Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr took on his former team, the Denver Nuggets, on Sunday. It was a special game for Porter, since it was the first time he faced the team that drafted him after he was traded over the summer. His excitement resulted in a 127-115 win for the Nets, as he led the team with 27 points.
Porter has been playing like a star in his first season with the Nets. And when it came time to face his former team, he didn’t hold back. The 6-foot-11 forward added 11 rebounds and five assists to his statsheet. He was also highly efficient from the field, shooting 47.1%.
After the game, Porter opened up that he was looking forward to playing the Nuggets.
“I was excited for that first match really since I’ve been traded…I was looking forward to playing against those guys,” Porter said. “For sure it’s been circled on my calendar for a minute…So it was fun.”
Through 26 games, Michael Porter Jr is averaging 25.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists (all career-highs). Porter has proven that he’s got what it takes to be an elite scorer in the league. With the Nuggets, although he scored whenever he could, his role was different. He played a background role to Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.
With the Nets, he’s taken things to a new level, especially when it comes to scoring.
Michael Porter Jr revealed he was nervous against the Nuggets
Facing the Nuggets wasn’t a joke for Michael Porter Jr. It was the team with which he won a championship, and they helped him establish a career in the NBA. That’s why Porter revealed that he was looking forward to the first time the two teams faced each other.
The former No. 14 pick told the media that he was “nervous” playing against Denver compared to most games he’s played.
“I probably felt a little bit more nervous for this one than a lot of games so it was fun, though,” Porter said.
Porter averaged 16.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists over his six seasons with the Nuggets. During his time in Denver, he developed into a reliable supporting player behind the team’s star duo. The forward also won a championship with the team in 2023.
Now, Michael Porter Jr is carving a different path in his NBA career.
