Nets’ Michael Porter Jr. Clears the Air on Sudden Retirement Talk

Four days ago, it appeared the Brooklyn Nets' return on their investment in Michael Porter Jr. would be short-lived. Citing injury concerns, Porter revealed that he doesn't "know how much longer" he wants to play.

Understandably, the comments stirred up speculation regarding exactly "how much longer" Porter would actually be active for, especially heading into his first season with Brooklyn. Today, courtesy of ClutchPoints' Erik Slater, we received some confirmation from Porter directly.

“Basketball is my passion. I want to play as long I can. I think that it’s just easier in my head to be like, man, give it my all, everything I have this year, and then when the year is over, see where I’m at mentally and reevaluate,” Porter said. “But in the back of my mind, obviously, I wanna play as long as my body allows me to. I’ve been through a lot of injuries, but the last few years I’ve been, like you said, pretty much an iron man."

Seven years ago, the end of that statement likely would've triggered some laughs. But in 2025, Porter's words prove true. Over the last three seasons, Porter has played in 220 of 246 regular season games and logged a career-high 33.7 minutes per game in 2024-25. He's gone from one of the NBA's most injury-prone stars to one of the least, meaning the Nets should be able to count on him as an extremely reliable piece going forward.

“I think I played the most games on Denver. Besides that freak shoulder injury during the playoffs, I was pretty comfortable throughout the whole 82-game season and the playoffs. So if that continues, I wanna obviously keep playing as long as I can," he continued.

Porter finds himself in a situation with the Nets where, while winning may not be as easy as it was with the Nuggets, he should be able to have great individual success. Reuniting with Jordi Fernandez in an offensive system that also features Cam Thomas should greatly benefit Porter's production, especially now that he'll be a primary option in Brooklyn's scoring attack.

The Nets had plenty of injuries last season, none more notable than a nagging hamstring issue that kept Thomas sidelined for the majority of the year. He missed 56 games, Cam Johnson missed 25 games and Ziaire Williams missed 19 games—just to name a few.

If the injury bug bites Brooklyn again this upcoming season, it'll need Porter to hold onto his "iron man" identity.