomy on the L3-L4 spinal discs.”
Porter signed a rookie contract earlier this month, which will pay him roughly $2.9 million in 2018-19. Let's see if this surgery brings him closer to recovery.
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