Why Michael Porter Jr. and the Brooklyn Nets are a Perfect Match

The Brooklyn Nets sent shockwaves throughout the NBA when they traded Cameron Johnson to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Michael Porter Jr. and an unprotected 2032 first-round pick.

At the time of the deal, many analysts loved the move for Denver, as they got off Porter Jr.'s contract and brought in a similar dynamic scorer in Johnson. There wasn't as much love for Brooklyn until a recent article from the New York Times, which labeled the Nets' acquisition of Porter Jr. as one of the most underrated moves from this offseason.

In the article written by John Hollinger, he praised the Nets for the move to acquire Porter Jr. this offseason, having the following to say about the trade.

This is precisely how you’re supposed to do it when you have more cap space than talent — turn that space into some truly juicy asset, not just a random late first- or second-round pick. Taking on Terance Mann with three years and $47 million left on his deal to get a pick in the 20s when you already had four others? Meh. Getting an unprotected 2032 first-rounder from the Denver Nuggets to turn Cam Johnson into Michael Porter? Beautiful.

John Hollinger

Hollinger is right about the trade being a great move for Brooklyn on two fronts. First, going from Johnson to Porter Jr. is not some huge drop off. Johnson did great things in Brooklyn, but Porter Jr. has the skillset to thrive in the Nets' offense. During his six-year NBA career, Porter Jr. has had a 50/40/80 shooting split, which is elite. His combination of getting to the rim and finishing, draining threes, and being reliable at the free-throw line will be huge for the Nets.

Porter Jr. is a reliable scorer who has done it in the biggest moments, too. In 2023, during the Nuggets' NBA Championship playoff run, Porter averaged 13.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game while shooting 42.3% from the field and 35.1% from three. The following year, in 12 playoff games, he averaged 15.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while shooting 46.6% from the field and 40.7% from behind the arc. He did all of that while being a third option offensively to Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.

In Brooklyn, Porter Jr. will be the number one offensive option on most nights, joining Cam Thomas as a high-end offensive player on the roster. This will be his chance to shine and really show what he can do on that end of the floor. The Nets will run plenty of plays through him and give him the chance to have a huge breakout season. Trading for Porter Jr. was a great move for a franchise that had money to spend and is trying to find some pieces for the next winning roster in Brooklyn.

And then you throw in the 2032 first-round pick from the Nuggets, and this trade is even sweeter. Jokic will be 37 in 2032, so a Denver falloff by then could be expected. The Nets could keep that pick and acquire a stud rookie or package the pick in a deal for a superstar. It gives Brooklyn plenty of flexibility to be as aggressive or conservative as they want.

While the deal for Porter Jr. didn't receive a lot of love initially, it was the correct move for the Nets and sets them up to potentially be a dark horse play-in team in 2025-26 and maybe even a play-off team soon.