Can Nets' Michael Porter Jr. Expand His Game Beyond Scoring?

After trading Cam Johnson, the team’s second-leading scorer over the past two years, for Michael Porter Jr., the Brooklyn Nets are expecting their new acquisition to step up as one of the team’s primary scorers.

Throughout his six-year NBA career, Porter Jr. has proven to be a skilled scorer who has demonstrated an ability to be efficient while putting up shots at a consistent volume.

Last year, Porter Jr. saw the most playing time of his career (33.7 minutes per game) while averaging 18.2 points per game (second-most of his career), shooting 50.4% from the field and 39.5% from beyond the arc. His best season as a scorer came during his second year in the NBA, when he averaged a career-high 19 points per game while also posting the best shooting percentages of his career (54.2% from field-goal range, 44.5% from three).

However, the Nets would greatly benefit if Porter Jr. developed into a more well-rounded player, evolving into a more reliable defender while also taking advantage of extra opportunities as a distributor.

As a prospect coming out of Nathan Hale High School in Seattle, Porter Jr. was a five-star recruit viewed as a future star and two-way contributor. But a back injury that required a microdiscectomy of his L3-L4 spinal discs has limited his mobility since his lone season at Missouri.

Although Porter Jr. was a defensive liability during his first few seasons in Denver, he has made some significant improvements as a defender in recent years. According to CraftedNBA, the Missouri product ranked among the league's 78th percentile in defensive versatility, and the 76th percentile in rim frequency (the percentage of opponent's shot attempts at the rim that the player is able to contest).

After holding his own against superstar Luka Doncic, former Nuggets head coach Michael Malone highlighted Porter Jr.'s defensive improvements and increased effort.

"What Michael is showing me is that he cares," Malone said. “He bought into playing defense, to trying, and realizing that if he doesn’t, he’s not going to be in there at the end of the games. And Michael Porter hates coming out at the end of the game. So he realizes, ‘OK, coach will play me if I’m trying.'”

If the Nets rely on Porter Jr. as an offensive playmaker, rather than a spot-up shooter, he will have the opportunity to set up his teammates with scoring opportunities as defenses converge on him.

While he may not be viewed as a top-tier passer, he has recently shown a willingness to distribute and totaled the most assists (2.1 assists per game) of his career last season. While his most impactul production is expected to come as a scorer, Porter Jr. could bring Brooklyn's offense to another level with some tweaks to his game.